Tovar’s 2026 Slump Raises Questions for the Rockies
On November 2, 2026, Ezequiel Tovar’s poor season with the Colorado Rockies had raised questions about the team’s long-term expectations for the shortstop.
Ezequiel Tovar’s 2026 offensive decline has put his long-term value under scrutiny in Colorado. The 25-year-old shortstop finished the season batting .219 with a .264 on-base percentage and .353 slugging percentage, along with 13 home runs and 44 runs batted in. His .617 OPS was a sharp drop from his 2024 production, when he hit .269 with 26 homers and 78 RBIs.
The Rockies signed Tovar to a $63.5 million extension in March 2024, a deal running until 2030 that includes a club option for 2031. His 2024 performance appeared to support the investment, though his OPS+ that year was 100, or league average after adjusting for ballpark and run environment. His OPS+ fell to 83 in 2025 and 60 in 2026, following a 79 mark in 2023.
Tovar also had 129 strikeouts against 29 walks in 2026. His defense remains a strength: he won a Gold Glove in 2024, and he appeared in 146 games in 2026, following an injury-shortened 95-game 2025.
His age and 2024 season offer reasons for the Rockies to expect a rebound. But the decline in his adjusted offensive numbers, alongside the latest season’s struggles, raises the possibility that his 2024 production was an outlier rather than his usual level.