The 2025 Rockies need a multitude of things to go right to end a string of six straight losing seasons and escape the specter cast by back-to-back 100-loss campaigns.
Bringing second baseman Thairo Estrada on board is certainly not a panacea, but the former Giants infielder promises to bring speed, energy and defense to his new team.
“I’m an aggressive player, I’m aggressive on the bases and I play hard,” Estrada said Thursday morning via an interpreter during a Zoom session with reporters from his home in Tampa, Fla. “I’m going to do my part to help the team in that manner … I think this is a young team that can play fast.”
Earlier Thursday, Estrada, 28, officially signed a one-year, $3.25 million deal with the Rockies. The contract includes a mutual option for 2026 with a $750,000 buyout. If the option isn’t exercised, Estrada will still be arbitration-eligible for the final time in 2026.
Estrada replaces Brendan Rodgers, who was non-tendered after the 2024 season. Rodgers won a Gold Glove at second base in 2022 but never became the offensive force or dynamic player the Rockies envisioned when they selected him with the third overall pick in the 2015 draft.
Estrada is coming off a frustrating, injury-plagued season with the Giants. Wrist and thumb injuries limited him to 96 games, and he hit just .217 with a .590 OPS. He was outrighted to Triple-A Sacramento on Aug. 30. But he’s healthy now and is counting on a rebound season.
“It was a tough year for me, injury-wise, but thankfully, right now, I’m healthy after a year of having ups and downs,” he said. “As a baseball player, you never want to deal with that, but that’s the reality that some of us have to face. Thankfully, this year, I’m healthy, and I see this as a new opportunity.”
The Rockies are counting on an offensive resurgence. From 2021-23 with San Francisco, Estrada slashed .266/.320/.416 with 35 homers, 52 doubles and four triples. He stole 21 bases in 2022 and 23 in ’23.
Estrada said he likes hitting at Coors Field. The numbers bear that out. In 24 career games in LoDo, he’s slashed .348/.406/.565 with four home runs.
“I really like that stadium and I enjoy playing there,” he said. “My main focus when I’m hitting is to hit the ball up the middle and letting the ball run from there. I think I can do very well there.”
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Estrada has good range and is a consistent fielder, so pairing him with Gold Glove-winner Ezequiel Tovar at shortstop and two-time Gold Glove-winner Brenton Doyle in center field makes the Rockies strong up the middle defensively. Third baseman Ryan McMahon is also a four-time Gold Glove finalist, and manager Bud Black has said that first baseman Michael Toglia has Gold Glove potential.
“What a baseball player (Tovar) is,” Estrada said, adding that he’s excited to get to know his fellow Venezuelan better. “He plays the game the right way. He hits; he plays defense very well. He’s someone who is going to be a leader and he’s going to be huge for this franchise moving forward.
“It’s just exciting for me to play alongside someone like him. And I’m very prideful, as a Venezuelan, to play alongside someone like him.”
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