Rockies Journal: Sean Bouchard is Colorado’s best-kept secret

The Rockies’ game of musical chairs left our heads spinning.

Two-time Gold Glove center fielder Brenton Doyle always had a roster spot. Jordan Beck had one, then didn’t, and now he does.

Journeyman Nick Martini probably always had one; now, he definitely does. The Rockies saved a spot in left field for Nolan Jones until they traded him. Sam Hilliard appeared to have a place as the fourth outfielder, but as it turned out, he was just keeping a seat warm for Mickey Moniak, who joined the team at the last minute.

Many fans thought prospect Zac Veen was a lock to make the roster. He never was, though his time is coming.

This brings us to Sean Bouchard.

Remember him? Good. Because, next to Doyle, the 28-year-old Bouchard could be Colorado’s most productive outfielder. I call him the Rockies’ best-kept secret.

“I like the sound of that,” Bouchard said with a chuckle when I shared my opinion. “I obviously have confidence in myself when I’m healthy. I have always felt like I have been overlooked here and there. But at the end of the day, you can only control so much. You can only go out and play.”

Therein lies the problem. Colorado’s ninth-round draft choice out of UCLA in 2017 hasn’t been able to stay on the field.

“It was super frustrating because they were things I was unable to control,” he said. “I mean, last year, I stepped on a base wrong and sprained my ankle because Jonathan India (then with the Reds) was standing on the bag. I was out for over two weeks. It’s little things like that, here and there, that were out of my control.”

Bouchard debuted in June 2022, and in 27 games, he hit .297 with three homers and a .954 OPS. For the stat geeks, there was this:  Bouchard posted a .454 on-base percentage, the fifth-highest by a major league rookie since 1901 (minimum 95 plate appearances).

During spring training 2023, expectations were high until Bouchard sustained a left distal biceps tear and was limited to 21 late-season games. Even then, he produced, putting up a 1.056 OPS with four home runs and seven RBIs in 43 plate appearances.

Manager Bud Black projected extensive playing time for Bouchard last season. But a persistent oblique injury in spring training scuttled those hopes, and he was demoted to Triple-A Albuquerque. He hit well for the Isotopes, slashing .324/.418./.643 with 11 homers and 29 extra-base hits in 46 games.

But he scuffled in a 31-game stint when he got called up by the Rockies, batting  .187 with one homer in 31 games (108 plate appearances). To cap off his lousy 2024, he had postseason surgery to repair a fractured hamate in his right hand.

“Sean will be the first to tell you, we’ve got to keep him on the field,” Black said early in spring training. “He’s been nicked up a little bit in his career, even as a minor leaguer. But there’s a fundamental hitter in there that’s appealing.”

There’s a lot about Bouchard that appeals. He plays a solid corner outfield, is smart and does the little things well.

“I’ve always joked that I think I’m above average in a little bit of everything,” he said. “I kind of fit the classic ‘jack of all trades, master of none,’ right?

“The idea of not having a standout tool — like the speed of Brenton Doyle or the arm of Brenton Doyle — is fine. Because I think being consistently good is great.”

Consistency, Bouchard said, is ultimately the biggest separator.

“I think I have proven to be a consistent player at every level I’ve played,” he said. “That’s who I am as a person and a player.”

Bouchard prides himself on baseball basics: advancing runners, throwing to the right base, making pitchers work overtime.

“I try to find little things to help the team win,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be the crazy 500-foot homer or throwing 10 guys out at home. That’s not the skill set that I have. I might not show up on SportsCenter or whatever. I might not make all the sexy plays.

“But if you understand who you are, you can help the team. And by the end of the season, those things start adding up. That’s the kind of player I am.”

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