Rockies acquire outfielder Jake McCarthy from Diamondbacks for pitching prospect Josh Grosz

The Rockies swung an in-division trade on Saturday to add to their outfield depth.

Colorado acquired Jake McCarthy from the Diamondbacks in exchange for right-handed pitching prospect Josh Grosz. McCarthy is coming off a down year with Arizona, but his past suggests the potential for his bat to help the Rockies lineup.

With the move, Colorado’s 40-man roster is full, and the Rockies have another option in an outfield that is returning its top three contributors last year in Brenton Doyle, Jordan Beck and Mickey Moniak.

Beyond those three and McCarthy, other outfielders currently on the 40-man include up-and-comers Yanquiel Fernández and Zac Veen, utilitymen Tyler Freeman and Troy Johnston, and the yet-to-debut Sterlin Thompson.

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McCarthy, 28, was a first-round pick by Arizona out of the University of Virginia in 2018. After debuting in 2021, he came on strong in 2022, slashing .283/.342/.427 with a .769 OPS and 2.4 bWAR to finish fourth in the National League Rookie of the Year voting. He can play all three outfield spots, and his stock continued to rise in 2023 and ’24, especially the latter year, where he hit .285 with 1.7 bWAR in 142 games.

But McCarthy fell off in 2025. He started the season mired in a deep slump, going hitless in his first 24 at-bats and batting .073 when Arizona finally sent him down to Triple-A Reno on April 19. He hit better in the second half of the season after being recalled, but it wasn’t enough to not make him expendable for Arizona.

Over his five-year big-league career, McCarthy is slashing .260/.324/.381 with 46 doubles, 20 triples, 24 homers and 139 RBIs. Speed is also an important element of his game, as he has 83 stolen bases and 20 triples in his career, and his 29.9 feet/second sprint speed in 2025 was tied for fifth-fastest in the majors among players with at least 200 plate appearances.

In trading away Grosz, the Rockies gave up on one of the pieces from the Ryan McMahon trade with the Yankees last July. Grosz had a 5.87 ERA in seven starts for High-A Spokane following the trade. The other pitcher acquired in that deal, southpaw Griffin Herring, showed promise down the stretch of 2025 with a 2.40 ERA in seven starts for Spokane. Herring figures to be tested in Double-A this season.

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from The Denver Post https://ift.tt/hpktvTQ