Rockies Make Flurry of Roster Moves That Could Impact September Call-Ups

The Colorado Rockies made four roster moves ahead of their upcoming series, and with them finalized, how will they affect the team moving forward?

Aug 8, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Colorado Rockies pitcher Austin Gomber (26) pitches in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. / Allan Henry-Imagn Images

The Colorado Rockies have had a pretty brutal 2025 campaign all-around, and despite a bit of a resurgence in their last few series, it is way too late for them to make a late push at anything besides building confidence going into next year.

With a few promising young talents making their names known for the Rockies, there is at least some positives to take from this season, especially when it comes to the 2025 MLB Draft and the emergence of some top prospects.

Being able to build through a young core is the vision for this franchise moving into 2026 and beyond, which leaves them with the discussion of whether or not they want to start calling up prospects now or wait and continue to allow them to develop.

Rockies Announce Multiple Roster Moves

The Colorado Rockies announced today the following transactions:

- Selected the contract of LHP Lucas Gilbreath from Triple-A Albuquerque.
- Recalled RHP Angel Chivilli from Triple-A.
- Placed RHP Dugan Darnell on the 15-day injured list with left hip inflammation.
-…

— Rockies Club Information (@RockiesClubInfo) August 22, 2025

Before making some decisions regarding how to structure their roster heading into the latter portion of the year, an injury to young reliever Dugan Darnell has set him back a bit, and he will now be heading to the 15-day injured list.

In addition to that announcement, starting pitcher Austin Gomber will be unconditionally released from Colorado following the club's decision to place him on outright waivers in hopes that a team would claim him and take on the rest of his salary.

As part of the corresponding moves, the Rockies have selected the contract of reliever Lucas Gilbreath and have recalled reliever Angel Chivilli from Triple-A, giving them a look at two different arms for a pitching staff that is searching for consistent options.

What Do These Roster Moves Mean for the Rockies?

Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images

First up, the most notable move of the bunch is Gomber being unconditionally released, which is less than surprising given his level of performance in 2025. It doesn't affect the team all that much from a production standpoint given he had a 7.49 ERA and 0-7 record this season. But the biggest note is that this opens up a spot in the starting rotation, which could make for an interesting competition given how many options are available.

Darnell having to head to the injured list is really unfortunate, as in his first year at the MLB level, he had a 3.86 ERA in nine appearances. He looked quite impressive during that span, too, so hopefully he can find his way back sooner rather than later and get some reps before the season wraps up.

Chivilli being recalled is an interesting decision, as he has struggled to produce in Triple-A so far. With five appearances there this month, he has a 13.50 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, seven strikeouts, two walks, nine runs allowed and one homer given up. With nine runs allowed in six innings, it seems as though the team just wants an innings-eater more than anything.

Gilbreath is an intriguing one, as both in 2021 and 2022, he really was quite successful. Then, in 2023, he missed the entire season due to injury and in 2024 he only made three appearances, producing a 54.00 ERA. If he can return to form now that he is clear of his Tommy John surgery, he could be a valuable addition to the bullpen for Colorado.

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