Rockies' biggest offseason Q: Who will lead this group moving forward?

DENVER -- This week, the Rockies started toward the answer to their biggest offseason question by beginning interviews for a new head of baseball operations. That person will be a key figure in bringing much-needed change after three straight 100-plus loss seasons.

The answer affects all other solutions, including whether to stay with interim manager Warren Schaeffer. But the leadership won’t be the first of the three attacked in this story. Who that person will be is only a matter of conjecture, since owner, chairman and CEO Dick Monfort and his son Walker, club executive vice president elect (it becomes official in ‘26), are spearheading the search but not acknowledging names of any candidate. So we’ll speculate on that later.

But there are plenty of issues to kick around -- at least until the Rockies’ new baseball leader is hired.

1) What to do about starting pitching?

There isn’t a final decisionmaker, but work has begun. Scouts and other organization figures convened over the weekend in Scottsdale, Ariz., to discuss, well, all things pitching. As noted in Tuesday’s Rockies Beat Newsletter (sign up for free), the enduring problem of pitching effectively at altitude will be a guiding principle as this team moves forward -- after an unsightly 6.65 starter ERA in 2025.

The plight of veteran lefty Kyle Freeland, who grew up in this atmosphere but still has been vexed by the effects of mile-high pitching this year and in recent years, illustrates the challenge.

Freeland debuted in 2017 and finished fourth in National League Cy Young Award voting the following year, with the Rockies finishing both terms in the postseason. Attacking up and in was his calling card. But there is a mountain of data suggesting that the ability to ride a fastball at the top of the zone declines quickly the more a pitcher works his home games at altitude.

A rough beginning to 2024 signaled to Freeland the need to change. Freeland combatted his decline by augmenting his slider with a sweeper (feel free to delve into the glossary definitions and discuss with data-driven folks), and dedicating himself to spotting his fastball at various parts of the zone.

This year, Freeland struggled early, to a 5.44 ERA before the All-Star break. He lowered his ERA by more than a run in the second half to 4.42, and that stretch included two starts fighting illness (eight runs, 10 hits in 7 2/3 innings) and an ejection with no outs after he took exception to the exuberating of the Giants’ Rafael Devers after a two-run homer.

Freeland said the Rockies’ decision to bring performance science manager and biomechanics specialist Brandon Stone around the club full-time (rather than split his time between the club and the Scottsdale, Ariz., performance lab) was a key to helping Freeland hone his pitches and make quicker adjustments from home to road. Freeland lives in Scottsdale, where pitching biomechanics expert Emilio Martinez runs the lab.

Freeland, who is signed through next season at $17 million, with a vesting option for 2027 at the same salary kicking in if he reaches 170 innings pitched in ‘26, said he has regained some ride on his fastball, and he’ll enter next season with new information that can help him with the back-and-forth between home and road.

“We have to make the adjustment with our pitches, where we are starting them and finishing them,” Freeland said. “With biomechanics and analytics, the little adjustments that they are able to give us are designed to get the most out of our body.”

With Freeland, we’re talking about a true veteran. But beyond Freeland and righty Ryan Feltner, who was limited to six Major League starts by back and right shoulder issues, rotation options on the current 40-man roster are 2025 rookies Chase Dollander, a high Draft pick who struggled, Tanner Gordon (the team’s best pitcher by season’s end), Bradley Blalock and McCade Brown.

Coaching pitchers in Denver, and increasing the personnel and analytics before they arrive, must be a priority, since the Rockies – no matter who is running them – are rarely considered by top free-agent pitchers.

2) Can they get some experience?

In late-season games that 35-year-old infielder Kyle Farmer started, he was often the oldest infielder by more than 11 years. Brenton Doyle and Mickey Moniak were 27, graybeards around here.

Various players suggested that the retirement of outfielder Charlie Blackmon after 2024 and the continued injury problems of long-ago Cubs World Series star Kris Bryant left young players without that figure that they were looking up to before turning pro.

While the Rockies’ position player group will continue to be young, the places to add experienced players in their prime are second base and first base. But those are questions of money and the roster structure fostered by the new leader.

3) Who will the leader be?

That’s anyone’s guess, with Walker Monfort having set and stayed with his process. He has declined to discuss any candidate outside of the vetting process. This much can be gleaned from various conversations:

• The belief is someone will be in place by the end of the World Series, or at least by the general managers meetings in Las Vegas Nov. 10-13.

• The resignation of assistant GM Zack Rosenthal this week makes it even more likely that there will be more than one hire high in the baseball operation. But the new head will be given the task of reshaping the organization throughout.

• With the uniqueness of Denver’s atmosphere, the new front office and organization is likely to be a mix of newcomers and organization veterans -- many of whom are hungry for change.

• Leadership will include experience with trades and Major League free agency. The last two GMs, Jeff Bridich and Bill Schmidt, were promoted from jobs that didn’t have those as primary responsibilities.

Now, you are hungry for candidates.

Reiterating that the Rockies aren’t confirming anything, many fingers point to former Twins GM Thad Levine, a key front-office figure with the Rockies from 1999-2005. While Levine is seen as a strong candidate, onetime Rockies employees who have had major responsibilities elsewhere such as Billy Eppler (special advisor with the Brewers) and Andy McKay (Mariners assistant GM) are subjects of speculation.

With Walker Monfort having mentioned several other teams as models for the Rockies, speculation turns to well-regarded and innovative front-office figures such as Scott Sharp (Royals), Matt Kleine (Brewers), Amiel Sawdaye and Mike Fitzgerald (Diamondbacks), and Matt Forman and James Harris (Guardians).