The Rockies announced this afternoon that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Matt Koch. Right-hander Jake Bird was placed on the 15-day IL with elbow inflammation to clear a spot on the club’s active roster, while infielder Julio Carreras was designated for assignment to open up a spot on the 40-man roster.
Koch, 33, was a third-round pick by the Mets in the 2012 draft but made his debut with the Diamondbacks in 2016. In parts of four seasons with Arizona, Koch swung between the rotation and bullpen but generally struggled badly throughout his time in the majors with a 4.88 ERA and 6.00 FIP in 125 1/3 innings. Koch departed the Dbacks organization following the 2019 season and did not pitch in the big leagues over the next two seasons before eventually resurfacing with the Mariners for four appearances in 2022, though he struggled badly with an 8.31 ERA and 8.42 FIP in 4 1/3 frames.
That eventually led Koch to sign with the Rockies on a minor league deal prior to the 2023 season. He was a serviceable member of the club’s bullpen last year, pitching to a 5.12 ERA (good for a roughly league average 97 ERA+ due to the inflated offensive environment of Coors Field) with a roughly matching 5.07 FIP in 39 appearances for Colorado last year. While he struck out just 16.6% of batters faced, he limited walks to a 5.5% clip while generating groundballs and a strong 49% clip. Looking ahead, the Rockies are surely hoping that Koch will offer the club adequate middle relief from the left-hand side once again this year, as he’ll enter the club’s bullpen as the only lefty relief option besides closer Jalen Beeks.
Making room for Koch on the active roster is Bird, who is headed to the injured list with elbow inflammation. The 28-year-old righty was a fifth-round pick by the Rockies in the 2018 draft and has pitched for the club in each of the last three seasons, including a solid 2023 campaign where he posted a 4.33 ERA and 3.55 FIP in 89 1/3 innings of work. While that seemingly set Bird up to handle key leverage innings for Colorado out of the bullpen this year, things haven’t gone according to plan as he’s struggled badly to the tune of a 6.10 ERA and nearly matching 6.34 FIP in 20 2/3 innings of work prior to his placement on the injured list today. Bird’s timetable for return is not currently clear, though the Rockies are surely hoping he’ll look more like his 2023 self upon his return.
More to come…