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Grading the Rockies’ Trade Deadline

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It was a very active trade deadline in Major League Baseball this season. This article will grade how the Colorado Rockies did on each of their trades and how they fared overall. The Rockies got started early when they traded veteran third baseman Ryan McMahon to the New York Yankees. Two more trades followed closer to the deadline, with righties Tyler Kinley and Jake Bird getting traded to the Atlanta Braves and Yankees, respectively.

Jun 13, 2025; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Colorado Rockies third base Ryan McMahon (24) hits a home run against the Atlanta Braves during the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

Grading the Rockies’ 2025 Trade Deadline

Ryan McMahon Has New Pinstripes

For the past three years, amid the worst seasons in Rockies’ history, McMahon has repeatedly been mentioned as a trade candidate. That discussion reached a fever pitch last season when McMahon was having an All-Star first half. This season, he has been up-and-down offensively, but the Rockies managed to get a deal done.

The 30-year-old McMahon does not fit in the rebuilding Rockies’ timeline, and getting his remaining $32 million off their payroll is a big win for the club. As the Rockies do every deadline, they did not miss the opportunity to acquire more pitching through trade. LHP Griffin Herring and RHP Josh Grosz, both pitchers who have not moved past High-A, will be assigned to the High-A Spokane Indians in the Rockies’ farm system.

The Rockies as an organization always need to be proactive, accumulating pitching through the draft and trades. They did so here, while getting the Yankees to pay the remainder of McMahon’s contract. McMahon has not been the same offensive player he was last season, reducing his trade value. The Rockies could have undoubtedly received a better haul if they had traded McMahon last season, but better late than never.

What Herring and Grosz Bring to the Rockies

Herring, 22, was drafted in the sixth round of the 2024 draft out of Louisiana State University. His best pitch is a sweeping slider in the mid-80s that works well against both lefties and righties. His fastball is in the low-90s and tops out at 94 mph. Herring has been great in the minors in Low-A Tampa and High-A Hudson Valley, going 7-3 with a 1.71 ERA with a 102:36 K:BB ratio and only three homers allowed in 89 1/3 innings pitched.

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Grosz, 22, was drafted in the 11th round of the 2023 draft out of East Carolina University. He has a fastball that works at 93-95 mph and tops out at an impressive 98 mph. He also relies on a mid-80s slider and has solid spin rates on both pitches. Grosz posted a solid 2.77 ERA over 39 innings with High-A Hudson Valley in 2024. But this season, he has regressed slightly, posting a 4.14 ERA in 87 innings at the High-A level. MLB.com noted that he has fringy command and control, and his high-velocity fastball is his only better-than-average pitch.

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Both pitchers provide a solid boost to the Rockies’ farm system, with Herring (5th) and Grosz (19th) in the Rockies’ Top 30. MLB.com notes Herring will have to add strength and improve his fastball and changeup if he wants to be a major league starter. But still has the ceiling of a high-leverage reliever. Grosz is seen as a future back-end starter or long reliever. Both pitchers are projected to reach MLB in 2027.

Grade: B

Tyler Kinley Trade

Kinley had a rough May and June, but pitched much better in July. Posting a 2.13 ERA in 11 2/3 IP. The 34-year-old right-hander does not mesh with the Rockies’ timeline. So, the Rockies took their opportunity and were able to recoup some value for Kinley in a lost season. Per Spotrac, the Braves will pick up the remaining $1.3 million on Kinley’s contract this season.

In return, the Rockies are getting RHP Austin Smith. Smith, 26, was drafted in the 18th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of the University of Arizona. In 20 innings at Double-A Columbus, Smith went 0-3 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.550 WHIP. He was assigned to Double-A Hartford upon joining the Rockies’ organization. It is a pretty minor trade, but the Rockies managed to get some value for an aging reliever while adding another pitcher to the farm.

Grade: B

Rockies and Yankees Deal Again

On deadline day, the Rockies joined in on the seller’s market for elite relievers and traded Jake Bird to the Yankees. Bird was pitching at an All-Star level earlier in the season, posting a stellar 1.08 ERA in 16 2/3 IP in April. But it is hard to keep that pace when pitching at altitude, and Bird imploded in July. In 6 1/3 IP, he has posted a 19.89 ERA with a 5:4 K:BB ratio and three homers allowed. It created worry that the Rockies had missed their opportunity and would not be able to deal Bird in a season where relievers were generating great returns around the league.

But the Yankees reportedly liked what they saw out of Bird when he faced them in May and got a deal done. They clearly think that Bird can be the pitcher in New York that he was earlier in the season. It was also great value for the Yankees, as Bird has only $244,000 remaining on his contract this season and is under team control through 2028. Meanwhile, the Rockies added two more prospects from New York to their farm system in left-handed hitting second baseman Roc Riggio (11th) and LHP Ben Shields (27th).

Rockies’ Return for Jake Bird

Riggio, 23, was drafted in the fourth round of the 2023 MLB Draft out of Oklahoma State University. In 40 games with Double-A Somerset this season, Riggio has hit .261/.335/.542 with an .877 OPS in 153 at-bats. He has 11 homers and 28 RBI. MLB.com projects that Riggio’s power to right field could play well at any ballpark if he keeps up his improved contact this season.

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Shields, 26, was undrafted out of George Mason University. MLB.com notes that the Yankees’ work on improving his extension and lowering his release height made him one of the better left-handed pitching prospects in their system. He relies on a plus curveball (80-82 mph) and slider (83 mph) with a fastball that averages 93 mph and maxes out at 96. Because of his pitch mix, he is projected more as a multi-inning reliever than a starter. Riggio and Shields are both projected to make their Major League debuts next season.

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It would’ve been very painful if the rebuilding Rockies did not get in on the relievers market this trade deadline. In the past, the Rockies holding onto Bird because of his team control through 2028 would not have been a shock. But the Rockies finally didn’t hold on to a player for too long and struck while the iron was hot, turning a 29-year-old reliever who was struggling recently into two top 30 prospects.

Grade: A

The Rockies’ Overall Grade

The Rockies turned three veterans into five new prospects and shed a decent amount of payroll. This is something they had to do as they barrel their way towards the worst record in MLB history. They were a year late in dealing McMahon. However, they still managed to offload all of his remaining salary while netting two quality pitching prospects in return.

It was unclear as the deadline neared if the Rockies would end up dealing Bird. But they did! Finally, cashing in on the value of a veteran sitting on the roster when the team is nowhere near contention. Veteran starting pitchers, lefties Austin Gomber and Kyle Freeland, stayed in Colorado. Gomber and Freeland were reportedly being talked about. But it is not a shock that neither was dealt. Neither pitcher has had a great season, and the Rockies shopped starting pitchers in the offseason to no success.

Unfortunate Deadline for Germán Marquez

Germán Márquez was the Rockies’ leading trade candidate coming up to the deadline. But Márquez suffered an injury after pitching just three innings against the Minnesota Twins on July 20. Following the start, it was announced that Márquez would be on the 15-day IL with right biceps tendinitis.

It was a major blow to Márquez and the team’s hopes of trading him. Considering Márquez’s extensive injury history, it is not surprising that a deal never came to fruition after his recent injury. The 30-year-old missed a chance to make a postseason run with a contender after some tough recent seasons. The desire to trade him was there for Colorado, considering he is owed $10 million this season and will be a free agent in the offseason. But a deal did not materialize, and Márquez will be in Colorado through the season’s end, provided he isn’t released.

It hurts that the Rockies were not able to get a deal done for Márquez. If he leaves in free agency at the end of this season, it will hurt even more. But the Rockies did manage to get solid value out of the few trade chips they did have, and at least took something out of this lost season.

Overall Grade: B

 

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