SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Two weeks before the regular season opens for most major-league teams, 33-year-old outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, a three-time all-star who hit 16 home runs and drove in 64 runs for Colorado last season, remains an unsigned free agent.

That fact does not sit well with veteran Rockies Chris Iannetta and Mark Reynolds. For them, Gonzalez’s situation is a reflection of what’s wrong with baseball’s current economic landscape.

“I think it’s terrible,” said Iannetta, a catcher playing in his 14th season. “I don’t understand it. Perhaps CarGo’s not a .330 guy with 40 home runs anymore, but he’s still an above-average player. Well above average.”

Iannetta thinks it’s bad business, for the players and the fans.

“To put your brand in the hands of some very risky commodities that are unproven is counterintuitive to any business move you would make outside of baseball,” he said. “It kind of baffles me that it’s happening.”

Reynolds, who turns 36 on April 3 and is in camp on a minor-league contract, shares Iannetta’s views. Reynolds didn’t sign with Washington last season until April 12, despite hitting 30 home runs and posting a .839 OPS with Colorado in 2017.

“A lot of people who can play are still out there,” Reynolds said. “I can understand teams going in different direction. I went through that last year. Teams are trying to get young, I guess.”

But Reynolds disagrees with a system he believes is freezing out skilled, veteran players.

“The problem is that teams that don’t have a chance to win the World Series aren’t going to sign someone who can make their ballclub better,” he said. “Therefore, they don’t want CarGo because they want to lose a lot of games to get whatever advantages that gives them in the draft.”

Reynolds said the system needs to change.

“It’s terrible,” he said. “There has to be something in place to where if you lose too many games, you lose international signings or something. There needs to be something to incentivize winning. I guess (teams) don’t want to spend 5 million bucks on CarGo when they can pay ‘Joe Tripleball’ 500 grand and lose more games.”

The Rockies, considered a contender in the National League West, did not pursue re-signing Gonzalez or Gerardo Parra during the offseason, choosing instead to go with young outfielders David Dahl and Raimel Tapia.

Hoffman’s bid. Rockies right-hander Jeff Hoffman is putting together a solid enough spring training, but that’s not likely going to be enough for him to make the Rockies’ starting rotation. As it stands now, steady veteran Chad Bettis appears to be the front-runner for the fifth spot.

“Jeff held his stuff, pretty much, through 75 pitches, which is a good sign,” manager Bud Black said Thursday after Hoffman started against Cleveland. “He’s building his pitch count, and overall this spring he’s done a pretty nice job.”

Hoffman pitched 4 ⅔ innings, giving up five runs on six hits, striking out five and walking two. His ERA sits at 5.52 after 14 ⅔ Cactus League innings.

Although his fastball command was not as sharp Thursday as it was in his previous two starts, but Hoffman pitched better than his line indicated. Cleveland’s three-run fourth inning was sparked by two bloop hits, though Hoffman did give up a bases-loaded double. In the fifth, he gave up a double, followed by a long, two-run home run to Roberto Perez on a hanging curveball.

“I think I’m in a really good spot, and my last two outings prior to this one were really good,” said Hoffman, who was fighting a sore shoulder last spring. “I’m not going to harp on this one too much. Obviously, we can work on minimizing this one a bit — on giving up the runs — but I think I’m in a great spot.”

RyMac. Second baseman Ryan McMahon made the long trip from Scottsdale to Goodyear to face the Indians and then sat in the dugout — but only for a few innings. Black wanted to see how McMahon would perform coming off the bench.

McMahon came through with two doubles, raising his average to .444.

“We told him (about it) well before the game,” Black said. “Spring training is the time for these things, it gives guys a taste of what could happen in the regular season.”

Footnotes. Right-hander Yency Almonte was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque on Thursday. He posted a 10.38 ERA in five Cactus League appearances. … Right-hander Peter Lambert, the club’s top pitching prospect, will make his first-ever Cactus League start on Friday when the Rockies host Kansas City at Salt River Fields.