The Colorado Rockies made several moves at the trade deadline as their rebuild continues. The pitching prospects the Rockies received in return rightfully got most of the headlines, as several of them landed in the Rockies’ top 30. But a quiet addition to the Victor Vodnik trade with the Miami Marlins, infielder Connor Norby, became one of the most impactful deadline additions for Colorado.
Connor Norby Quietly Flourished With Colorado
Norby was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the second round of the 2021 Major League Baseball Draft out of East Carolina University. The Marlins originally acquired Norby along with outfielder Kyle Stowers from the Orioles in July 2024 for left-handed pitcher Trevor Rogers. He struggled offensively with the Marlins, posting a .236 batting average and a .689 OPS over parts of three seasons with the Marlins.
He particularly struggled this season, hitting just above the Mendoza line with a .638 OPS. Resulting in Norby being demoted to Triple-A Jacksonville on June 25, which is where he remained until the Rockies acquired him on August 3. After being acquired by Colorado, Norby was assigned to Triple-A Albuquerque. But after just five games with Albuquerque, Norby was called up to the Rockies following Tyler Freeman being placed on the 10-day IL with lumbar pain.
He went hitless in his first three games but did get on base with three BBs. Which is all you need to look at when it comes to why Norby was included in the Vodnik deal. Because, as we all know from the baseball classic “Moneyball”, there are few traits Rockies president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta likes more in a baseball player than their ability to “get on base”.
He “Gets on Base”
Per Baseball Reference.com, the league average for OBP this season was .318. Norby may have been well below the league average OPS of .719 when he was with Miami, but he was right around league average with a .313 OBP for the Marlins this season. The Rockies were likely betting on that number going up once Norby got out of the pitcher-friendly confines of loanDepot Park. He ended up being a perfect marriage with Coors Field.
He actually had a solid .333 OBP in 35 games at loanDepot Park this season, but that ballooned to .372 in 21 games at Coors Field. After his initial three games with Colorado, Norby recorded a hit in 14 of his next 15 games. From August 15 to August 31, per StatMuse, he hit .333 with 18 hits, two home runs, 10 RBIs, and eight runs scored. That solid play continued into September, which was his best month of the season.
He hit .309/.388/.441 with a stellar .829 OPS. Recording 21 hits, six doubles, one home run, eight RBIs, and a K:BB ratio of 18:7. In a second half where much of the Rockies lineup went cold, Norby was a bright spot. Although in a much smaller sample size, Norby ranked highly among the Rockies in several hitting categories. Without adjusting for games played, Norby ranked second on the Rockies with a .387 OBP, tied for second with an .844 OPS, and second with a .302 batting average in 40 games played. Obviously Norby will have to prove that he can put a full season together maintaining those numbers. But in a limited sample size, Norby became one of the Rockies’ more exciting deadline additions.
Outlook for Next Year
Norby is still just 26 and in pre-arbitration until 2028. He joins Troy Johnston as one of the players who found success in Colorado this season after coming over from Miami. Like Norby, Johnston is also in pre-arbitration until 2029 and is 29. Though the second half was largely rough for the Rockies offense, they were still vastly improved from last season and ranked in the upper half of the league in several categories.
Led by TJ Rumfield and Hunter Goodman, Colorado has stockpiled a solid group of hitters that are all under 30. For where the Rockies are in their rebuild, that is a pretty good place to be. As part of that group, Norby will be one of the more intriguing players to watch this spring as he enters his first offseason with Colorado. The key for the Rockies is figuring out the pitching side of things while their offense is still in a good spot age-wise.
That’s easier said than done, and as the pitching staff currently sits, it seems unlikely to change that drastically in a positive direction by Opening Day 2027. But at least Norby, for his part, exceeded expectations, joining a list of several Rockies who arrived quietly in Colorado but emerged in a big way this season.
Main Photo Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images
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