Report: Rockies ‘could do very well’ if they traded away top relievers

The Colorado Rockies have already made one big move ahead of the MLB trade deadline, and reports say that they could do well if they moved some pitching talent

BY TRENT FINNEGAN

Jul 30, 2025, 9:40 AM Updated: 9:41 am

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The Colorado Rockies already made one massive move ahead of the MLB trade deadline when they sent third baseman Ryan McMahon to the Bronx in return for a pair of pitching prospects. With just over 30 hours until the deadline officially hits, could they be in the market to make another move?

Reports last week showed that the Rockies were listening to calls for relief pitchers Seth Halvorsen and Victor Vodnik, but their asking price was much higher than those contenders were willing to pay at the time. Just a few days later, it is officially crunch time, and one side is going to have to cave a little towards to other in order to get what they want.

It’s no secret that Halvorsen and Vodnik have good value and would be great assets for a contending team, especially given the fact that they are under team control through 2029 and 2030, respectively. Both have a solid fastball, as Halvorsen’s four-seam fastball is the third-fastest in the league among qualified pitchers with an average velocity of 100.1 MPH, while Vodnik’s is just behind him in 13th place at 98.5 MPH. Those are both lethal numbers that can be valuable to any team in the league.

ESPN’s Buster Olney had a new update for the Rockies trade situation with these relievers on Tuesday.

“Other teams believe the Colorado Rockies could do very well in the current market if they dealt their best relievers — Seth Halvorsen, Jake Bird and Jimmy Herget. But some of those same teams view the current cost to make those deals as unreachable, and they wonder if the Rockies will bend as the deadline gets closer,” Olney said.

The name that the Rockies should really be holding out on is Halvorsen, as he still has plenty of time to grow as a pitcher. At just 25 years old with a fastball as fast as his, he could be a key piece of a Rockies rebuild (anything is possible!) towards the end of the decade. Herget, 31, and Bird, 29, are the two names that would make more sense to trade away from a rebuilding standpoint, as those two are older than what the club’s current timeline is shaping up to be.

Seth Halvorsen, 101mph Paint. 🖌️🎨 pic.twitter.com/86i4iCFfju

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 17, 2024

Victor Vodnik 💯⛽️ pic.twitter.com/14g5jxRjKR

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 19, 2025

The Rockies already have lost some value on Bird, as his ERA has ballooned all the way to 4.73 after his rough outing on Monday. At one point earlier in the season, he looked like one of the best relievers in the league with a 0.95 ERA at the end of April, but has totally lost his mojo. Contending teams are still interested, but his performance recently has hurt the club on the field and in the trade market.

For Herget, July has been his best month with a 2.40 ERA, as he’s dropped his season average down to 2.86 after it ballooned as high as 4.91 earlier in the season. He will probably net the weakest return for Colorado given his age, but has still drawn enough interest from opposing teams to at least have his name in circulation. He isn’t anywhere near the top of the league in terms of average velocity, but is able to put some wicked spin on his breaking ball.

Jimmy "The Human Glitch" Herget, Wicked Breaking Balls. 🤢 pic.twitter.com/CKB3iUXFNb

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 4, 2025

The Rockies aren’t winning anything this year, unless they set the record for worst record in baseball’s modern era, which would be a wins for fans calling for ownership to sell the team. The only path they have to winning down the road is having commissioner Rob Manfred install a salary cap in 2027, but they can help themselves out by loading up on as much young talent as possible. Guys like Bird and Herget are solid players, but don’t line up with the Rockies’ timeline at all, so it makes sense for the club to try and deal them, especially if Olney’s report of them being able to do well is true.

The MLB trade deadline is at 4:00 p.m. MDT on July 31.