• The Colorado Rockies Have Traded for Connor Seabold. Now What?
It’s another move to shore up their pitching depth.
Jan 20, 2023
On Tuesday, the Colorado Rockies announced they had made a trade with the Boston Red Sox.
Colorado Rockies @Rockies
In doing so, the Bill Schmidt continues to make good on his September statement that the Rockies would be on the market for pitching in the offseason. And before going into the details of Connor Seabold, it’s worth noting that the Rockies have signed 16 pitchers who are at a range of MLB levels and asking what he brings to the Rockies’ system.
Okay, Who Is This Guy?
The almost-27-year-old, right-handed pitcher (his birthday is January 24) attended high school in Newport Beach, California, and was drafted in the 9th round of the 2014 draft by the Baltimore Orioles. However, He chose instead to play for California State University, Fullerton from 2015-2017.
He was successful with the Titans and was named to the All-Big West Conference Team in multiple years. He also played in the Cape Cod League, where his team, the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, won the league championship in 2017.
Seabold finished college with a 2.89 ERA in 280 innings with a WHIP of 1.104 and an HR/9 of 0.5.
In the third round of the 2017 MLB Draft (83rd overall), he was selected by the Phillies and began working through their system. He was traded to the Red Sox in August 2020.
On September 11, 2021, Seabold made his MLB debut against the White Sox in Chicago where he allowed two runs on three hits in three innings. After that, he was sent back to Worcester. He spent most of 2021 and 2022 with the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox, pitching in 140.2 innings and earning a 3.39 ERA, so not bad. His 2022 season ended when he developed a right forearm extensor strain.
His stints in Boston were less impressive. After five starts with the Sox, he had an eye-popping 11.29 ERA though he struck out 19 batters and walk 8 in 18.1 innings.
His time with the Red Sox came to an end on January 12 when he was DFA’d to make room for Corey Kluber. This week, the Rockies agreed on a trade with the Red Sox for either a player to be named later or cash.
That Seems Pretty Standard. How’s the Arm?
There’s promise. He has four pitches: a four-seam fastball (fairly unremarkable), changeup (very remarkable), and slider (it’s fine) with a curveball (rarely thrown). (Read the Baseball Savant analysis here.)
Actually, see for yourself:
There was one concerning report from Alex Speier out of Boston that suggested Seabold was ignoring the instruction of manager Alex Cora: “Sox want to see Seabold increase his changeup usage this game compared to his earlier starts, see that as a swing-and-miss weapon that can help him navigate an order more than once.”
Seabold instead decided to trust his fastball, throwing 47 as compared to 24 sliders, 13 changeups, and one curveball.
Cora said of the outing, “The pitch mix, we still have to work on it . . . .We cannot be so fastball heavy, especially in the division that we play (in). It’s a good first step. The fastball played early on. The slider was better than expected than the one I saw early in the season. The change-up is still one that we want to see a little bit more often. But overall, a solid (outing).”
If Seabold has proven difficult to coach, that may explain the willingness of the Red Sox to DFA him. It would also present an issue for the Rockies.
While Connor Seabold has spent most of his career as a starter — and he will clearly be vying for a starting job in Spring Training — the Rockies could use him out of the bullpen as well. Since he has one option remaining, he could also start the season in Albuquerque.
Can You Tell Us Something Interesting?
Oddly enough, not really. I pride myself on being able to find interesting stories, but I really couldn’t here. Connor Seabold got married on November 4, and he spent time on Maui in December. He has two younger brothers who names also being with “C,” but that’s about it.
Is This a Good Move?
Yes. The Rockies need pitching, and in Connor Seabold, they’ve added another arm with potential. Scott Neville has called Seabold “a talented arm that has yet to put it all together.” If he can put it together in Colorado and learn to trust his changeup, it may prove to be an excellent move.
Down on the Farm
- Zac Veen talked with David Laurila, and he’s planning on swiping some bags when he gets to Coors Field. (“Fearless” is a word often associate with Veen.)
- Baseball America has released their Top 100 Prospects list, including Adael Amador, Drew Romo, Ezequiel Tovar, and Zac Veen.
- Drew Romo is now listed as one of MLB Pipeline’s Top 10 catching prospects. It’s happening: The Rockies are developing an exceptional catcher.
- Max George has stopped playing baseball and started working in the Rockies’ scouting department.
Old Friends
- Adam Ottavino is happy to be back with the Mets. (And, in fairness, why wouldn’t he be?)
- Raimel Tapia has signed an MiLB contract with the Boston Red Sox.
Alyssa Cohen @aalyssacohenNot sure if anyone’s reported this yet, but Raimel Tapia is signing with the Boston Red Sox.
- Reading Jay Jaffe on Huston Street is worth your time.
- Normally, this isn’t the kind of information I would include here, but when it’s the self-proclaimed “website that billionaires read every day” reporting on Nolan Arenado’s salary, well, that merits some attention.
Weekend Walk-off
Next year’s schedule will see MLB teams playing each other at least once. Joe Doyle considered the travel implications:
Joe Doyle @JoeDoyleMiLB
The Rockies will be seeing an increase in their miles traveled in 2023, but check out the 51,000+ miles the Athletics will log. Be sure to bring along a good book.
Thanks for reading —
Renee
@ReneeDechert (Twitter) ★ @ReneeDechert (Mastodon) ★ @Renee.Dechert(Instagram) ★ @ReneeDechert (Post)