Chase Dollander

Dollander punched out three opposing batters on the afternoon while allowing a pair of walks. He allowed a pair of baserunners in the opening inning but erased one of them himself as he picked Brayan Rocchio off of first base. The 23-year-old righty got five swings and misses on 59 offerings on the day, registering a CSW of 24 percent. He now sports a 7.59 ERA and 1.50 WHIP with 11 strikeouts over 10 2/3 innings through his first four Cactus League starts.

Dollander battled some uncharacteristic control woes in this one, handing out a whopping four free passes, before being lifted with two outs in the second frame. He finished with only one strikeout, uncorked a wild pitch and threw just 26 of 50 pitches for strikes. The 23-year-old right-hander is widely considered one of the top pitching prospects in baseball, but this latest outing decreases his odds of breaking camp in Colorado’s starting rotation. It’s only a matter of time before he ascends to the big leagues, but it might not be on Opening Day.

Dollander gave up two homers in the outing, one of them a three-run homer to Eugenio Suarez in the first inning. The 23-year-old did strike out four while showing the stuff — if not the command — that makes him one of the best pitching prospects in baseball. Dollander has a great chance to make starts for the Rockies in 2025, but there’s the obvious risks that come with his home surroundings on top of playing for one of the worst teams in the sport.

Unfortunately, Dollander’s spring debut came in a Statcast-less ballpark. The 23-year-old top pitching prospect came out attacking the strike zone early on and managed to shake off a two-out homer by Jung Hoo Lee in the opening frame by retiring three of the final four batters he faced. The ninth-overall pick from the 2023 MLB Draft has a legitimate shot at breaking camp in Colorado’s season-opening rotation and a performance like this against a lineup featuring mostly big-league regulars from a divisional rival only helps strengthen his argument. It’s unclear whether he’s ready to tackle Coors Field right away, but he’s the most talented pitcher to give it a shot in quite some time. He’s a worthy late-round sleeper candidate in fantasy drafts this spring, especially in deeper mixed leagues.