With Tuesday’s deadline to firm up 40-man rosters to protect players from the upcoming Rule 5 draft, the Colorado Rockies designated two former first-round picks for assignment and made a trade that adds a new face to the bullpen mix.

Michael Toglia, Colorado’s 2025 Opening Day first baseman and a first-round pick in the 2019 MLB draft, was designated for assignment after a season (and career) where he struggled mightily with strikeouts and production.

The player once thought to have a bright future at first base with the Rockies logged just 337 plate appearances last season and struck out in 39.2% of those. His 35% career strikeout rate was well above the MLB average of 22.5 and was one of the big reasons why he was demoted to Triple-A on May 31 and earned just seven at-bats over the final two months of the regular season.

Joining Toglia on the DFA list was left-handed pitcher Ryan Rolison, the 22^nd overall pick in the 2018 MLB draft. Overcoming several injuries, Rolison made his Rockies debut last season and pitched in 31 games, registering a 7.02 ERA in 42.1 innings.

While the Rockies jettisoned one southpaw, they added another through a trade with the Boston Red Sox.

Brennan Bernardino, who went 4-3 with a 3.14 ERA, one save, 26 walks, and 43 strikeouts in 51.2 innings over 55 games, was added to the roster and could be a left-handed option for the 2026 Colorado bullpen. In exchange for Bernardino, the Rockies sent outfielder Braiden Ward, who advanced to Triple-A last season after being drafted in the 16^th round of the 2021 MLB draft, to the Red Sox.

Also added to Colorado’s 40-man roster on Tuesday were pitchers Welinton Herrera and Gabriel Hughes, as well as outfielder Sterlin Thompson.

All three rank among Colorado’s top 20 prospects according to MLB.com, with Herrera putting up some interesting numbers during his recent Arizona Fall League run. The 21-year-old left-hander struck out 14 in 9.0 AFL relief innings while posting a 2.00 ERA. However, he also walked eight and opponents hit .257 against him, showing there is work to be done.