How the Rockies develop a reliever, step by step

This story was excerpted from Thomas Harding’s Rockies Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Right-handed No. 19 prospect Jaden Hill's debut in the Majors last season came after he met each requirement of a step-by-step progression that started last spring in his first Major League camp.

None of this has made him a finished product, and Hill, 25, understands. He has shown appearance-by-appearance growth in Spring Training. Since a messy first outing -- four runs on two walks and two hit batters in 2/3 of an inning against the Athletics on Feb. 23 -- he has eliminated the problem by settling on a hard slider.

Hill’s last three outings? Try 3 1/3 scoreless and hitless innings with three strikeouts, including two Saturday against the A’s -- all after having settled on a hard slider.

A skeletal look at Hill’s 2024 from the time he was sent out of camp to prepare for the Double-A Hartford season illustrates how an organization develops a pitcher.

“The stuff that works is the stuff that I’ve been working on since Double-A,” Hill said.

Step 1: Versatility and unpredictability

When a team reassigns or options a player to Minor League camp, they don’t just send him away. Manager Bud Black meets with the player and outlines what he needs to improve. The Major League staff and -- in Hill’s case -- Minor League pitching officials work together to come up with a plan.

Hartford pitching coach Dan Meyer was hands-on in implementing Hill’s plan at the start of 2024.

“Jaden is an unbelievable young man, not just on the field but off the field,” Meyer said. “He’s coachable, always looking to learn and get better, listens to advice and knows when to turn it up.”

Hill’s best stuff is the fastball-changeup combination. But how does a pitcher use his strengths without becoming predictable?

“I talked with Dan Meyer when I got to Double-A, and we worked on establishing the sinker and being able to throw offspeed pitches in every count,” Hill said. “That helped me tremendously. I needed to fill up the zone, still be able to throw offspeed when behind in the count, and find ways to strike people out.”

Hill began last year with a big breaking pitch, but he took Meyer’s decision to go with a hard slider that plays off his fastball. Settling on the harder pitch has led to his recent effectiveness, although Meyer said the slower breaking ball may serve him well if he can master it in the future.

Step 2: What happens when runners get on base?

The Rockies selected Hill, listed at a powerful 6-foot-4 and 234 pounds, in the second round of the Draft in 2021, even though he was recovering from Tommy John right elbow surgery and had little experience. Hill had just 51 1/3 innings over 13 appearances (nine starts) at LSU. His first 26 pro games were as a starter before he converted to relief in the Arizona Fall League in 2023.

All that means he entered last season with little experience with runners on base.

“It’s a little different, going from starter to reliever,” Hill said. “Especially as a late-inning guy, you have to control the running game. That was something they added more information on as the season progressed.”

Step 3: Turn it loose

While working on the pitches and the running game, Hill also was getting used to a role where he didn’t have to pace himself the way he did as a starter hoping to last 100 pitches. On one hand, he went into his outings thinking about the lessons of pitch usage and controlling the running game. On the other hand, he was in a role where aggression is king.

Once a pitcher melds the academic and the primal, he becomes a true reliever. Around midseason, Hill felt it coming together when Hartford began smelling the Double-A Eastern League first-half title.

“As the season progressed, it was taking what I had learned and being as natural as possible about it,” Hill said. “A lot of the work we were doing was before the game. After that, it was, ‘Let’s go win the game.’ We won the first half. It was one of the best feelings I’ve ever had.”

Step 4: There’s still more

After seven games at Triple-A Albuquerque, Hill received the Major League promotion on Sept. 5. All those lessons were being tested against the best, particularly during two appearances in Los Angeles on Sept. 20 and 22.

“The punch in the face was going from Denver to L.A., with the altitude change and me not having the best control of my stuff at that time,” Hill said. “They were a playoff-bound team, so the stadium was packed. I gave up a home run to Kiké Hernández. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a stadium so loud. It let me know that it’s real here.

“But then turning around and striking out one of the best players in the game in Mookie Betts was a really good moment. It wasn’t the best of outings for me, but striking out a guy of his stature let me know, ‘Hey, I belong.’”