​The Colorado Rockies are a team in the midst of a rebuild. With this in mind, the staff at Purple Row thought it would be useful to revisit the “State of the Position” series that we ran in March to see where things stand. We’ve asked authors of the spring articles to re-evaluate their earlier remarks with an eye toward the August 3 trade deadline.The Colorado Rockies entered the 2026 season with new organizational leaders, shifting front office priorities, turnover in prospects, and plenty of lineup puzzles to solve. When thinking about team needs, particularly for player depth, the theme of evaluation was key. This season was and is all about using the lineup’s fluidity to identify players that could be part of the team’s long-term plans and, conversely, to determine which players it might be in the Rockies’ best interest to move on from.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe first half of the season brought some clarity around those decisions, thanks in part to versatile bench pieces that emerged and allowed for evaluation. As we approach the trade deadline and more prospect call-ups in the back half of the season, we have a good idea of how Colorado is utilizing the bench and about its philosophy for the Designated Hitter position.The Rockies used 22 players at DH over the course of the 2025 season. Back in March, I wondered if the Rockies might be best suited to lock a smaller handful of players into the DH role, rather than continuing to use the platoon approach. That wondering was in part because of the success of other teams who used a consistent DH and in part because of an opportunity to capitalize on Mickey Moniak’s relative strengths and weaknesses. I suggested upping Moniak’s DH usage to give him the bulk of the starts there, also allowing the Rockies to explore their backlog of outfield depth.Hypothesizing about the bench pieces, I mainly focused on the infield. Newcomers Edouard Julien and Willi Castro seemed to offer some much-needed flexibility, while TJ Rumfield threatened for a roster spot after an extraordinary camp. It also felt like Blaine Crim (after a stint on the IL) and Ryan Ritter would be in the mix.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAt the All-Star break, DH usage is still in flux but a little more concentrated than last season. Some unforeseen faces have joined that mix, while a handful of guys are taking a bulk of appearances. As for the bench, Castro and Julien are slotting in around the diamond (the former performing better than the latter), while Crim has since been waived and Ritter is down in Triple-A. However, a mix of exciting bench pieces have filled those slots.The DH role is still fairly fluid in Colorado, but on a different trajectory than last year. Again, 22 players appeared at DH in 2025, with only one player there for more than 30 games (Hunter Goodman at 39). Tyler Freeman slotted in for 28 games, Yanquiel Fernández for 26, and Kyle Farmer for 24. Mickey Moniak was fifth in