Just 35 games into the season, Rockies president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta believes his franchise is heading in the right direction.

However, no victory laps are being taken at 20^th and Blake around a team that is further ahead of last season but still has plenty left to climb on the mountain trek back to national respectability.

“I think we’re certainly encouraged by a lot of what’s going on,” DePodesta said Sunday morning before the Rockies wrapped up a three-game series with the Atlanta Braves at Coors Field. “But, at the same time, we’re far from satisfied.”

Through Colorado’s 35 games of 2026 after Colorado’s 11-6 loss to the Braves, the Rockies are 14-21. Last season, through 35 games, the Rockies were 6-29 and less than one week away from firing manager Bud Black.

This year, there is optimism and no sign of any major shakeups coming in the organization. That could also include the lineup as well.

Despite the early-season struggles of outfielders Jordan Beck and Brenton Doyle and shortstop Ezequiel Tovar, there is not a panic button being pushed that would propel Cole Carrigg, Charlie Condon or any other prospect from Triple-A Albuquerque to Denver.

“We don’t want to be reactionary. We also don’t want our players thinking that if they go 0 or 4 tonight, they’re not in the lineup tomorrow. Or worse, they’re going to Triple-A,” DePodesta said. “We believe in these guys. We also believe in a lot of the guys we have in Triple-A right now, but we want to give them ample opportunities to play.”

DePodesta added that one of his original plans for the Rockies this offseason was to build depth in the organization, which has allowed Colorado to avoid any rush to the MLB roster that occurred often last season during the 119-loss debacle.

“We talked all winter about creating enough competition in depth with our big-league roster that we never wanted to call a player up just because we didn’t have anybody else,” DePodesta said. “We want to call players up when they are banging down the door, where we have to make room for them because they’re playing so well and that they have the underlying foundation in place to be successful up here and not just survive.”

Another of Colorado’s plans for success seems to be working early in the season, as the team has continued to employ long relievers to help augment some of the bullpen innings. Rather than have multiple relievers pitch one inning per game as in years past, the Rockies are seeing a number of pitchers being asked to throw multiple frames.

The plan will hopefully keep Colorado’s high-leverage arms fresh longer in the season, a sharp contrast from past seasons when the bullpen was gassed by the All-Star break.

“We’ve absolutely needed that length. It’s critical for us, not just in a particular game, but even setting us up to be more competitive in the games following that particular game,” DePodesta said. “That’s something that I believed and I think it has been strongly reinforced from the experience of the first month.”

Colorado’s pitchers entered Sunday with a collective 5.4 Wins Above Replacement according to Baseball Reference (bWAR). That ties with the New York Yankees for the highest of all 30 MLB teams and showed what has been a strength for the Rockies early in the season.

While Kyle Freeland’s start on Sunday lasted just 4 1/3 innings, Rockies starters have put in longer outings in recent games. Colorado starters have lasted at least five innings in 11 of their last 15 starts, with the four exceptions being an opener being used twice, Freeland on Sunday and Ryan Feltner leaving his last outing early because of injury.

“Our pitching is giving us a chance to win virtually every night,” DePodesta said. “Every team will have a bad start here or there, but, for the most part, they’re giving us a chance to win.”

Braves 11, Rockies 6

What happened: Atlanta put an exclamation mark on the series sweep by pounding out 14 hits and posting multiple runs in three different innings. Jonah Heim, batting .200 entering the day, did the most damage, going 2 for 4 with 5 RBIs. His two hits were a two-run homer and a two-run double, while he also added a sacrifice fly.

On the mound: Colorado’s Kyle Freeland gave up a pair of home runs and walked three batters in the fifth before exiting after 98 pitches, the most he has thrown this season. Freeland’s outing marked the first time since Opening Day that he had not thrown five or more innings.

At the plate: Mickey Moniak’s two-run homer in the fourth inning not only handed the Rockies a temporary 4-3 lead but also extended his hitting streak to 16 games, MLB’s longest current streak. He also added a solo shot in the eighth inning, giving him 11 on the season and tying him for the National League lead in the category with Atlanta’s Matt Olson and Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber.

What’s next: The Rockies kick off a series with the New York Mets at 3:40 p.m. Monday. The start time was moved up because of weather concerns later in the day. Colorado’s Tomoyuki Sugano (3-1, 2.84 ERA) is scheduled to go against a starter to be named later for the Mets.