Rockies Veteran Starter Proves Opening-Day Ready in Spring Training Finale

With so many changes for the Colorado Rockies, it's nice to have a little consistency. That's where Kyle Freeland comes in.

Freeland has been named the opening day starter for the Rockies when they play the Miami Marlins on Friday. He'll square off with former National League Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara. Freeland made his final spring training start on Saturday against Kansas City, and he looked ready to roll.

The left-hander worked four innings, throwing 63 pitches. He allowed four hits and one walk with no runs. He also struck out two hitters. He trimmed his spring training ERA to 1.00. The Rockies lost the game, but that hardly matters. What does matter is that Freeland looks regular season ready right now.

Kyle Freeland Heads to Opening Day

Colorado Rockies interim bench coach Clint Hurdle (55) escorts starting pitcher Kyle Freeland (21) off the field. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Freeland seemed to respond well this spring to all the changes. That included new president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta, new general manager Josh Byrnes and new pitching coach Alon Leichman, who was with Miami last year. His numbers in spring training are his best since 2021 when he finished with a 2.00 ERA in three games.

He only made three starts this spring, but he made the most of it. He went 0-1, allowed eight hits in nine innings and just one earned run. He struck out eight and walked four. He threw 140 pitches and is nearly built up for his appearance against the Marlins. He also gets an extra day of rest before takes the ball.

For now, he'll watch his teammates. The Rockies host the Athletics on Sunday, followed by two rare spring training games with the Detroit Tigers, who are flying across the country to prepare for their season opener at San Diego. The Rockies and Tigers will face each other on Monday and Tuesday. After that, Colorado breaks camp and flies east to prepare for the opener with the Marlins.

Freeland made his MLB debut in 2017 with the Rockies and he’ll be a key piece to Colorado snapping its three-season streak of 100 losses. Like all of Colorado’s starers, he suffered a year ago. He went 5-17 with a 4.98 ERA in 31 starts, with 124 strikeouts and 38 walks in 162 innings.

He has a career record of 65-90 with a 4.54 ERA, but he had one incredible season in 2018. In that campaign he went 17-7 with a 2.85 ERA, all career bests. He started 33 games, struck out 173 and walked 70. That was good enough for him to finish fourth in NL Cy Young voting.