Chase Dollander realized his dream by making his big-league debut this season, but he didn’t have a dream season.
A learning experience is more like it.
Manager Warren Schaeffer said that Dollander will go on the 15-day injured list on Saturday with a patellar tendon strain in his left knee, ending his season.
The Rockies’ rookie right-hander made 21 starts, had a 2-12 record, posted a 6.52 ERA, and a 1.551 WHIP. He overcame a right forearm strain, was demoted to Triple-A Albuquerque, and then returned to the Rockies.
Dollander thrived on the road and struggled at Coors Field. He showed off his electric fastball, but struggled with fastball command. He struck out 7.5 batters per nine innings, but walked 4.5. In other words, a roller-coaster ride.
His 97.8 mph overall fastball velocity is in the 94th percentile in the majors, according to Statcast. He also has an effective array of off-speed pitches. The Rockies believe he has the right stuff to be their No. 1 starter of the future.
However, his extreme home-road splits can’t be ignored. In 11 starts at Coors, Dollander went 2-6 with a 9.98 ERA and 1.978 WHIP. He served up 12 home runs over 46 innings. In 10 road starts, the rookie was 0-6 with a 3.46 ERA, 1.173 WHIP, and six homers allowed over 52 innings.
In his final start of the season, on Monday against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, Dollander demonstrated his potential. Over five innings, he allowed one run on one hit, struck out five, and walked two.
“Chase was fantastic,” Schaeffer told reporters. “His changeup was good, he was throwing his heater where he wanted to, he was climbing the ladder when he needed to, and locating the breaking ball for strikes.”
Dollander was 2-9 with a 6.68 ERA when the Rockies optioned him to Triple-A Albuquerque shortly before the All-Star break. After being recalled, he posted a 6.14 ERA over six starts (29 1/3 innings). He was great on the road, with a 1.69 ERA in three road starts at St. Louis, Houston and Los Angeles. But he was bad at Coors, posting an 11.48 ERA in three starts.
Schaeffer repeatedly said that it was too early to be concerned about Dollander’s home-road splits, but Schaeffer told MLB.com on Thursday in San Diego that Dollander has work to do.
“Specifically, after he got sent down and came back up, that was a huge time period for him in terms of getting it with reality, coming back up and deciding to make an adjustment,” Schaeffer said. “He did, in terms of his mound presence, the way he handles himself on the mound, and all the stuff in difficult environments.
“For him, it’s determining how he wants his arsenal to play at home as opposed to on the road. There have been adjustments that have been made in season, trying to discover that — looking at the analytic data.”
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