Why Rockies Desperately Need Ezequiel Tovar to Bounce Back at Plate in 2026

The Colorado Rockies are hoping their infielder, Ezequiel Tovar, can have a bounce back season in 2026.

Colorado Rockies shortstop Ezequiel Tovar (14) hits a two-run single against the Seattle Mariners during the sixth inning at T-Mobile Park. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The Colorado Rockies struck a smart, forward-thinking deal with shortstop Ezequiel Tovar before the 2024 season.

Colorado signed Tovar to a seven-year, $63.5 million contract extension with an option in 2031 worth $23 million. The idea was to manage the budding star’s arbitration years with a deal that guaranteed costs. He made that pay off in 2024 with a terrific season.

Now, as he enters 2026, MLB.com is listing him as the team’s bounce-back candidate. The site is expecting him to get back to that 2024 form. But what happened in 2025? And how would a bounce-back impact the Rockies?

Dissecting an Ezequiel Tovar Bounce Back

Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

Last season was a wreck for Tovar, as it was for so many other Rockies. He slashed .253/.294/.400. But he only played in 95 games due to injuries and that extended time on the IL sapped his power, as he only hit nine home runs and drove in 33 runs.

He suffered a left hip contusion early in the regular season and he lost a month on the 10-day injured list. Then, he missed more than a month with a left oblique strain in June. The latter injury is one hitters struggle with, especially when it comes to rehab and recovery. Obliques always seem to take more time due to the torque players put on their bodies during their swings.

New president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta and general manager Josh Byrnes inherit that contract. They need it to work because of the cost-effectiveness of the deal for the Rockies. There’s good reason to believe that Tovar will bounce back in 2026.

His 2024 was impressive for a second full Major League season. He slashed .269/.295/.469 with 26 home runs and 78 RBI. He won his first National League Gold Glove and was even 19th in NL MVP voting. He also led the NL with 45 doubles. That built on an impressive rookie season in 2023 in which he slashed .253/.287/.408 with 15 home runs and 73 RBI, along with 37 doubles.

It’s easy to see how the injuries in 2025 changed the dynamic. While his slashed from 2023 to 2025 changed little, his power dropped across the board. Along with the change in home runs and RBI, he only had 18 doubles. His body of work in three seasons indicates that all he needs to do is stay on the field to produce. He played nearly every game in 2023 and 2024.

Tovar will certainly be evaluated by the new regime. But, at 24 years old and with two quality MLB seasons under his belt, he’s a building block for a franchise that lost 119 games in 2025, has lost 100 games in three straight seasons and has nowhere to go but up.  He’s part of the solution, and so long as he remains healthy, he should bounce back in 2026.

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