Scottsdale, Ariz. – Chase Dollander was drafted ninth overall in the 2023 MLB Draft and skyrocketed through the Colorado Rockies’ minor league system, finally making his MLB debut on April 6 last year against the Athletics.
Dollander had an up-and-down season, but he ended on a strong note when he went head-to-head against Tyler Glasnow in September before ultimately straining his patellar tendon during the game and finishing the year on the IL.
But Dollander is ready to take on 2026 with a new approach and a coaching staff.
“I’ve got to throw strikes,” Dollander said of his biggest 2025 takeaway.
“I’ve got to get in the zone early, which is something we’ve really honed in on. Especially with this new staff, they’ve been really big about just throwing strike one. You put a hitter in a defensive mode, and it’s not good for them. So that’s been a huge focus of mine this offseason – command, making sure I’m getting strike one, and going from there.”
That was something that Warren Schaeffer echoed, as well.
“I think the main thing is getting in the strike zone early in the count,” Schaeffer said. “That’s something he did not do very well last year with any of his pitches, specifically at Coors Field.”
Dollander spent his offseason making adjustments to ensure he could command the ball, both physically and philosophically.
“[I’ve made] a couple of mechanical adjustments,” he said, “being more direct to the plate, making sure my energy and everything like that goes towards the plate rather than away from it, which I think just in its own right has helped a lot of other things as well. So it’s been cool to kind of see the changes and stuff like that.”
And now that he’s gotten to work with the new coaching staff, he’s impressed.
“I like a lot of them so far,” he said, grinning.
“It’s a big change from what we had last year, and I think all of us are very excited. Some are more outspoken than others, but it’s definitely a change. It’s just exciting!”
In addition to a new coaching staff, the Rockies rotation is also shaping up to be dramatically different from 2025. Just in the last week, they added veterans José Quintana and Tomoyuki Sugano after bringing on Michael Lorenzen in January.
And Dollander is taking full advantage of the new brainpower.
“I’ve been talking to Lorenzen a lot, picking his brain and getting to know him as a person rather than the player, as well,” he said.
“I haven’t gotten to talk to Sugano all that much, and Quintana the same thing, but I’m looking forward to getting to know those guys and really talking to them and picking their brains. Obviously, all three of them have a lot of experience – along with [Kyle] Freeland – so I feel like there’s a lot to learn, and I have the right guys around me to do it, so I’m going to do it.”
Dollander said his head is hurting a little bit from all of the information being thrown at him, but “in a great way!”
“I’d rather have too much information than not enough,” he said. “I think they’re really good at just making sure that we’re all understanding and making sure we’re all on the same page. I think it’s going to be great.”
Schaeffer also praised the new veterans and what they can bring to a young pitcher like Dollander.
“I think just that attitude and being around new people and being around a lot more veterans – not just Kyle Freeland and [Antonio] Senzatela, but now it’s Michael Lorenzen and Sugano and Quintana. These are all guys that can help him with getting in the zone. His stuff is nasty – if he gets the ball over the plate, he’s going to be really good for a long time.”
And, of course, Dollander is working on a new pitch.
“The other day, we were playing around with a sweeper,” he said. “Obviously, the sinker got added last year. That has taken off in its own right. And then it’s just refining everything else, making sure that the slider stays hard with more of a downward action rather than side-to-side.
“I feel like my stuff is good enough,” he continued. “If I throw strikes, it’ll be a tough time for hitters. So that’s been my focus: Just command the zone.”
Looking ahead to 2026, Dollander is looking the most forward to working with the staff and veteran pitchers.
“[I’m most looking forward to] picking their brains more, especially as games go on, like, ‘Hey man, what did you see here? What would you throw in this situation?’ That kind of stuff,” he said.
“I think that’s when I’ll start to really learn a lot. It’s hard now just because we’re all doing different things – we’re all throwing live (batting practices) at these different times and stuff like that – but once games start, I’m in learning mode.”
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