Rockies Young Starter Emerging as Breakout Candidate for 2026

The Colorado Rockies have a ton to look forward to this season compared to last year. For starters, they begin the season with a .500 record, which they were so far from in 2025.

But for a better reason, it's a new campaign for these young and veteran players to make strides forward for the Rockies organization. Bringing in a handful of new faces to pair with the familiar ones should get Colorado back on the right path to success.

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One player who isn't unfamiliar to the Rockies fans is former first-round draft pick Chase Dollander. Dollander made his MLB debut last season, but he didn't live up to his scouting report. But just because he had one bad year doesn't mean he'll be known as that pitcher moving forward.

Dollander Projected for Huge Breakout Season

Chase Dollander pitches. — Colorado Rockies pitcher Chase Dollander (32) throws. | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

ESPN's Kiley McDaniel listed Dollander as the one Rockie who deserves to be the projected player for a major breakout. He debated between Dollander and outfielder Zac Veen, but ultimately chose to go with Dollander.

"Dollander's arm angle is down about 10 degrees from last season and his velo is up in camp, sitting 97-100 mph. All of his breaking stuff is also coming in crispier. His six-pitch mix and starter traits have him primed to take a step forward this year," McDaniel wrote.

So far this spring, Dollander has looked more like the minor league version of himself, where he was very successful. The rough rookie season seems to have only motivated the right-hander as he's pitched to a 2.57 ERA with five strikeouts and three walks in seven innings pitched.

Chase Dollander pitches at home. — Colorado Rockies pitcher Chase Dollander (32) throws against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field. | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

What's very encouraging is that Dollander hasn't given up a home run thus far this spring, which was a large issue in his game last season, allowing 18 across 98.0 innings. If Dollander can keep the ball in the park, he's already making strides in the right direction.

With the Rockies getting better overall from their 2025 campaign, there is no reason for Dollander to follow behind the pack on improvement. His second season might not make him stand out to the rest of the league, but it will surely let the front office know if they have a pitcher who could develop into a future ace.

Dollander is in a better starting rotation this year as well, paired with veterans in Kyle Freeland, Michael Lorenzen, Jose Quintana, and Tomoyuki Sugano, all likely to lend their advance when needed.