Rockies best pitcher to return from injury, team will shake up rotation

Amid a horrendous start to the season the Colorado Rockies are getting some good news this week.

German Márquez will return to the Rockies rotation after missing a few weeks of action. An MRI earlier this month confirmed there was a strain in Márquez’s right arm but there was no major damage to his forearm.

Márquez left what was his third start of the season with the injury and has a 4.41 ERA through 16.1 innings pitched with a 2-1 record. Márquez will start for the Rockies on Wednesday in Cleveland as they end a road trip.

On an individual level, this is a big season for Márquez. He is in the final season of a five-year, $43 million contract with a club option for 2024. Márquez is sitting at 979 career strikeouts, six away from matching Jorge De La Rosa for the most in Rockies history.

The Rockies got back closer Daniel Bard last week while Antonio Senzatela, who is working back from a torn ACL, is scheduled for a minor league rehab start on Tuesday in Triple-A.

Meanwhile the man who stepped up for Márquez to fill his spot in the rotation is rookie Noah Davis. The righty was slated to be Wedsaday’s starter but according to Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post he’s going to stay in the rotation.

Davis has thrown 9.2 innings over two starts, allowing just one earned while striking out 10 to just three walks.

Rockies starters have a 6.19 ERA through 24 games this season which is the fourth-worst in MLB. Both Austin Gomber, who has a 9.28 ERA in five starts, and José Ureña, who has a 9.82 ERA in five starts, could lose their spot to make room for Davis.

Whether they get demoted to the bullpen or the minors is yet to be seen, but in order to get Marquez active without pushing Davis back down, the Rockies will need to make a change.

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