The Rockies had a miserable 2023 campaign, recording their first-ever 100-loss season. The silver lining? They received a high pick in the MLB draft.
Colorado has the No. 3 pick in the first round of the draft, which takes place July 14-16 in Fort Worth, Texas. It’s the second-highest position they have selected from (Colorado selected pitcher Greg Reynolds with the No. 2 pick in 2006) and the third time they’ve selected from the No. 3 spot. Pitcher Jon Gray (2013) and infielder Brendan Rodgers (2015) were previously chosen from No. 3.
So do they go for a pitcher with a big arm or another slugger? Regardless of the direction the Rockies choose, as beat writer Patrick Saunders writes, “they can’t afford to whiff.”
Here’s a look at who national draftniks are thinking will land in Colorado.
Baseball America | Carlos Collazo | Updated July 1
Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest
Chase Burns (29) of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons makes a pitch against the Florida State Seminoles at David F. Couch Ballpark on April 19, 2024 in Winston Salem, N.C. (Isaiah Vazquez, Getty Images)
“The read on the Rockies is consistent from last week, with this feeling like the most likely landing spot for a pitcher of any the teams picking inside the top five. It sounds like Colorado is interested in both Charlie Condon and Jac Caglianone, too. In this scenario Cags is available, but I’ve heard the Burns/Rockies connection too much to not pull the trigger,” Collazo writes. See the full mock draft.
Bleacher Report | Joel Reuter | Updated June 26
Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest
“Armed with a high-octane fastball that touches 102 mph, a wipeout slider and a plus curveball, Burns went 10-1 with a 2.70 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and a staggering 191 strikeouts in 100 innings this spring at Wake Forest after transferring from Tennessee. He is widely viewed as the best pitcher in the 2024 class,” Reuter writes. See the full mock draft.
CBS Sports | Mike Axisa | Updated June 27
Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest
Chase Burns (29) of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons makes a pitch against the Florida State Seminoles at David F. Couch Ballpark on April 19, 2024 in Winston Salem, N.C. (Isaiah Vazquez, Getty Images)
“My guess is the Rockies would not pass on Travis Bazzana or Condon if either is still on the board here. They’re not in our mock draft, so we’ll give Colorado the best pitcher in the draft class in Burns. He’s not Paul Skenes but Burns is dynamic and would be the top pitcher in the draft most years. Colorado used top-10 picks on pitchers in 2022 (Gabriel Hughes at No. 10) and 2023 (Chase Dollander at No. 9), so they’re willing to roll the dice on arms up high. They’re hoarding high-end arm talent as they try to solve the pitching dilemma at Coors Field,” Axisa writes. See the full mock draft.
ESPN | Kiley McDaniel | Updated June 19
Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest
“In this scenario, Burns, Caglianone and Bazzana are the options for Colorado with industry sentiment leaning toward Burns, though there are some that think Caglianone would be the pick in this scenario. The Rockies have leaned toward pitchers in the first round of late since they don’t think they can sign frontline starters in free agency because of their ballpark, and last season they started drafting four-seam-oriented pitchers in Chase Dollander and Sean Sullivan after taking exclusively sinker-ballers for years. Burns is a four-seam type, pairing well with Dollander (a former teammate when both were at Tennessee) and is a potential ace, so all of Colorado’s various tendencies can be satisfied. I think Burns/Caglianone, in this scenario, are the third and fifth picks in some order, a near coin flip at this point,” McDaniel writes. See the full mock draft.
The Athletic | Keith Law | Updated June 19
Jac Caglianone, 1B/LHP, Florida
Florida first baseman Jac Caglianone (14) hits a single and advances to second on an error during an NCAA College World Series baseball elimination game against Kentucky on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Mike Buscher)
“I assume that if the Rockies do this, they’ll make Caglianone a full-time hitter rather than risk a second Tommy John surgery at some point, given their organization’s recent run of elbow surgeries for top prospects. I’ve also heard them associated with the two main college arms, Burns and Arkansas’ Hagen Smith,” Law writes. See the full mock draft.
MLB.com | Jim Callis | Updated June 27
Charlie Condon, OF/3B, Georgia
Georgia’s Charlie Condon (24) warms up prior to an NCAA regional baseball game against Army on Friday, May 31, 2024 in Athens, Ga. (AP Photo/Stew Milne)
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“Though there has been talk of the Rockies targeting a pitcher (likely Burns over Smith), they wouldn’t pass on Condon and probably not on Caglianone,” Jim Callis writes. See the full mock draft.
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