Rockies’ Chase Dollander’s Mechanics are Drawing Comparisons to 2X NL Cy Young Winner

The Colorado Rockies' young pitcher has seemed to find his groove on the mound, mirroring a former two-time NL Cy Young award winner.

Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Chase Dollander (32) pitches at Citi Field. | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

It's been a terrific start to the 2026 campaign for Colorado Rockies young pitcher Chase Dollander. After a very slow start in 2025, a rookie season he'll never forget and continue to learn from, Dollander has started to turn the corner aggressively to be a dominant pitcher in this league.

In April, the young Rockies pitcher has pitched to a 1.29 ERA and a 2.25 ERA on the season. On top of the April ERA, Dollander has pitched in 28 innings, has struck out 34 batters, and holds a WHIP of 0.89.

Something has seemed to click for the former first-round pick, and it's shown every time he goes to the mound. He's been used out of the bullpen and to start games, finding success in both roles. So what's behind his success? How about mirroring mechanics to a former two-time NL Cy Young Award winner?

Dollander Drawing deGrom Comparisons

Colorado Rockies pitcher Chase Dollander (32) pitches at Coors Field. | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Anytime a young pitcher is compared to future Hall of Famer and two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom, it's something to take note of. The Rockies haven't had many internal starting pitchers find success, but Dollander is looking like he's going to rewrite the narrative.

In an overlay video posted to X (formerly Twitter) by Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja), you can see the Rockies starter's mechanics seemingly matching deGrom's when throwing a fastball to the plate. So far this season, Dollander's fastball has averaged 99 mph.

Chase Dollander vs. Jacob deGrom, Mechanics (both 100mph Fastballs). pic.twitter.com/wOk1lFaC6T

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 26, 2026

It's not just his fastball that has worked in his favor this season, as Dollander has a 29.4 put-away percentage on his slider, generating a whiff percentage of 32.4%. His Baseball Savant page is covered in red metrics, which is ultimately the goal for any pitcher.

On the season, Dollander's fastball run value ranks in the 99th percentile and his fastball velocity ranks in the 98th percentile. Back in 2018, when deGrom won the Cy Young Award for the first time, he ranked in the 97th percentile in fastball run value and in the 89th percentile for his fastball velocity.

Dollander has a long way before he is always in conversation alongside deGrom, but this is an encouraging sign for a Rockies pitcher. And before anyone doubts his successes, Dollander has a 1.74 ERA when pitching at Coors Field this season, and has held opponents to a .184 AVG.

Still a long way to go for Colorado and Dollander, but this comparison could only be brought up the more we continue to see fastball effectiveness and efficiency from Dollander.