'Really good to see': Doyle's pinch-hit HR could be sign of things to come

DENVER -- Brenton Doyle was the Rockies’ breakout star in 2024, not only winning his second straight Gold Glove Award in center field to begin his career, but also transforming himself at the plate -- after posting a .593 OPS as a rookie, he finished the ’24 campaign with a .764 OPS to go along with 23 home runs and 30 steals.

Entering 2025, it seemed the sky was the limit for the 27-year-old. And over the first two weeks of April, things were going as planned. Doyle was slashing .321/.357/.547 with three homers over his first 12 games. Off the field, he and his wife, Rose, were expecting their first child.

Then, on April 17, Doyle announced the heartbreaking and devastating news that Rose had a miscarriage and the couple had lost their baby.

Upon his return to the Rockies, Doyle began to struggle at the plate. Over the next 61 games through July 3, he had a slash line of .174/.229/.270. Things weren’t the same defensively, either -- after racking up 30 defensive runs saved from 2023-24, he is at -12 this season.

Prior to the Rockies’ series with the White Sox at Coors Field this weekend, interim manager Warren Schaeffer had a discussion with Doyle about not starting him over the next three games so he could “reset” mentally and have a breather following the rough stretch.

“The conversation in the office was just, ‘We want to help you,’” Schaeffer said. “‘This is the next step to try to help you.’ And he was all in.”

Sometimes, even in a game you’re not supposed to be playing in, it finds you. During the Rockies’ 10-3 loss to Chicago on Saturday night, Doyle launched his first career pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning.

While it remains to be seen whether that solo shot over the left-field wall triggers a turnaround for Doyle, it was a welcome sight on an otherwise dreary night at the plate for Colorado.

After scoring twice in the first inning on a two-run single by Jordan Beck, the Rockies went 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position. They left nine men on base as a team and lost their 12th game out of 15 since putting together a season-high four-game winning streak from June 15-18.

They also fell to 9-36 at Coors this season, tied for the worst record in a team's first 45 home decisions since 1876, with the 1883 Philadelphia Quakers. Saturday’s loss also sealed the Rockies’ 17th consecutive home series loss, which according to optaSTATS ties the Philadelphia A’s, who lost 17 straight home series from June 1916-May 1917.

But even amid the bad news, Doyle’s homer was a spark of hope.

“It was really good to see,” Schaeffer said. “I mean, him putting in the work and coming out and getting that nice homer, he just looked ready to hit.”

Doyle was ready to hit even though he’s not accustomed to coming off the bench to do so. And when his drive cleared the fence, it may have represented one run on the scoreboard, but the Rockies hope it will mean much more in the long run.

“I was honest with [Schaeffer] and told him that I’ve never had to do anything like this,” Doyle said of the “reset” period. “So I can’t tell you if it’s going to benefit me or not, but we built a good plan with the hitting coaches to get some good work in. And it showed a little bit tonight.”

As far as Doyle is concerned, it’s about time for the results to match the quality of his at-bats. When asked about how relatively unlucky he’s been this year -- entering Saturday, his 11.9 percent barrel rate was in the 74th percentile among qualified batters, according to Statcast, and his expected batting average of .244 was 43 points higher than the actual figure -- he flashed a knowing smile.

It indicated that he knows it’s just a matter of time until the hits start falling in bunches.

Doyle described coming off the bench late in the game as a foreign feeling. But he made the most of it, and his words speak to what he’s been doing all along in what has been a trying 2025 season.

“It’s definitely different,” he said. “The kind of mental battle, whether you’re going to go in the game or not. But, you know, I’m trying to do the best I can with it. And tonight was a pretty good night.”