Michael Lorenzen Faces Tall Task of Taming Coors Field for Rockies

The Colorado Rockies made one of their first big signings of the offseason recently, but will he be able to adjust to the pitching dynamic at Coors Field?

Sep 7, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen (24) delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at Kauffman Stadium. / Denny Medley-Imagn Images

The Colorado Rockies have had a pretty interesting offseason so far, with many of their major moves being ones to revamp the front office and coaching staff. Additionally, they have made some smaller-scale depth moves along the margins, both by moving on from some players as well as adding some pieces to the farm system.

However, more recently, they were able to bring in a Major League pitcher who has been decently productive over the past few seasons, and is an intriguing fit when it comes to playing in Coors Field. That player is Michael Lorenzen, an 11-year veteran of the MLB who has remained quite consistent over that span of time.

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The biggest question, though, when it comes to pitchers being added by the Rockies, is, how would they play at Coors Field? Having to deal with the ball carrying more than usual is a rather difficult prospect for many young arms who have tried before.

That was the case throughout much of the 2025 season, with plenty of top talents struggling early in their careers. Lorenzen seems to be a good fit in some ways, but also may have some setbacks when it comes to Colorado.

What Do Lorenzen's Advanced Metrics Indicate About His Future at Coors Field?

Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

One of the first things that stands out about Coors Field is the home run numbers, with 11 different MLB teams hitting their longest home runs in Colorado this past year.

Baseball Savant puts out an expected home runs per park metric each season that utilizes the metrics of home runs to determine how many home runs a pitcher would allow if they played at each stadium.

For Lorenzen at Coors, the number is a whopping 28, which would tie him for the tenth most in the MLB in 2025.

Surprisingly, though, this is not the highest expected number for Lorenzen, as three other stadiums either tied at 28 or were higher at 29. His actual home runs allowed were 25, which, in Kauffman Stadium, is not exactly a great sign, as it was rather pitcher-friendly up until this winter, when they moved the walls further in.

He also had an MLB-leading 12 wild pitches on the year, along with some decreasing metrics across the board.

COL signed RHP Michael Lorenzen last night to a one year deal. Lorenzen has been a very effective innings eater with 3 straight years over 130 IP and sub 4.65 ERA. He shows a deep arsenal to keep hitters off balance and attacks the zone with just a 6% BB% and 50% Zone% last year pic.twitter.com/U4vRvfuW76

— Jackson Scudder (@jscud23) January 8, 2026

One of the more difficult analytics to get over is his max exit velocity allowed, which got all the way up to 117.2 in 2025, along with an average of 89.3, which is not his best. Though on a positive note, his hard-hit rate dropped this past year, and has for most of the last few seasons, going from a high of 42.7% in 2021 to 39.2% last season.

There is a decent amount to like about this deal, though, and with the Rockies clearly trying to rebuild their starting rotation, Lorenzen is a good veteran piece who may be able to not only compete, but also teach some of the younger talent coming up how to make adjustments at Coors Field.

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