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The Colorado Rockies have been bad this season, to nobody's surprise. However, interim manager Warren Schaeffer has given young players opportunities since replacing Bud Black. However, he has seen enough from Chase Dollander after he could not make it four innings against the Chicago White Sox. Colorado sent him to the minor leagues in exchange for Brady Blalock.
At 23 years old, Dollander was by far the youngest starter in Schaeffer's rotation. Unfortunately for him, his youth showed. His 2-9 record is not the worst amongst the Rockies' starters, but his 6.68 ERA is. He heads to Triple-A Albuquerque to work on his efficiency. According to MLB.com's Molly Burkhardt, the rookie has plenty of ground to make up in his manager's eyes.
“He absolutely has things he needs to work on,” Schaeffer said. “He needs to work on his efficiency and getting deeper into games and throwing more strikes early in counts. And he knows all this, and it's a good time for him to go down there and work on it.”
In his debut season at the major league level, Dollander has done what he can. However, his lack of control combined with one of the worst offenses in recent memory working against him, he has been unable to get things going. However, he has shown flashes that have impressed his coaches.
According to Schaeffer, command is the key word for Dollander.
“I know I keep using it with Chase, but I mean, that is the big word with him, in terms of getting deeper into games, commanding the ball early in the count to get ahead of hitters,” Schaeffer said. “These are all things that we'll be looking at down there.”
For the foreseeable future, Blalock will replace Dollander on Colorado's roster. However, the Rockies and their manager still have faith in Dollander's talent.
“Chase has a really good mentality,” Schaeffer said. “I just think it's a matter of him executing it on a more consistent basis. I think it's probably always a combination of physical and mental.”
