Rockies Keep Zac Veen in Lineup After Impressive Return to Majors

The Colorado Rockies are letting Zac Veen shine. He’s getting another opportunity to show off on Friday evening after he made quite an impression during his return to the Majors.

Veen will start in right field and bat seventh Friday evening as the Rockies take on the Giants in the first game of a three-game series at Oracle Park.

Colorado will take the field at 48-73, and while that looks disappointing, the truth is they have some momentum after taking two of three from the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Rockies finished that series with a 6-4 win behind a pair of home runs from two players near the bottom of the lineup.

Zac Veen Gets More Home Run Chances

Veen was just recalled on Tuesday from Triple-A Albuquerque and then let everyone know he had arrived on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old launched a two-run home run off Merrill Kelly in the fourth inning to take Colorado all the way to a 6-1 lead. It was just Veen’s second MLB homer and came after he had already amassed 24 home runs with a 1.037 OPS over 100 games for Albuquerque. It was time to call him up.

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— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) August 12, 2026

Brett Sullivan can be credited with the other out-of-the-park hit on Wednesday. He hit a three-run homer in the second inning. Fans will get to watch Sullivan again Friday when he is both behind the plate and hitting ninth.

The Rockies made several adjustments from Wednesday.

Jake McCarthy is moving back to center field and serving as the leadoff hitter. Mickey Moniak will follow while playing left field. Willi Castro is moving up to the No. 3 position and starting at third base.

TJ Rumfield bats at cleanup and continues to man first, while Troy Johnston is returning to the lineup as the designated hitter.

Rockies Continue Playing Without Key Man

Kyle Karros is still out.

The rookie third baseman was placed on a seven-day concussion injured list Wednesday after he and Tovar collided the previous night. Karros had already hit a home run in the game before the injury forced him to leave.

With Karros sidelined and Tyler Freeman on the injured list with lumbar pain, the Rockies are going to have to use these unfortunate experiences and turn them into a positive. They will get a look at some more young players and see how they may or may not fit into the future.

Kyle Freeland is taking the mound. He enters with a 3-10 record and a disappointing 6.63 ERA. He has gotten 96 strikeouts over 112 2/3 innings.

San Francisco is countering with Landen Roupp who carries a 7-11 record and a 4.22 ERA with 123 strikeouts.

Rockies Starting Lineup vs. Giants

Jake McCarthy, CF
Mickey Moniak, LF
Willi Castro, 3B
TJ Rumfield, 1B
Troy Johnston, DH
Connor Norby, 2B
Zac Veen, RF
Ezequiel Tovar, SS
Brett Sullivan, C

First pitch is scheduled for 8:15 MT at Oracle Park.

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