NEW YORK — Facing challenges this season, the Colorado Rockies made the decision to send their first baseman, Michael Toglia, back to Triple-A Albuquerque ahead of their game on Saturday against the New York Mets.
Toglia seemed to carve out a space for himself as the Rockies’ first baseman last season, sporting a .233 batting average alongside 21 home runs following his promotion in June from Triple-A. He made headlines with a multi-home run achievement on July 14, blasting three homers in a game against the Mets at Citi Field.
However, Toglia started this season on a low note, struggling with a substantial 2-for-23 slump and failing to hit a home run until his 65th plate appearance. Between April 16 and May 14, he managed a .247 average with six home runs over 26 games, but his performance waned as he hit merely .125 and recorded 22 strikeouts in his subsequent 40 at-bats.
Currently, Toglia leads the major leagues with 81 strikeouts out of just 186 at-bats.
Interim Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer emphasized the need for Toglia to improve his management of the strike zone. “He just needs to get better overall offensively,” Schaeffer noted.
In Friday’s defeat, which ended 4-2 against the Mets and left Colorado with a stark 9-48 record — the worst in modern history through 57 games — Toglia went 0-for-4, accumulating two more strikeouts in his role as the Rockies’ No. 8 hitter.
“Currently, things aren’t aligning for him, and he acknowledges that,” Schaeffer remarked. “We anticipate significant contributions from Mike in the future.”
In light of Toglia’s demotion, the Rockies opted to bring infielder Keston Hiura into the squad from Albuquerque. Schaeffer suggested that Hiura, who has previously hit double-digit home runs for the Milwaukee Brewers across three seasons spanning 2019 to 2022, would likely handle most of the playing duties at first base, despite Kyle Farmer getting the nod for Saturday’s game at the position.
Additionally, the Rockies made the decision to designate infielder Aaron Schunk for assignment.
Home Rockies Move Michael Toglia to Minors