The Rockies have signed catcher Austin Nola to a minor league deal, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (X link). Nola will receive an invitation to the Rockies’ big league spring camp.
After signing a split contract with the Royals last winter, Nola didn’t appear in a single game in the Show, though he was briefly called up to Kansas City’s roster for a few days in June. Salvador Perez and Freddy Fermin were both so durable that the Royals never had a real need for another catcher on the roster, and Nola also didn’t do much to force the issue by hitting only .174/.260/.298 over 191 plate appearances with Triple-A Omaha. The Royals outrighted Nola off their 40-man roster in September, and he became a free agent after the season.
Entering his age-35 season, the veteran backstop will look for a path back to the majors in Colorado, though a depth role at Triple-A is also a possibility given the number of catchers already on hand. Jacob Stallings was re-signed to a new contract a few weeks ago, Hunter Goodman is a multi-position utility player who can catch, and top prospect Drew Romo made his MLB debut in 2024 and could be in line for more playing time on the active roster.
There is a bit of a full-circle element to Nola’s signing, as the Rockies picked him in the 48th round of the 2008 draft when Nola was still a high schooler, but he instead opted for college ball at LSU. Nola made his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2019 and looked like a budding star, but his production gradually declined after a trade to the Padres in 2020. He was still getting regular at-bats behind the plate in San Diego as recently as 2022, yet a sharp decline in 2023 resulted in the Padres non-tendering him a little over a year ago.
Huge buy low for my Rox!
Do you plan on going to any Rockies games this year? I plan on going to Cubs and Rockies again in August. Maybe a trip before that but never has weird bipolar weather. Could be 65 and sunny one day and then 32 and cold as bawls the next 3 days. With snow
NO! Sell the team Monfort!
Lots. Love going to Coors. Best stadium I’ve ever been to (and I’ve been to about 12 out of 30).
Nice signing. His power numbers seemed to drop in San Diego after displaying a promising start in Seattle. Playing in Colorado should help and might quietly put up a nice season as a backup catcher.
It is doubtful he sees the big leagues unless there are injuries. Stallings and Goodman will likely have the big league spots taken with Romo the next guy up. I would imagine they signed Nola to be the veteran in Albuquerque.
Nah. Goodman is a horrible catcher.
Yeah, but his bat plays. Don’t forget, this is a team that had Wilin Rosario and his Swiss cheese glove behind the plate for 5 years.
In SD we were excited to get Nola, only to watch him regress about the speed of musks mental health.
So sad it’s come to this for Austin, but wishing him a comeback. He was looking on the upturn before taking the pitch to head early 2023
Good backup to Stallings. Romo will be in play too for some backup time.