Why Colorado Rockies, Washington Nationals maintain MLB’s worst starting rotations
While the Los Angeles Dodgers retain MLB's top-rated starting rotations, the Colorado Rockies and Washington Nationals remain at the other end of the ERA spectrum.
Why Colorado Rockies, Washington Nationals maintain MLB’s worst starting rotations originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . The NL West favorites have the game’s top two-way talent ( Shohei Ohtani ), a batting order able to produce power and average, elite defenders and a deep starting rotation.
Former MLB general manager Jim Bowden, who writes for The Atlantic , rated the Dodgers’ starting five as the league's best. Headlined by four potential aces, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and Ohtani, the Dodgers employ an elite, if not fragile, rotation. Yamamoto enters 2026 as the lone starter to compile at least 95 innings last season.
If only the Colorado Rockies and Washington Nationals had such problems. Colorado Rockies remain in trouble Ranked by Bowden as the league’s lowest-ranked starting rotation, the Rockies likely will open the campaign with one pitcher younger than 32-year-old Kyle Freeland, the projected ace. Chase Dollander, 24, remains the lone major-league-ready prospect.
The others – Michael Lorenzen, 34, Jose Quintana, 37, and Tomoyuki Sugano, 36 – remain journeymen stopgaps. The Rockies ranked No. 30 with a 5.