Rockies’ Seth Halvorsen, Victor Vodnik competing for closer in rebuilt bullpen

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Bruce Bochy knows baseball. And bullpens. And closers, who can make or break bullpens.

“Closers stabilize your season,” the manager who led the Giants to three World Series titles from 2010-14 and steered the Rangers to a title in 2023 once said. “Because when you lose games late, it’s a blow. It’s a shot to the chin. And you take enough of ’em, it can wear your team out.”

Just ask the Rockies, whose glass-jawed bullpen was at the root of their 101-loss 2024 season. The Rockies had an astronomical 7.10 ERA in the ninth inning. Six times, they entered the ninth with a lead only to give up five or more runs and blow the game.

But the Rockies, stocked with powerful young pitchers and a sprinkling of salty veterans, are confident they’ve rebuilt their bullpen into a solid unit. Competition among the relievers will be intense during spring training, and the Rockies are thrilled about that, too.

“We feel good about it, as it stands now,” manager Bud Black said ahead of the Rockies’ Cactus League opener against the Diamondbacks on Friday afternoon at Salt River Fields. “The talent level is as good as we have seen it in my tenure here (since 2017), as far as depth and competition.”

Last season, six rookie relievers — right-handers Seth Halvorsen, Victor Vodnik, Angel Chivilli, Jeff Criswell and Jaden Hill, as well as lefty Luis Peralta  — combined for 3.84 ERA with 12 saves and 8.59 strikeouts per nine innings over a combined 143 appearances. It was a hint of better times ahead.

Halvorsen and Vodnik, along with 34-year-old right-hander Tyler Kinley, are the early front-runners to be the closer when the Rockies open the regular season on March 28 at Tampa Bay. Ideally, the Rockies want to see one of the young guns win the job.

Halvorsen, 25, drafted in the seventh round out of Tennessee in 2023, throws gas. On Sept. 26 vs. St. Louis at Coors Field, he cut loose with a 102.5 mph fastball, the second-fastest pitch by a Rockie in the StatCast Era (since 2015), trailing Julian Fernández (102.8 in 2021). Halvorsen threw 47 pitches of at least 100 mph in his 12 games. His four-seam fastball averaged 99.9 mph, per Statcast.

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But Halvorsen knows it takes more than pure heat to pitch in the ninth inning.

“It’s about routine, mindset and preparation,” Halvorsen said. “When I do that, it allows me, when I get out there on the mound, to attack, one pitch at a time.”

Halvorsen throws a split changeup and a slider to complement his running four-seamer.

“I feel like I can throw any of my three pitches, to righties and lefties, in any count,” he said.

The right-hander had a meteoric rise last season, impressing at Double-A Hartford (4.84 ERA over 35 1⁄3 innings) and Triple-A Albuquerque (3.00 ERA over nine innings), prompting the Rockies to call him up.

He made his big-league debut against the Orioles on Aug. 30 at Coors and mostly dazzled from then on. He opened his big-league career with nine consecutive scoreless outings, during which he struck out nine, walked two, and gave up just five hits. In 12 appearances overall, Halvorsen posted a 1.46 ERA. He struck out 13 while walking only two of the 46 batters he faced.

But Halvorsen also got a reality check. On Sept. 21 at Dodger Stadium, he struck out Max Muncy with the bases loaded to notch his first big-league save. The next day, Halvorsen was asked to shut down the mighty Dodgers in the ninth inning again. He couldn’t shut the door. National League MVP Shohei Ohtani tied the game, 5-5, with a solo blast to right-center field. Then the next hitter, Mookie Betts, took Halvorsen deep to center to give Los Angeles a 6-5 walk-off win.

“I thought Halvorsen did a nice job (last season),” Black said. “There were a couple of slip-ups, but I have the memory of him striking out Max Muncy with the bases loaded in Dodger Stadium for a save. I also have memories of the next night, too. But you learn from that. I like his stuff and I like what our player development people have said about him.”

Like Halvorsen, Vodnik, 25, can blow hitters away. Vodnik’s fastball velocity averaged 97.9 mph, ranking ninth-fastest among all pitchers (minimum 250 batters faced). He was more erratic than Halvorsen — 4.28 ERA, 65 strikeouts vs. 37 walks — but also pitched in many more games, wiggled out of more jams, and gained more experience. Vodnik’s 73 2/3 relief innings were fourth-most in the National League and the most innings by a Rockies rookie reliever since Adam Ottavino in 2012 (79.0).

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Vodnik’s goal is to be the ninth-inning guy, and last season, he hinted that he could handle the role. His nine saves were second-most among major league rookies and second-most by a Rockies rookie reliever in franchise history behind Carlos Estévez’s 11 in 2016.

“Ever since I was switched over from starter to reliever, my goal has been to finish games,” he said. “But like Buddy said, this is the most competitive bullpen we’ve had, so I’ll just do whatever it takes for the team to win.”

Vodnik, his arm hurting, struggled in August (5.04 ERA) and went on the 15-day injured list on Aug. 21 with right bicep inflammation. When he returned in September, he wasn’t sharp, giving up two homers and six walks in nine innings as he pitched to a 6.00 ERA.

Still, he learned a lot about himself during that final stretch, particularly about dealing with his emotions on the mound.

“I definitely had to check that about myself,” Vodnik said. “After I came back from the injury, I had a couple of games where I wasn’t showing my poise and I wasn’t showing my composure.

“Buddy had a talk with me about that. I didn’t even notice it, but he saw it and said I had to deal with it. I had to check that. After the injury, I was feeling a little bit frustrated and I was struggling to get back into that groove. I’ve learned that you’ve got to be the same guy every time I go out there.”

Black understands that young pitchers sometimes wrestle with their emotions, but the trick is not letting the other team see you sweat.

“A lot of young pitchers do that out of frustration and a desire to do well,” Black said. “They are disappointed by an outing or a hit given up or a bad pitch. But you can’t do that. You have to show confidence and poise, and no matter what happens, you can’t get rattled. You can’t show it physically.”

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Despite Vodnik’s rough patches last season, the Rockies are high on his future.

“Victor has a big arm and we like his stuff,” Black said. “High velocity, a good change and an improving breaking ball. The stuff is real. And Victor is attacking by nature. You like that in a (late-inning) reliever. He just needs to be more refined and more efficient.”

Bullpen Blues

The Rockies must build a better bullpen to begin turning their fortunes around. Last season, the ‘pen was a disaster and a significant reason the Rockies lost 101 games. A closer look:

• Their 5.38 ERA was the highest in the majors and tied with the 2023 club for the fifth-highest in franchise history.

• The Rockies’ 28 blown saves were tied with the Cardinals for second-most in the majors (most: 36, White Sox) and tied with the 2016 club for the fifth-most in franchise history (most: 34, 2004).

• The Rockies’ 7.10 ERA (110.1 IP, 87 ER) ERA in the ninth inning was the highest in the majors by 1.22 runs (second: Toronto, 5.88.).

• Opponents hit .295 against Rockies relievers in the ninth, the highest in the majors.

• Six times, the Rockies gave up five or more runs in the ninth inning or later when entering the inning with the lead, the most in a single season in baseball’s Modern Era.

Sources: Colorado Rockies, Elias Sports Bureau

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