Rockies’ Jordan Beck Stands Out As Future Big Leaguer
Outfielder Jordan Beck “just continues to make enormous strides,” according to Rockies assistant farm director Jesse Stender.
After a strong finish last season at Double-A Hartford and a strong showing in big league camp this spring, the 23-year-old Beck will open the season at Triple-A Albuquerque.
The 6-foot-3, 227-pound Beck is athletic enough to play center field, albeit not for an extended stretch in spacious Coors Field. He is a decent runner for someone his size and has shown a feel for playing the outfield with his jumps, reads and first steps. He has a solid-average arm.
The Rockies drafted Beck 38th overall out of Tennessee in 2022. He has a power-over-hit profile, but that power plays to all fields and his hitting ability is improving.
“What he’s shown in big league camp and against advanced pitching,” Stender said, “is that he’ll take what the pitcher gives him.”
Beck drove balls to the gaps and turned on pitches when appropriate. Stender said Beck “took a huge leap this spring and really put himself on the map because of what he was doing in the batter’s box. He had a very impactful camp offensively.”
In Cactus League games, Beck went 10-for-26 (.385) with two doubles and a triple. While he didn’t show much power in games, it was there in batting practice and games on the backfields.
Beck hit .292/.378/.566 last season with 20 home runs and 72 RBIs in 76 games at High-A Spokane. His OPS fell off to .749 in 50 games at Hartford, but he finished strong and produced 25 home runs and 20 stolen bases overall in his full-season debut.
Beck looks the part of a big leaguer, a part he could be playing sooner than later.
“The body is big league,” Stender said. “The presence in the batter’s box is big league. The swagger is big league. It’s pretty impressive.
“You see him in a clubhouse of major league and minor league players together, and he stands out as a big leaguer.”
ROCKY ROADS
— Third baseman Aaron Schunk began working at shortstop to increase his versatility. The 2019 second-rounder out of Georgia began playing second base at High-A Spokane in 2021 and has taken to that position. The 26-year-old has progressed well at shortstop and ideally will play there once or twice a week at Triple-A Albuquerque, where last year he hit .290/.350/.461 in 116 games with 14 homers and 77 RBIs.
— Righthander Angel Jimenez was scheduled to have Tommy John surgery during the final week of March. The 20-year-old Venezuelan was the best starter last season on the Rockies’ team in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League that compiled the best overall record (40-15) and won the East Division. Jimenez recorded a 3.08 ERA in 10 games, nine starts, and allowed six walks and 35 hits in 38 innings with 50 strikeouts. Had he been healthy, Jimenez would have started 2024 in the Low-A Fresno rotation.
— First base has become a priority for Sterlin Thompson as a way to get his bat in the lineup. He played the outfield and third base in 2022 and second base and the outfield last year. Thompson will open the season back at Double-A Hartford, where he potentially would be the fifth outfielder in addition to Zac Veen, Benny Montgomery, Yanquiel Fernandez and Bladimir Retituyo. At first base, Thompson can share time with Zach Kokoska, and he can play second base when Adael Amador plays shortstop in place of Ryan Ritter. The Rockies drafted Thompson in the first round in 2022 out of Florida. Last season, he hit .293/.376/.487 with 14 home runs in 94 games split between High-A Spokane and Hartford.
