Kyle Freeland will be on the mound when the Rockies start the 2026 season on March 27 in Miami against the Marlins.
The Opening Day start will be the fifth of Freeland’s career, which breaks his own record of most in Rockies history.
Freeland, 32, also made the Opening Day start for Colorado in 2019, 2022, 2024 and 2025. Last season, Freeland had a great debut, throwing six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts and only two hits against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rockies went on to lose 3-2 after Kameron Misner hit a walk-off homer in the bottom of the night.
It was the 14th quality start in franchise history, but the rest of the season didn’t go as well for Freeland, who also didn’t get much run support, as he went 5-17 in 31 starts with a 4.98 ERA.
This spring has been another story, despite Freeland seeing action late with back spasms in February that delayed his spring training debut. Since then, in five innings over two starts, Freeland has a 1.80 ERA. He has given up four hits and three walks with six strikeouts.
The Rockies also made two roster announcements on Tuesday, optioning infielder Adael Amador and RHP Tanner Gordon to the Triple-A Isotopes.