Tuesday, March 10

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Rockies right-hander Zach Agnos has a couple of new pitches and a bullpen job to win, so he says, “I don’t really focus on the hitters as much.” But the names of the last two sets of hitters he faced are hard to ignore.

In Wednesday's exhibition game, he faced Team USA’s Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber. On Saturday night, his opponents were Miguel Rojas, Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts of the Dodgers -- five of the game’s top stars and plus, in Rojas, last year’s World Series Game 7 ninth-inning game changer.

That is a powerful half-dozen to face in the first week of March. But Agnos -- out to show that last year’s rookie strike-zone challenges are behind him, and sporting new pitches and grips -- defeated them all, with one strikeout and weak contact.

“It’s a little easier when you get out there,” Agnos said. “You look at them, give them a nod, then you get on the mound and hear the pitch called. That’s when everything zones out.”

Agnos has performed better than any Rockies pitcher this spring. He has not yielded a run in four appearances plus the exhibition against Team USA, which is not included on Cactus League statistics. Combined in those outings, he has six strikeouts with two hits allowed and no walks.

“Test me now rather than later,” Agnos said. “They’re the best of the best. I love competing against those guys. It’s always fun for me and always a challenge.”

Manager Warren Schaeffer has said throughout the spring he is likely not to designate a closer, and he prefers to seek matchups at various points of the game. Saturday, Agnos was used in the first inning to face some of the Dodgers’ top hitters.

“We love a lot about ‘Ags,’” Schaeffer said. “His stuff is really good. He throws hard. He’s a bulldog on the mound. This spring, he has been exceptional at attacking the strike zone early, and he’s had every good success at getting ahead -- 0-2, 1-2. That opens up things for him, just like it would for any pitcher.”

Agnos, 25, spent most of his college career at shortstop, but he went to pitching full-time after the Rockies selected him in the 10th round of the 2022 Draft. He debuted last season with no runs in his first seven outings and scoreless pitching in 12 of his first 14 games before struggles with control ensued. He finished with 19 strikeouts, but he also had 17 walks in 31 1/3 innings. 

“The only thing that’s changed from last year about throwing strikes is having confidence in my stuff,” Agnos said.

During the winter, Agnos worked with his brother, Jake, a former ECU lefty pitching standout and former Yankees prospect who is back at the school to work with pitchers. With his brother helping him make tweaks, Agnos was working on pitch development even before new pitching coach Alon Leichman suggested it.

“I really wanted to dial in a sinker, [I] was messing around one day with the two-seam grip and it took off to my arm side,” Agnos said. “Then I got here for leadership camp [before Spring Training], the first thing Alon said to me was, ‘Have you messed around with a sinker?’ And I said, ‘Actually, I’m throwing one.”

Agnos said his brother has helped him improve his curveball and a sweeper -- a pitch Leichman told him he needed to sharpen. Results are showing, regardless of the opposition.

“The whole gist of this camp is attacking the zone,” Agnos said.

The Rockies will open the season against the Marlins in Miami on March 27 at 4:10 p.m. MT, and the Rockies are planning a watch party at Tom’s Watch Bar at McGregor Square (across from Coors Field). Please stay tuned to @Rockies on social media for information as the event approaches.

The Rockies’ front office, known in the past for being notoriously thin in numbers of employees, underwent an expansion this winter under new club president Walker Monfort and president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta. It is continuing even as the season approaches. Last week, the club posted openings for director of baseball systems; principal analyst, baseball research and development; and director of baseball data science.

“We’ll constantly be evolving as an organization,” DePodesta said. “There are some capabilities that we want to add to our existing group, but at this point we have a pretty good feel for our current capabilities. There are things we knew we had to get in place before Spring Training, and now that we’re here we have a sense of other things that we can add.”

This is an expansion rather than a teardown and buildup. The club has taken criticism for having a large number of longtime employees, but DePodesta said he finds the longevity a strength.

“By and large, the margins between winning and losing at this level are much, much smaller than people think,” DePodesta said. “And whenever a team has struggled, it’s not because everything is bad. 

“It’s usually just a few things you can look to improve that can make a big difference but foundationally there are still probably a lot of good people in place. That’s exactly what I found here. I’m so glad we took the chance to take our time and really get to know everybody. It’s been pretty impressive.”

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