The Colorado Rockies have to figure out how to pitch at Coors Field.
Since the team's inception in 1993, moving to Coors Field in 1995, installing a humidor in 2002, and throwing just about everything they can at the wall, a pitching formula for success in Colorado has eluded them.
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The pitching staff's struggles, particularly the starting rotation, in 2026 did not escape president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta in his first year at the helm
. This offseason appears primed to go back to the drawing board to continue diving into the problem of finding successful starting pitching. One of the major factors is a realization that it takes mental fortitude to tackle the beast without fear and simply outpitch the other guy. This has led DePodesta to seek out advice from former Rockies pitcher Pedro Astacio
about what it takes to approach Coors Field as a player.
Looking back to the past and relying on the wisdom and examples of players is always a valuable resource in baseball. The issue with past Rockies front offices was that instead of learning from examples, they simply tried to replicate them, hence the years of pitching to contact and throwing sinkers like Aaron Cook. Today, let's look back on a few examples of successful starting pitchers at Coors Field.
For the sake of this article, these are all pitchers with at least 90 innings thrown at Coors Field in a Rockies uniform.
Ubaldo Jiménez
The best place to start is by looking at the best Rockies starter in franchise history.
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In 65 starts at Coors Field as a Rockie, Ubaldo Jiménez posted a sparkling 3.68 ERA, which is the lowest among starters in team history (min. 90 innings). That mark isn't just a consequence of spectacular defense behind him, either, as his 3.82 FIP also ranks as the best in team history at home.
Jiménez was an electric arm that could easily overpower opposing hitters. While he was a little more wild at times with a 9.5% walk rate, he complemented that with a nearly 20% strikeout rate at home. The fastball was certainly his calling card — dialing up to 100 mph — but his slider regularly generated a whiff rate over 30% during his time with Colorado, while the curveball, changeup, and splitter contributed their fair share of swings and misses.
Jiménez was more than just a power pitcher trying to rack up strikeouts. His arsenal allowed him to limit opponents to a .244 AVG while inducing a 48.7% ground ball rate. The ability to miss bats and generate softer contact made him a threat every time out. Despite the walks, Jiménez could always rely on his ability to get batters out and he was rarely ever rattled when something didn't go his way.
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Jason Marquis
Folks often forget about the incredible season Jason Marquis had with the Rockies in 2009 and the major role he played in making the playoffs that season. Traded from the Chicago Cubs, Marquis put up the best season of his career as he became an All-Star and was valued at 3.5 rWAR. He went 15-13 with the Rockies that season and posted a 4.04 ERA in 33 starts, tossing a whopping 216 innings.
What stood out was Marquis's success at Coors Field where, in 16 starts, he posted a 3.92 ERA. What made him successful despite a 10.3% walk rate (the second-highest for a starter at home) and a 12.9% strikeout rate was that he relied heavily on his sinker, slider, and changeup to induce ground balls at a 58.8% rate.
Naturally, a player who relies on sinkers near the bottom of the zone is going to have a higher walk rate, but Marquis escaped damage with double-play balls and avoided home runs. At Coors Field, he allowed just five of his 15 home runs on the season. But what made him most valuable is that ability to be a workhorse
Across 105.2 innings of work at Coors Field, Marquis had just two starts that lasted less than five innings. On top of that, he had 13 starts go six innings or more. The fewest pitches he threw in an outing was 77 over four innings on the road in Los Angeles. Nine of his Coors Field starts saw him throw over 100 pitches, including multiple starts with over 120 pitches across eight-plus innings.
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Marquis was a bulldog on the mound, attacking hitters with complete confidence in his stuff and the determination that he was going to outlast the other starter and give the Rockies a chance to win.
Jorge De La Rosa
One of the top pitchers in franchise history, Jorge De La Rosa became a reliable arm during his years in Colorado. He ranks at the top of franchise lists in most categories for good reason, as he spent nine years in a Rockies uniform. As a result, he has a vast sample size of time at Coors Field, where in 99 starts, De La Rosa had a 4.36 ERA across 561.1 innings of work
De La Rosa wasn't an overpowering pitcher, but he was savvy and had mental fortitude. He managed to neutralize the harsh Coors Field environment with a reliance on his off-speed and breaking pitches, particularly a split-finger changeup. Despite the lack of power pitches, De La Rosa still managed a 20.7% strikeout rate against a 9.3% walk rate. He induced plenty of ground balls along with weak fly balls through his career with the Rockies.
De La Rosa's confidence on the mound was demonstrated by his ability to pitch backwards and throw any of his pitches in any count. The ability to be confident in his entire arsenal is crucial for a pitcher in Colorado, and De La Rosa was a great example of that. He could mix his fastball and split-finger up and down while disrupting time with his unique delivery.
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While many pitchers let Coors Field dictate their strategy, De La Rosa adapted his repertoire to rely on gravity-based movement and coincide with his aggressive and resilient approach to prevent a compounding of errors.
Conclusion
There are certainly plenty more pitchers we could talk about (perhaps we'll save that for another time), but these three examples are a great place to start. You can certainly look for certain archetypes and profiles that will fit at Coors Field; that's just part of the game, but you also have to find a way to emphasize the intangible aspects that aren't found in a stat sheet.
Colorado is a tough place to pitch, but it's not impossible to have success there. Mindset and repertoire are important, and the Rockies would do well to keep looking for those who aren't just trying to conquer and solve Coors Field, but learn how to be a successful pitcher that just happens to play at Coors Field.
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