Top arm Dollander knows 'next-pitch mentality' is key

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Rockies right-hander Chase Dollander is Major League Baseball's No. 25 overall prospect per MLB Pipeline and Colorado's top pitching prospect because of talent and the simple philosophy that more good than bad happens in the strike zone.

Allowing home runs to Eugenio Suárez and A.J. Vukovich in his second career Cactus League start, an 8-4 loss to the Diamondbacks on Saturday afternoon, will not change that.

Dollander yielded four runs, three earned, in his three innings. But in the big-picture world of a career the Rockies expect will have a lot of good days, Dollander struck out four, allowing one other base hit and one walk.

Despite a fielding error by second baseman Thairo Estrada that negated a possible double play and preceded the Suárez homer, as well as the sense from Dollander that both home runs were not that badly located, the right-hander made it a passable day by throwing strikes on 32 of his 50 pitches.

Anything else, he’ll study and take care of it.

"You have to have a next-pitch mentality,” said Dollander, 23, selected ninth overall in the 2023 Draft out of the University of Tennessee. “Homers are going to happen. Errors are going to happen. You just kind of have to flush it, move on and keep pitching. Can’t be scared of getting back in the strike zone.”

Dollander gave up a homer to the Giants’ Jung Hoo Lee in his first Cactus League outing on Monday, but otherwise pitched to rave reviews.

Early in his professional career, Dollander is flashing an old-fashioned workhorse style, even while tight pitch counts have become vogue in training and evaluation. While the Rockies keep up with Dollander’s pitches, they realize he is going to be in the zone and work for strikeouts, so his count is not the be-all and end-all.

Dollander struck out 169 in 111 combined innings at High-A Spokane and Double-A Hartford last year. That required a lot of pitches.

"For me, it focuses more on mechanics,” Dollander said. “If you’re really efficient and can move really well down the mound, you can throw as much as you want.”

Manager Bud Black saw impressive moments and learning moments alike in Dollander’s start.

"He’ll learn, like we say all the time, a Major League hitter is different than a Minor League hitter,” Black said. “He was in Double-A last year.

"Now he’s facing Ketel Marte, Eugenio Suárez, Josh Naylor -- big league hitters, which is great.”

Another strong early spring performance

Right-hander Zach Agnos (the Rockies' No. 28 prospect in 2024, per MLB Pipeline), a 10th-round Draft pick out of East Carolina in 2022, has posted such a strong Minor League performance -- notching a 1.38 ERA in 45 games in 2024 -- that he’s being given a shot at breaking with the bullpen. Agnos continued his strong impression on Saturday, despite allowing a run to the Diamondbacks.

Agnos would have escaped with a double play had Vukovich’s bouncer to the mound been hit harder, and the run scored on Hampson’s soft single. Agnos fell behind in counts more than he would have liked, but pitched like a man whose candidacy is a serious one.

"I accomplished a lot,” Agnos said. “My slider wasn’t where it was the first couple of outings, and I was getting some chase on it -- swing-and-miss, landing it in the zone. So I’m taking that as a positive.”

Quick feet, quicker arm

Agnos’ other positive was the final out of his inning, when Hampson was caught stealing at second. It also was a check mark for catcher Drew Romo (Colorado's No. 8 prospect).

Through his Minor League career, Romo has thrown out a healthy 25 percent of would-be base stealers (nabbing 85 in 343 attempts). The hitch that he developed throwing the ball back to the pitcher was a conversation piece during his late-season call-up last year, but he has since improved and there were no problems throwing out Hampson.

"That was 1.7 [seconds from catch to the ball reaching shortstop Ezequiel Tovar for the tag] -- that was a good one,” Black said. “He’s got quick feet and he’s athletic in the throw.”

Everybody likes hits

After a tough 2024, Rockies left fielder Nolan Jones began the spring 0-for-15 with five strikeouts. It’s too early for such a start to be a concern, but Jones broke through with an RBI single on Saturday.

"That’s a good swing -- now he’s got to keep it going,” Black said. “Hopefully, he can continue, and Jordan Beck [1-for-14 entering Sunday] got a couple of hits -- dumped one into right field, but the last one was a nice swing on a line drive.”