Amid the optimism of spring training, the Rockies complex in Scottsdale will be packed with players over the next couple of months.

Amid the dozens of prospects, who should Rockies fans make sure to familiarize themselves with? There will be players competing for a 26-man roster spot; those making their debuts in big-league camp; and even an array of younger, up-and-comers in minor-league camp who face a long climb to reach Coors Field.

The following is a guide to the Rockies prospects. This guide does not include young players who have exceeded their rookie limits, or prospects who still have their rookie status intact but saw extended time last season, such as infielder Brendan Rodgers, infielder Josh Fuentes and outfielder Yonathan Daza.

Roster Contenders

Sam Hilliard, OF, 6-3/285

After tearing up Triple-A Albuquerque last year, Hilliard made his MLB debut as a September call-up and did not disappoint. The former 15th-round draft pick hit .273 with seven homers in 27 games, and seems to be a shoo-in to make the opening day roster as a backup outfielder.

“What you saw last year in September, that was real,” farm director Zach Wilson said. “It’s not like it happened over a week’s time, or four weeks — it was real, because every time Sam is at the plate, he has a chance to create real damage.”

Strikeouts are a problem as the left-handed hitting power hitter whiffed in 33% of his Triple-A at-bats last year. This offseason, he trained at TCU in Fort Worth with a focus on adding muscle. He also spent time in the cage with former Rockies outfielder Brad Hawpe.

“I want to keep my head on straight and do exactly what I’ve always done, which is play hard and not listen to what’s happening on the outside,” said Hilliard.

Ben Bowden, LHP, 6-4/245

Bowden, 25, was phenomenal in AA last year in Hartford, posting a 1.05 ERA and going 20-for-20 in save opportunities before he was promoted to Triple-A on June 20.

“Not only did he make it in Double-A — he purely dominated it,” Wilson said. “Any pitcher is going to have to make an adjustment once he gets to Triple-A, and Ben learned that early on. It showed him that he’s not a finished product, as he’s continuing to work on his breaking ball to turn it into a real out pitch.”

The southpaw struggled in Albuquerque, and described 2019 as “a big building year for me.”

“I was able to have some of the most success I’ve ever had on a baseball field in Double-A, and then going into Triple-A — and experiencing some struggles at the Futures Game on a national stage (with a blown save) — honestly that was kind of a blessing for me,” Bowden said. “It was great for me finding out when I get punched in the face, what I do. It took a few failures for me to start to figure it out again.”

A strong spring training performance could increase the chance of an opening day roster spot for Bowden, whose arsenal features a fastball (94-97 mph), slurve (82-84) and circle change (82-84).

Top Positional Prospects

Colton Welker, 3B/1B, 6-2/225

Widely ranked as the top positional prospect in the Colorado farm system, the 22-year-old scuffled a bit in Double-A in 2019, batting a career-low .252 while also missing time with a shoulder impingement. He then hit .229 in the Arizona Fall League.

That means the corner infielder might still have something to prove in Double-A Hartford this season.

“Last year as a young kid, the first time in Double-A, he realized he needed to figure out some things to get through the first little bump in his pro career,” Wilson said.

Welker spent the offseason training in Florida, and hopes to make an impact in his second major league camp in order to potentially start the season in Triple-A. His winter focus included toning down his leg kick in the box.

“Last year, my leg kick was too much at times,” Welker said. “Some of the older pitchers figured that out, and I got in front of offspeed pitches which had me always hunting the fastball. So I’ve been tweaking a little bit of that mindset part of the game, and a little bit with my load.””

Ryan Vilade, 3B/1B/OF, 6-3/225

Perhaps no positional player in the Rockies organization made as many strides in the past year as Vilade, who this year received his first invite to major-league camp.

A 20-year old second-round pick out of high school in 2017, he slashed .303/.367/.466 for Class-A Advanced Lancaster in 2019. He spent his offseason in the team’s fall development program in Scottsdale as well as back home in Stillwater as he prepared for a positional shift away from shortstop.

“I was told this offseason that I’ll be playing third and also a lot of outfield,” Vilade said. “I’m going to big-league camp as a third baseman, so that will be a lot of fun.”

Tyler Nevin, 3B/1B, 6-4/220

Nevin had a decent season in Hartford last year, slashing .251/.345/.399.

“After some adjustment time, Nevin tore up Double-A the last six weeks of the season and has had a productive offseason,” Wilson said. “I suspect he will carry all of that right into major-league camp and have a very good year.”

The Rockies placed Nevin on the 40-man roster in November in order to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. That’s an indication that Colorado sees the 22-year-old in their future plans. Nevin is expected to continue to split his time between third base and first base. He made 96 starts at first and a dozen at third for the Yard Goats in 2019.

Top Pitching Prospects

Ryan Castellani, RHP, 6-4/220

Bone fragments in his elbow limited Castellani to 10 starts in Triple-A in 2019, but after having the fragments removed he pitched well in the Arizona Fall League with a 2.16 ERA in five starts. That performance, Wilson said, is indicative of the type of season Castellani could have in 2020, when the chances of him making his MLB debut are high.

“I suspect this will be the year that Castellani will fully break out,” Wilson said.

Castellani said a key adjustment he made last fall was with his breaking pitch. Previously a “slider and curveball guy,” the pitches had become too similar for the right-hander.

“It was like having two average breaking balls, so I really focused on the curveball, and now it’s kind of like a slurve, and it’s from 78 to 83 (mph),” Castellani said. “I can make it a little bigger, a little smaller.”

Ryan Rolison, LHP, 6-3/212

Colorado’s first-round pick out of Ole Miss in 2018, Rolison was dominant in both rookie ball (1.86 ERA for Grand Junction) and Class-A Asheville (0.61 ERA for Class-A Asheville) before finally being tested in Lancaster last year.

With the Jethawks, Rolison was 6-7 with a 4.87 ERA in 22 starts. He’ll be making his big-league camp debut at Salt River this year.

“He’s in a really good place,” Wilson said. “He’s a classic left-handed command pitcher who really knows what he’s doing on the mound.”

After throwing 131 innings last year, Rolison’s innings limit this season will be around 150. He will likely start the season in Double-A Hartford.

“The main focus for me in spring training is trying to develop more on that changeup, and show more fastballs on the arm side,” Rolison said. “I was glove-side dominant with my fastball last year and throwing my breaking ball off of that, so really we’re working on giving the hitters a different point of view with my fastball while also mixing in more changeups.”

Tommy Doyle, RHP, 6-6/240

Doyle will also be making his big-league spring training debut. The lanky 23-year-old right-hander is coming off a strong season in Lancaster where he posted a 3.25 ERA and 19 saves.

“He made a huge jump forward in a league that’s tough to pitch in,” Wilson said.

Hartford is the likely landing spot for Doyle out of camp as the 23-old-year looks to continue to prove he has the moxie to perhaps one day be the Rockies’ closer. He relies primarily on a fastball (95-98 mph) and slider (86-90).

“Mentality-wise, my philosophy is to get three outs any way I can,” Doyle said.

Ashton Goudeau, RHP, 6-6/210

Goudeau put up impressive numbers in the Arizona Fall League, with no earned runs allowed in six games (13 innings). That success, combined with the 2.07 ERA and 0.92 WHIP he posted in 16 starts for Hartford in 2019, led to Colorado putting the 27-year-old former 27th-round pick on the 40-man roster in November.

Jose Mujica, RHP, 6-2/235

Colorado signed Mujica to a free agent contract on Nov. 27. The 23-year-old Venezuelan missed 2019 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, and pitched at three different levels of the minors for the Rays in 2018.

Phillip Diehl, LHP, 6-2/180

Diehl made his MLB debut in June but struggled with a 7.36 ERA in 10 appearances. Even so, the Rockies hope that experience will help the southpaw.

Antonio Santos, RHP, 6-3/180

Another addition to Colorado’s 40-man roster in November, Santos has risen quickly up prospect boards. The 23-year-old flamethrower began 2019 in Lancaster, where he made 18 starts and went 3-6 with a 4.35 ERA. He was then promoted to Hartford, where he was 3-3 with a 4.93 ERA over eight starts, and followed that with a 2.77 ERA in the Arizona Fall League.

Top Lower-Level Prospects

More names to remember, as these players could be household names in Rockies nation in a few years.

Grant Lavigne, 1B

Michael Toglia, 1B

Terrin Vavra, SS

Aaron Shunk, 3B

Karl Kauffman, RHP

Brenton Doyle, OF

Riley Pint, RHP

Reid Humphreys, RHP

Jacob Wallace, RHP

Niko Decolati, OF

Helcris Olivarez, LHP

Eddy Diaz, SS

Ryan Feltner, RHP

Robert Tyler, RHP

Will Ethridge, RHP

Brian Serven, C

Bret Boswell, 2B

Justin Lawrence, RHP (finished 2019 in Double-A, but suspended first 80 games of 2020 for PED violation).

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