Selected 39th overall by the D’Backs in the 2018 draft, McCarthy’s tenure in Arizona was marked by trade rumors and flashes of potential. In McCarthy’s first full MLB season in 2022, he finished fourth in the NL Rookie of the Year voting, on a .283/.342/.427 slash line, eight home runs and 23 steals in 26 attempts across 354 trips to the plate. This translated to a 116 wRC+, but McCarthy’s production subsequently dropped dramatically to 78 wRC+ during the 2023 season, and he was not involved on any of Arizona’s playoff rosters during the team’s run to the NL pennant.
The pendulum swung again in 2024 as McCarthy played in 142 career games and hit .285/.349/.400 with eight home runs and 25 stolen bases over 495 PA. This past season, McCarthy had just a 60 wRC+ from a slash line of .204/.247/.345 over 222 PA, and he spent two months in Triple-A in a fruitless attempt to get his bat on track.
With a sample size of 431 games to work with, McCarthy’s strengths and weaknesses are clear. He can play all three outfield positions at least moderately well, and he is one of the fastest players in baseball, with a speed rating no lower than the 98th percentile since his debut on the Show. McCarthy makes a lot of contact, but with very little hard contact or power, leaving him somewhat at the mercy of the batted ball.
McCarthy emerges as one of several left-handed outfielders in the Diamondbacks farm system and has been a trade candidate for years. During the 2023-2024 offseason, the White Sox were reportedly given the option to sign McCarthy or Dominic Fletcher in exchange for Cristian Menaand Chicago chose to go with Fletcher. It’s easy to cast doubt on the D’Backs by arguing that McCarthy could have gotten a better return if they had moved him much sooner than January 2026, though McCarthy’s up-and-down performance made him a tough player for the Diamondbacks to gauge, let alone shop for trade partners.
Even with Lourdes Gurriel Jr. Because they would miss most or all of the 2026 season recovering from a torn ACL, the Diamondbacks still felt comfortable removing McCarthy from their outfield mix. McCarthy is out of minor league options, so sending him back to Triple-A would have required a trip through the waiver wire. Today’s trade allows the D’Backs to get something in return for a player who simply no longer seemed to fit into his plans.
Corbin Caroll is locked in right field and Alex Thomas will likely get the bulk of the midfield work. Each of Blow Alexander, Jorge Barrosaor utility man The Tawa team can be used in left field, plus former top prospect Jordan Lawlar played some center field in winter ball action and could eventually get some looks in left field as well. The Diamondbacks could also consider adding another outfielder during the offseason.
The 28-year-old McCarthy will now head to the Mile High City for a fresh start, although he will join another somewhat busy outfield picture. If anything, there had been an expectation that the Rockies would trade from their outfield rather than add anything, as that may be the only real depth position in the organization. That said, acquiring McCarthy could be the Rockies’ way to preserve their outfield depth ahead of another trade later this winter. For now, McCarthy is in the game Mickey Moniac, Brenton Doyle, Zac VeenAnd Jordan Beck in Colorado’s outfield mix, with McCarthy likely as the fifth outfielder.
Since being hired as the Rockies’ president of baseball operations in November, Paul DePodesta has made two other trades, but this is the first that resulted in a big league player returning to Colorado in return. DePodesta has a long road ahead of him in his attempt to make the Rox respectable again, but adding a previously well-regarded talent like McCarthy is a way to both expand the talent floor and see what McCarthy might be able to do with a change of scenery. McCarthy will be subject to arbitration through the 2028 season and will earn $1.525 million in 2026.
Grosz is on the move for the second time in less than six months, as the righty was one of two pitching prospects the Yankees sent to the Rockies for Ryan McMahon at the last trade deadline. Grosz was an 11th-round pick for the Yankees in the 2023 draft, and he posted a 4.67 ERA, 25.2% strikeout, and 10.3% walk rate over 125 1/3 innings at the high-A level in 2025 (87 IP with the Yankees’ high-A affiliate, and the rest with the Rockies affiliate).
MLB Pipeline ranked Grosz as the 20th-best prospect in Colorado’s farm system, projecting him as a multi-inning reliever or perhaps a back-end starter. Grosz’s fastball (90-90 mph with good spin rate) is his best pitch, but also “his only better-than-average offering,” according to Pipeline’s scouting report. The 23-year-old is something of a lottery ticket that the Diamondbacks can continue to develop as a potential rotation piece.
#Rockies #acquire #Jake #McCarthy #Diamondbacks