Colorado Rockies Linked to Veteran Free Agent Second Baseman Thairo Estrada

After non-tendering Gold Glove winner Brendan Rodgers last month, the Colorado Rockies may look to replace him with former San Francisco Giants second baseman Thairo Estrada.

Jul 23, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; San Francisco Giants second baseman Thairo Estrada (39) throws to first for an out during the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. / Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

The Colorado Rockies are in the market for a second baseman, MLB.com's Thomas Harding reported Friday.

Per Harding, one name to watch is Thairo Estrada. The San Francisco Giants cut the 28-year-old veteran loose in August, and while he cleared waivers at the time, he is now a free agent.

Colorado only has an opening at second base because they opted to non-tender Brendan Rodgers last month. While Rodgers had a Gold Glove to his name, he was projected to earn somewhere between $5.5 million and $6.8 million in his final year of arbitration in 2025.

The Rockies decided they didn't want to pay Rodgers that kind of money, so they sent the 28-year-old packing in free agency instead.

The #Rockies are in the market for a second baseman, and one name to watch, according to a source is Thairo Estrada, who had productive seasons in 2022-23 before battling injuries during a tough 2024 with the #SFGiants.

— Thomas Harding (@harding_at_mlb) December 6, 2024

Estrada isn't the defensive player that Rodgers was, but his bat would make up for most of the lost production.

Between 2021 and 2023, Estrada hit .266 with a .736 OPS, averaging 18 home runs, 69 RBI, 23 stolen bases and a offensive 3.6 WAR per 162 games. In that same span, Rodgers hit .271 with a .751 OPS, averaging 18 home runs, 76 RBI, zero stolen bases and a 2.2 offensive WAR per 162 games.

Before the Giants acquired Estrada, he was a top-10 prospect in the New York Yankees' farm system.

Estrada had a rough 2024, however, batting .217 with a .590 OPS and -0.5 WAR while battling hamstring, thumb and wrist injuries. Meanwhile, Rodgers hit .267 with a .721 OPS and a 1.1 WAR in 135 games this season.

The Giants paid Estrada $4.7 million in 2024 after avoiding arbitration last January, and he would have had two years of arbitration remaining if he hadn't been waived midseason. Presumably, the Rockies could get the veteran infielder for a lower cost than that in 2025.

Colorado already signed 34-year-old utility infielder Kyle Farmer late last month, so they have at least one veteran option at second in case things don't progress with Estrada. Gleyber Torres, Nicky Lopez, Whit Merrifield, Jorge Polanco, Brandon Drury and Hyeseong Kim are among the other second basemen remaining on the free agent market who could take over the starting job and bump Farmer into a do-it-all backup role.

Top prospect Aaron Schunk, who made his MLB debut in 2024, could be the Rockies' future second baseman, even though he is a third baseman by trade. Ryan McMahon is still holding down the hot corner for the foreseeable future, though, unless the Rockies give in and trade the All-Star this winter.

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