The Rockies announced Thursday that infielder Thairo Estrada passed through waivers unclaimed and elected free agency. Colorado also claimed right-hander Garrett Acton off waivers from the Rays. He’d been designated for assignment by Tampa Bay earlier in the week.
Colorado turned down its end of a mutual option on Estrada earlier this week, but since he has yet to accrue six years of major league service, he remained on the roster as an arbitration-eligible player. After Estrada missed most of the 2025 season due to injury and hit just .253/.285/.370 when healthy, the Rox will move on and Estrada will head to the open market in search of new opportunities.
Estrada, 30 in February, had a solid three-year run with the Giants from 2021-23, hitting a combined .266/.320/.416 with plus defense and plus baserunning. Injuries have tanked his production since late in 2023, however. Estrada suffered a broken left hand that year, then missed time with a ligament injury in his left wrist in 2024. He broke his right wrist when he was hit by a pitch this spring and, after returning, missed additional time due to thumb and hamstring injuries. He’s been limited to 546 plate appearances across the past two seasons and turned in a woeful .228/.258/.351 batting line in that time.
Second base has been Estrada’s primary position, though he’s also seen ample time at shortstop and briefer appearances at third base and across all three outfield slots. Statcast pegs him as a plus defender at second, though Defensive Runs Saved is on the other end of the spectrum. At the very least, he’s a fleet-footed utility man with experience at six defensive spots and a lower-than-average strikeout rate at the plate.
Acton, 27, signed a two-year minor league deal with the Rays going into 2024. He had undergone Tommy John surgery prior to signing that deal and missed the entire 2024 campaign. He was added to the 40-man late in 2025 and tossed one scoreless inning in the bigs. He threw 58 2/3 innings in Triple-A with a 3.68 ERA, 30.1% strikeout rate and 11.4% walk rate.