Rockies top pitching prospect to make MLB debut Sunday
Apr 4, 2025, 11:20 AM
DENVER—Top Colorado Rockies prospect Chase Dollander will make his Major League debut on Sunday.
The 23-year-old right-handed starter is ranked the eighth-best prospect in all of baseball and the consensus top young player in the Rockies farm system.
Dollander finished last season in Double-A Hartford, making nine starts and began the 2025 campaign with his Triple-A Albuquerque debut last Sunday. He threw four innings against Sacramento, striking out five and allowing one run in a 2-1 Isotopes win.
Dollander take the spot of Austin Gomber in the Rockies rotation, who was shut down during spring training and made one rehab start. But the Rockies decided to slow Gomber’s return, which they now say will take a few more weeks before his next outing.
Dollander is regarded for his fastball, earning him the ninth overall selection in the 2023 MLB Draft. He transferred from Georgia Southern to Tennessee during his college career and was the SEC’s Pitcher of the Year in 2022. His third and final season in college was up-and-down but the Rockies have seen great success with him through the minors.
“He’s got a good arm, a good live arm. I like the stuff, it’s real stuff,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “It’s a good fastball with velocity, he can spin the ball, he’s got a little bit of feel for a change. I’m looking forward to watch this unfold, to watch his career. I like watching young players, I like trying to help young players. He’s built the right way in a lot of areas… he’s a good talent, he’s got a good head on his shoulders, he does a lot of things right for a young player. Now it’s just a matter of if that will translate (to the majors). Long-term I think he is going to be a really good pitcher. There will be some learning along the way, a bump in the road, or not, that’s why we’ll follow it. Full disclosure, I’m looking forward to Sunday.”
Scouts say Dollander “has the chance to have four at least above-average offerings at his disposal. His fastball sits around 96 mph and touches 98-99, and it’s a bat-misser thanks to his approach angle, extension and induced vertical break.”
Dollander’s first start will, be at Coors Field as part of the Rockies opening weekend—coming against the Athletics.
