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The Colorado Rockies have reportedly put RHP Justin Lawrence on waivers, without designating him for assignment. Since Lawrence has not been designated for assignment, he is free to continue working out with the Rockies and pitching in Spring Training games until the waiver process has been completed. However, the process is irrevocable, so he will be on a new team if claimed off waivers.

Lawrence has experience across parts of four MLB seasons with the Rockies. He made his MLB debut with Colorado in 2021, and it was not until 2023 that he broke out, when he managed a 3.72 ERA in 75 innings of work while picking up 11 saves for the Rockies. When factoring in that he played his home games at the offence-friendly Coors Field, he put up a 134 ERA+ for the 2023 season, suggesting that he was well above average as a pitcher.

However, Lawrence regressed significantly last season, putting up a 6.49 ERA in 59 2/3 innings, while his walk rate ballooned to 11.8% and his strikeout rate fell to 16.1%. Just four pitchers in the majors had a lower K-BB% than Lawrence, and given the offence-friendly nature of Coors Field that punishes pitchers by inflating BABIP and compressing strand rate, Lawrence managed just a 5.63 FIP, a 6.25 xERA and a 4.73 SIERA.

While Spring Training is not a reliable indicator of future performance, Lawrence notably has struggled so far this pre-season, with three walks and two hit batters against two strikeouts in three innings of work in Spring.

If Lawrence gets through waivers unclaimed, he will remain with the Rockies and could be outrighted off their 40-man roster and put in the minors for depth.

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