Here are the Rockies' first half Minor League MVPs

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After 65 standout games at Triple-A Albuquerque, Rockies outfielder Sam Hilliard relishes being a familiar face and a new guy at the same time.

The Rockies selected Hilliard's contract from Triple-A on June 21, as he began a second stint with the big league club after playing in Colorado from 2019-22.

Hilliard was a power/speed prospect in his first go-round with the Rockies. At 30 years old, he has been through the transactions wringer over the past two seasons. His .288/.374/.542 performance with 14 home runs and 44 RBIs at Albuquerque earned him another chance.

The way Hilliard earned back his chance led him to be crowned as our Rockies Triple-A midterm MVP. There were others with strong first halves -- including infielder Coco Montes, who overcame similar challenges to post a .965 OPS, 16 doubles, six triples, nine home runs and 47 RBIs at Albuquerque. The Rockies granted Montes his release this week to join the Tokyo Giants.

So here is Hilliard, brand new again.

“I was 25 when I first got called up,” Hilliard said. “I’m 30 now, but I don’t feel 30. I feel like a young player and I’m excited, man.”

His Major League roster spot could be precarious, as Charlie Blackmon is expected to come off the injured list soon and Hilliard is out of Minor League options. But that wouldn't be anything new, since Hilliard handled being designated for assignment at the start of the season by reporting to Albuquerque and earning consideration from the Rockies one more time.

The Rockies traded Hilliard to the Braves after the 2022 season. He appeared in just 40 games last year (.236, 3 HR, 6 RBIs) before the Orioles claimed him off waivers at the end of the season. The Rockies re-claimed Hilliard on Feb. 28.

The moves may look like small-type stuff to those not in the game, but they can spin the head of a man not sure where he will play or how to plan life amid the pay differences between the Majors and Triple-A.

Wanting to reduce the number of swings and misses -- part of what has prevented him from gaining Major League footing -- Hilliard spent the offseason tinkering. But when the season started, he felt he was moving further from his goal.

“I worked on a lot of stuff really hard during the offseason and kind of got to a plan that I trusted -- a different move,” Hilliard said. “I let go of that after the first or second game in Triple-A. I didn’t have time to wait around for this to feel good or work, because it wasn’t working. It’s mostly mental things I kept, like trusting my athleticism.”

In three appearances (one start) since being called up, Hilliard is 0-for-3 with a strikeout and a caught stealing. But on a team that is at the bottom of the National League and looking at as many players as possible, Hilliard wants to earn opportunities.

“I still believe in myself, 100 percent,” Hilliard said. “If I get the opportunity, I’ll be able to make it happen. I want to be a part of this team, see them win and do great things.”

Let’s look at midterm MVPs at each of the Rockies’ full-season stops:

Single-A Fresno

Lefty reliever Welinton Herrera turned 20 on April 4, but he's pitched beyond his age. Usually working the final innings, Herrera struck out 62 batters in 139 plate appearances for or 44.6 percent strikeout rate against nine walks in 34 innings. He held opponents to a .202 batting average and went 8-2 before being promoted to High-A Spokane on Thursday.

Herrera’s fastball ranges from 92-97 mph, and he can beat hitters with high heat when he reaches two strikes. He offsets that pitch with his slider.

Another player with a standout start was infielder Braylen Wimmer, who was an 18th-round pick of the Phillies in the 2022 MLB Draft, decided to stay at the University of South Carolina and emerged as an eighth-round pick by the Rockies last year. Wimmer is batting .305 with nine home runs (five in his past 16 games) and 13 doubles.

High-A Spokane

The Rockies have moved lefty Sean Sullivan (4-2, 2.50 ERA in 68 1/3 innings) to the team’s training complex in Scottsdale, Ariz., on a planned developmental break midway through his first pro season. Sullivan, a second-round pick out of Wake Forest last year, will continue conditioning and working on his slider and changeup while throwing in the club’s performance lab until he's sent back into competition.

“He just about reached the number of innings that he threw in college last year because he has been so efficient,” said Flint Wallace, the Rockies’ pitching strategist. “If he kept throwing at that pace, he’d double his innings in one year, so this is 100 percent developmental.”

Opposing hitters have to appreciate not facing Sullivan.

On a standout starting staff at Spokane, Sullivan led the way in quality and consistency, posting 10 strikeouts per nine innings and 12.67 strikeouts for each walk.

Righty Chase Dollander, the Rockies’ top pick last year, battled walks early in the season. But by striking out eight against one walk in five innings against Everett on Thursday, Dollander ended his June with 32 strikeouts against seven walks over 22 2/3 innings pitched. Also earning consideration for midterm honors is third baseman Kyle Karros, who is batting .299 and hit his sixth homer of the season on Thursday.

Double-A Hartford

The Rockies have been testing position players from the start of the season. Look for them to accelerate a planned introduction of pitchers.

That said, the question seems to be not if, but when they will call up lefty Carson Palmquist, a third-round pick in the 2022 Draft.

Through 13 starts for a team that won its first-half division title in the Eastern League, Palmquist is 4-3 with a 3.68 ERA, posting some numbers that make him an intriguing prospect.

In 58 2/3 innings, Palmquist has struck out 12.12 strikeouts per nine innings, which is not a large drop-off from the 13.63 figure he carried last year in his 15 starts while pitching at Spokane. He's also keeping the ball in the park (0.92 home runs per nine), has a solid rate of throwing strikes (.650) and has 79 strikeouts vs. 27 walks.