SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Entering his age-34 season and his sixth with the Rockies, Tyler Kinley has evolved into a veteran presence in the Colorado bullpen.
Kinley's role as a leader and stabilizing force for Colorado's young relief corps will take on a new look in 2025 as the right-hander kicks off a campaign without fellow veteran (and close friend) Daniel Bard in the bullpen.
For four seasons, Kinley and Bard were almost inseparable inside the clubhouse or on the field, forming not only a tight bond but also a two-headed advisory board for Colorado's young relievers. However, with Bard now a free agent, Kinley will be elevated as one of the main stabilizing figures for a bullpen that is expected to be filled with relievers who are early in their careers.
"I think the more time you spend in a clubhouse, even with guys who are in their first year and second year, you start to feel more responsibility," Kinley said. "You start to realize that you have an opportunity to help smooth out the edges for some guys.
"I was once a young guy here, and now I'm kind of an older guy here. That's morphed my role into not only producing on the field, but helping other guys produce as well."
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Kinley's production is focused this season on bouncing back from a 2024 where he posted a 6.19 ERA in 64.0 innings over 67 appearances. However, that ERA may have had a bit of bad luck woven into it as well. Kinley's FIP (fielding independent pitching) sat at 4.79.
There was good and bad from Kinley in 2024, with the former 16th-round draft pick of the Miami Marlins leading the Rockies with 12 saves. However, he also posted 4.6 walks per nine innings, a number that tied for his highest since being selected off waivers by Colorado from Miami before the 2020 campaign.
Kinley's best season with the Rockies came in 2022 when he posted a 0.75 ERA in 24.0 innings over 25 games while striking out 24% of the batters he faced before being lost to elbow surgery. After rehabbing, he returned in 2023 and saw action in just 16.1 innings over 18 games, accounting for a 6.06 ERA.
While Kinley paced the Rockies in saves last season, Victor Vodnik and Seth Halvorsen are expected to be the main competitors for this year's closer at Coors Field. However, Kinley believes there will be plenty of high-leverage situations for him and others this season.
"I think there are few guys in this clubhouse and few guys across the league who can come in every year and say, 'Hey, this is my job. I'm batting '3' hole or I'm planning center field,'" Kinley said.
"Whatever it might be, for the vast majority of us, there's always competition," Kinley said. "We're always fighting to keep a job, to keep a uniform, to get a role. I think all of us in the bullpen, we're going to put our best foot forward and challenge each other this camp, and kind of see what the coaching staff believes in at the end of it and see where that lies."
The veteran presence inside Kinley also understands that how things may look in the bullpen now will likely not be the same reality throughout the season.
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"You have to be ready for the evolution of the season, because how we start Opening Day might not be how it is on June 1 or Aug. 1," Kinley explained. "We have to be ready and understand that, maybe if you don't get the role that you want right away, don't stop pushing for it. Don't stop going after it, because things will change."
Yes, change is a constant in the Rockies bullpen, especially in the final frame. Last season, Colorado posted a 7.10 ERA in the ninth inning, the highest in MLB by more than a run. (The Toronto Blue Jays were second at 5.88). Eight Rockies recorded a save as the closer role was a carousel ride.
However, there is hope for improvement in 2025. Six Rockies rookie relievers -- Angel Chivilli, Jeff Criswell, Halvorsen, Jaden Hill, Luis Peralta and Vodnik -- combined to record a 3.84 ERA with 12 combined saves over 160.1 innings pitched and 143 appearances.
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"I anticipate more success from them," Kinley said of his young teammates. "Sure, there's going to be ups and downs. They're going to struggle at points. It's difficult navigating 162 games for the first time. Coming up and having a month or two months, it's a little smaller sample size, but what we saw was great.
"At the same time, what happened last year was last year. This is a new year. There was a lot of excitement from what we saw last year, but now it starts again. Guys can't live off what they did last year, because last year is over. What they need to do now is build momentum, continue to stick with their plan, and continue to trust each other to help push themselves."
In their second seasons, five of those six rookie relievers are expected to contribute heavily again this season. (Criswell will miss 2025 after undergoing Tommy John surgery). However, as with all young pitchers, there will likely be growing pains. That's an area where Kinley, known within the clubhouse as "TK," may be as valuable to the Rockies as anything he will produce on the mound this year.
"TK is, both by example and maturity, a guy that I think the players feel good about that he's on our side," Rockies manager Bud Black said. "He's level-headed. He's a great worker. He's unselfish. He's team-oriented. He's all the things that you look for a veteran player on the team."
Catcher Jacob Stallings agrees.
"He's a great leader," the veteran backstop said. "I think he does a really good job of showing our young bullpen arms the way to be a pro. He just does everything the right way. He's the first one here, always working hard and always getting his body right. I would describe him as the ultimate pro."
So what is part of Kinley's message as the "ultimate pro?" Don't let Coors Field and pitching at altitude define who you are as a pitcher.
"I do think the advantage of pitching in Denver is, if you can be mentally tough enough and if you can physically make the adjustments to get guys out, and you're pitching with the worst version of your stuff, it prepares you for the road," Kinley said. "Then, when we go elsewhere, you should have an advantage of knowing, 'Hey, I've got better stuff than I'm used to.' Now it's time to attack."
It's sound advice learned over the years by a veteran presence who is expected to contribute heavily on the diamond and in the clubhouse in 2025.