Rockies Young Star Looking To Rebound Under New Leadership in 2026

Colorado's starting shortstop is looking to rebound from injuries last season.

Colorado Rockies hat / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

As the calendar turns to March, that means the World Baseball Classic is right around the corner. Players are beginning to leave their spring training camps to report to their WBC teams for workouts ahead of the tournament.

For the Colorado Rockies, one player headed to the WBC for Team Venezuela is shortstop Ezequiel Tovar. The 24-year-old is looking to make an impact this month before returning to begin the Rockies season on March 27 against the Miami Marlins in South Florida.

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Colorado is hoping that Tovar gets some much-needed reps ahead of the 2026 season, which is a big one for the middle infielder. After undergoing changes in the front office and with the roster, the case could be made that this is a big season coming up for Tovar in the Mile High City and one where he needs to stay healthy.

Ezequiel Tovar Looking To Stay Healthy in 2026

Ezequiel Tovar / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Injuries hampered Tovar's 2025 season for Colorado. In April, he missed some time with a hip injury before being sidelined with an oblique injury in June. Those setbacks allowed him to play in only 95 games for the Rockies in what was a frustrating season that saw them lose 119 games.

However, with Paul DePodesta hired as the new president of baseball operations and Warren Schaeffer hired as the manager after having the interim tag removed, they are building for the future with a team that is going to go through a slow rebuild and they need Tovar to be part of it. There is a new sense of feeling so far this season around the Rockies.

“It’s a complete overturn,” Tovar said to MLB.com. “You have new faces. You have a new front office. You have new players in the clubhouse — a complete overhaul and change, a new mentality. But at the end of the day, we have to find ways to win games. We’re trying to find different methods to win games.

“But it’s one thing to say stuff. It’s another to actually show it. We’ve got to show that things have changed, and moved in a better direction.”

Schaeffer and DePodesta certainly need some of the young players to step up this year and Tovar is one of those players. Last year in 95 games, Tovar slashed .253/.294/.400 with nine home runs and 33 RBIs. If he can return to his 2024 version, where he had 26 home runs and drove in 78 in 157 games, then Colorado will be in business. All of that will depend on Tovar staying healthy in 2026.