Rockies send 16 players to minor league camp
The Colorado Rockies announced their first roster moves of the spring, sending 16 players to their minor league camp Tuesday:
RHP: Al Alburquerque, Craig Baker, Juan Nicasio, Edgmer Escalona, Andrew Johnston, Chaz Roe, Andrew Graham and Shane Lindsay.
LHP: Christian Friedrich.
Catchers: Jordan Pacheco, Michael McKenry and Wilin Rosario.
Infielders: Darin Holcomb, Hector Gomez and Jeff Kindel.
Outfielder: Chris Frey.
Alburquerque, Nicasio, Escalona, Roe, Lindsay, McKenry and Gomez are on the 40-man roster and have have been optioned to the minor leagues.
The Rockies now have 46 players on the spring training roster, including 13 non-roster invitees.
Jonathan Herrera seems to be playing really well. It would be a huge shock if he makes the squad, but he is definately showing good effort.
No surprises on this list of players headed to the minor league camp. All of these players were expected to start the season in the minor leagues. C Roe and others pitched pretty well, bur again no surprises.
Assuming the 13 non-roster players don’t make the roster, then there would still be another 8 players to be released, sent down to the minors or put on the disabled list
So was Hector Gomez sent down because of his age? I was under the impression that he was doing good in Spring Training, and may have stayed with the team a little longer.
Zach,
Hector Gomez did extremely well in big league camp. He was sent down so he can get ready to start his season at Double-A Tulsa. Minor league exhibition games start today, so he can get more at-bats in those games than would be the case in Cactus League games where Tulowitzki and Barmes soon are going to start getting more at-bats. Also infielders like Herrera, Nelson and Young, who are ahead of Gomez developmentally at this point, are still in big league camp, further reducing playing time for Gomez.