Breaking Down Rockies Receiving Mediocre Grade in Jake Bird to Yankees Trade

Did the Colorado Rockies rightfully receive a mediocre grade for the Jake Bird deal?

Jul 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Jake Bird (59) pitches in the ninth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Coors Field. / Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

It has been a long and disappointing season for the Colorado Rockies, and after the trade deadline, they likely won’t be much better on the field.

As expected, the Rockies started to deal some of their desirable assets, starting with the Ryan McMahon trade to the New York Yankees not too long ago. That was an indication of the direction that they were going, and based on their record, it makes sense.

Now, with the team starting up in the second half of the year, it is going to be all about developing some of their young talent and giving players a chance to prove themselves.

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At the deadline, Colorado was able to add some more young talent to their farm system, and that is a very good thing for a team that is rebuilding. Now, it will come down to how good of talent evaluators they are with some of the new players they traded for.

Even though they are rebuilding, it is going to be important to develop these young players if they are going to turn things around quickly.

David Schoenfield of ESPN recently wrote about the Rockies trading relief pitcher Jake Bird to the New York Yankees in exchange for prospects Roc Riggio and Ben Shields. Overall, he gave the trade a grade of a ‘C’.

“No guarantees here, but a fair return for a marginal relief pitcher.”

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It was a decent year for the veteran right-hander with Colorado in 2025 before being traded. He had totaled a 4-1 record and 4.73 ERA in 53.1 innings of work. With 62 strikeouts on the campaign, he was able to get batters to swing and miss at a decent rate.

What was quite surprising for the right-hander this season were his splits. Generally, Rockies pitchers have a lower ERA on the road than they do at home. However, Bird was the opposite. Somehow, he totaled a 2.48 ERA at home, while his road ERA was 7.40. That doesn’t happen often, but it showcases that he is capable of pitching in hitter-friendly ballparks.

Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

With Bird still being under team control, the return for him wasn’t fantastic. According to MLB Pipeline, Riggio will be the 11th-ranked prospect in the organization, while Shields is ranked 27th.

It feels like the return could have been a bit better for Bird, considering him being under team control, but Colorado will be hoping they strike gold.

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Overall, the grade of a ‘C’ is a fair one, considering the return doesn’t feel great.

For more Rockies news, head over to Rockies On SI.