Tovar hoping to learn from rough '26 in upward climb back to stardom

DENVER -- The genius of the Rockies’ “Here for the Climb” campaign for this year is that there isn’t a timeline on how long such an ascension will take, or even when it will start.

It took until the final weeks of the season but one of the players featured in the campaign, shortstop Ezequiel Tovar, has finally gained enough traction to be considered on his way up.

Tovar knocked his 12th homer of the season on a two-hit performance Wednesday night to briefly offer hope, but the result was a 5-3 loss to the Diamondbacks at Coors Field for loss No. 101.

But over his last 39 games, Tovar has batted .301 (31-of-103), and is slashing .317/.349/.488 in 16 games this month. It doesn’t erase a .218 average and .611 OPS overall – figures that have led to him going from lineup mainstay to one who is frequently subbed. But after a poor 2026, which followed a .253 performance in 95 games last year as he dealt with hip and oblique injuries, there at least is a glimmer of the player who led the National League with 45 doubles in 2024.

Recently in the clubhouse, Tovar, 24, said he is excited about how he feels, even late in a rough season. The offseason work to strengthen his body has paid off in him feeling fresh, as opposed to how worn he was this time last year.

“I feel healthy, blessed,” Tovar said. “I trained a lot last offseason because it’s a long season. I’m still playing, so I feel happy.”

The season ends on Sunday, but Tovar is already planning on how he’ll scale his way to past heights.

Tovar counted his workout program for how he feels now. He didn’t overemphasize strengthening areas that had been injured, so his entire body got the attention it deserved. And he didn’t believe the physical work interfered with his baseball preparation.

“I do it all together,” said Tovar, who is three years into a $63.5 million contract through 2030. “It’s not like I focus on one body part. It’s 30 minutes in the gym, 30 minutes ground balls, 30 minutes hitting, whatever -- it’s not like I’m going to try to work on one thing and that’s it.

“Right now, my hitting feels a little better. But I think it’s more mental.”

He’ll return to his South Florida home, and will spend time in his native Venezuela as usual. He also is considering time at the Rockies’ complex in Scottsdale, Ariz., early in the offseason to continue practicing against Major League velocity from a machine.

The biggest training will be mental. Tovar is setting up a trip to Puerto Rico to train with Rockies third-base coach Andy Gonzalez -- a mentor who challenges him and has a close relationship.

“Without a doubt this is the worst season he’s ever had, including in the Minor Leagues since he signed with us,” Gonzalez said. “Nobody was expecting this season out of him. He can tell you that himself.”

Gonzalez is signed to be the third-base coach for Santurce in the Puerto Rican Winter League. Tovar is not signed as an active player, but he plans to do full baseball workouts as if he’s preparing for games. Gonzalez said Tovar could see game-speed pitching, whether it’s standing in the batter’s box to track pitches during bullpen sessions or even facing pitchers during live batting practice.

The goal is to improve swing decisions that have seen Tovar rank, per Statcast:

• First (40.4 percent) in swing rate at all low-and-away pitches out of the strike zone (min. 100 pitches).

• First (46.4 percent) in swing rate at non-fastballs out of the strike zone among MLB players (min. 100 pitches).

• Seventh (36.5 percent) in swinging out of the zone at the first pitch of a plate appearance (min.150 pitches).

For those not statistically inclined, it means Tovar works himself into trouble swinging at down-and-away pitches, and he puts himself in trouble chasing first pitches. Where it shows in games is the pitcher doesn’t necessarily have to start with a strike or throw one with two strikes.

Tovar chased pitches when he was more successful. But this year he lost the ability to hit the high fastball. Lately -- including Wednesday’s homer on Brandyn Garcia’s 97.9 mph sinker -- he is “just being a little earlier on the fastball.”

Gonzalez breaks it into even more layman’s terms: Tovar needs to regain belief.

“At some point, he lost confidence in himself during the season, and that’s part of being human, part of what happens to any athlete,” Gonzalez said. “He knows he needs to make this offseason the best he’s ever had to prepare for the next year.”