MLB Writer Has Clear-Cut Take on Rockies' Offseason Needs Under Paul DePodesta

It is going to be an offseason with numerous decisions for the Rockies.

Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Now that Paul DePodesta has been hired as the Colorado Rockies' baseball president of operations, the work is about to begin to try and turn things around for a team coming off 119 losses. His work begins this week at the General Managers' meeting in Las Vegas.

There are a lot of decisions that DePodesta needs to make, including hiring a manager. He said that current interim manager Warren Schaeffer will be considered, but when a decision-maker comes in, they generally bring in their guy.

As far as other decisions go, there are plenty, and Mike Petriello of MLB.com ranked all 30 MLB rosters, and not surprisingly, he ranked the Rockies 30th.

Rockies' Paul DePodesta Has Numerous Decisions to Make This Offseason

Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

DePodesta, who comes over from the Cleveland Browns, has an MLB background from his early days in sports, but he has not faced a task as daunting as the one in front of him with Colorado. There are some decisions to make roster-wise with some potential 'unexpected' challenges coming up, according to Petriello.

"The 2025 Rockies lost 119 games, and the 2026 Rockies aren’t terribly likely to be all that different, record-wise. That may sound grim, but for the first time in decades, something really is different here, because they’ve committed to hiring an outsider to lead baseball operations for the first time since 1999. Of course, they haven’t just gone outside the organization in hiring Paul DePodesta; they’ve gone outside the sport, since DePodesta has spent the last decade working for the NFL’s Cleveland Browns. Unexpected though that may be, it’s still a step forward for a generally insular team, though we can’t emphasize the word ‘unexpected’ here enough,'' Petriello wrote.

As Petriello pointed out in his article, the Rockies have numerous needs throughout their roster. As DePodesta will find out, getting free agents to come to Denver is not going to be easy. He'll have to do it with some bargain signings this winter.

Coming off a third straight 100-loss season, Colorado is looking to finish without triple-digit losses in 2026, but that'll be easier said than done. Filling in some of his needs will take multiple years, as will a turnaround in a division that is loaded with the San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants.

Money will also be an issue for DePodesta in terms of just how much he'll have to spend, but decisions with his own free agents are first up before diving into free agency or with a trade. A young roster with the right veterans mixed in would be a good start for DePodesta.

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