Coming out of the University of Kentucky, Ryan Ritter had a reputation as a glove-first shortstop who could really defend at the next level, but there were questions about his impact at the plate after hitting .280/.350/.423 in two seasons with the Wildcats. The Rockies thought there was enough there to take him in the fourth round of the 2022 Draft and it¡¯s clear Ritter has used that defense-only evaluation as motivation thus far in his pro career.

¡°I always hear that,¡± said Ritter, the Rockies¡¯ No. 12 prospect. ¡°That's something I want to stomp on the ground one day, and I feel like I'm working towards it. I still got to improve, still got to get better. I've always taken pride in my defense, and I want to become just as good as I am on offense, as I am on defense, so that's never going to stop.¡±

That stomping began in 2023, his first full season. He began the year with Single-A Fresno and ended it touching Double-A Hartford, putting in a 20-20 season (24 homers and 20 steals) to go along with a .902 OPS. He was on a faster track than anticipated and jumped firmly onto prospect radars.

His encore in 2024 started out with a little less fireworks, but he heated up again in July, with a .320/.404/.420 line over the first 13 games before landing on the injured list after taking a ball off his ankle.

¡°Getting injured is always tough,¡± Ritter said. ¡°I wish it would have gotten my shin a little bit, but it was my little ankle. It took time to come back, probably took like five weeks or so, but I had to get out there for playoffs, so I wanted to make sure we got the process going and then finished up with three weeks left.¡±

It took a while for Ritter to get his timing back, but he was back with Hartford in time for the postseason, though the Yard Goats did lose their first series. Ritter then got ready to head to the Arizona Fall League, where he¡¯s hoping to make up for some of those lost at-bats, rediscover his groove at the plate and soak up some baseball knowledge.

¡°I'm excited to be here, because just like college summer ball, you're with a bunch of guys, a bunch of new perspectives,¡± said Ritter, who played two summers with Cotuit in the Cape Cod League. ¡°So I'm excited to learn from them, and that's the one thing I can't wait for, [to] work with the coaches, work with the players, and then take little things from everybody, and then I believe it'll work out to my benefit, and then also play more positions, just become more versatile.¡±

Ritter isn¡¯t moving around because he somehow no longer can handle shortstop defensively. There are no questions about his ability to play the premium position for a long time. But the Rockies wanted him to add some positional flexibility to his resume because it¡¯s never bad to create more than one path to the big leagues. And like with his reputation as a single-dimensional player coming out of college, Ritter is attacking the assignment head-on.

¡°I've been a shortstop my whole life, so I'm going to start playing second now, get used to that position and become really good at it,¡± Ritter said.

Rockies hitters in the Fall League

Jose Cordova, C: The Rockies made a low-risk $5,000 investment to sign Cordova near the end of the 2017-18 international signing period and he spent two summers in the Dominican Summer League. Since then, he¡¯s struggled to get at-bats, with 139 combined ABs in 2021 through 2023. He got more regular time with Spokane this past season, helping them win the Northwest League title, hitting .286. He played more first base than catcher and is in Arizona getting more reps behind the dish.

Juan Guerrero, OF: Signed at the start of the 2018-19 international signing period for $650,000, Guerrero had gotten off to a solid start in his pro career, making his full-season debut in 2022. A move to High-A Spokane in 2023 and he posted just a .688 OPS with questions about his future impact. He still isn¡¯t driving the ball a ton, but he did hit .304 with 27 steals while reaching Double-A in 2024. He¡¯s Rule 5 eligible so the Rockies can use this AFL time to help make a final decision.

Skyler Messinger, 3B/1B: Messenger spent four years at Kansas, then used his extra year of eligibility (COVID) to move to Texas, where he turned in a .974 OPS and got to work with Rockies legend and Longhorns coach Troy Tulowitzki. Drafted in the 19th round of the 2022 Draft, Messinger hit 18 homers in his first full season with Single-A Fresno, but played in just 53 games in 2024, more than half of them rehabbing from injury on the heels of Tommy John surgery last December.

Rockies pitchers in the Fall League

Michael Prosecky, LHP (No. 17): Prosecky jumped on the prospect map with a strong first full season in 2023 after the Rockies took him in Round 6 of the 2022 Draft. He was limited to just 48 2/3 innings this season because of elbow issues, so he¡¯s trying to get back in a groove in the AFL. He¡¯s working in relief but has the potential repertoire to start.

Gabriel Hughes, RHP (No. 22): A former two-way player at Gonzaga, Hughes went in the first round (No. 10 overall) of the 2022 Draft as a college starting pitching prospect with some upside. He¡¯s only thrown 69 2/3 total innings in two years as a pro because he had Tommy John surgery in July of his first year. His time on the mound with Salt River is his first official action since, so he¡¯s using the time to shake off the rust and help him get ready for a full and hopefully healthy 2025 season.

McCade Brown, RHP: Brown parlayed a big 2021 season at Indiana to become a third-round pick of the Rockies in 2021. He¡¯s been in the Top 30 before because of his premium raw stuff coming from a 6-foot-6 frame. He missed all of 2023 following Tommy John surgery and returned in 2024 to amass 23 2/3 IP, so he brought his upper-90s fastball and good breaking stuff to Salt River to get more reps on the mound.

Evan Justice, LHP: A fifth-rounder in 2021, Justice has had trouble staying healthy. He missed all of 2022 with a shoulder strain. He stayed on the mound long enough in 2023 to make his big league debut in August, but then missed a good chunk of this season with injury, totaling just 25 IP, so the left-handed reliever is in Arizona making up for lost mound time.

Carlos Torres, RHP: Taken in the final round of the 2022 Draft out of Lehigh, Torres is now a full-time reliever who is moving one rung at a time. He missed a lot of time in 2024, though he pitched very well during Spokane¡¯s championship run. He throws strikes and gets groundball outs while upping his K rate when he was healthy this season.