McMahon eyes strong '24 after up-and-down '23

This story was excerpted from Thomas Harding’s Rockies Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

The Rockies continue to count on receiving the best of third baseman Ryan McMahon. But at the end of 2023, they saw too much of, well, the rest of McMahon.

In 89 games from April 18 -- the day the Rockies abandoned the experiment of McMahon at second base and defensively challenged Elehuris Montero at third -- through Aug. 5, McMahon slashed .274/.354/.497 with 16 home runs and 50 RBIs. The power was what the club envisioned when it signed him for five years and $70 million before the 2022 season. For a player whose strike-zone knowledge can lead to a high walk total but whose swing habits also lead to a lot of strikeouts, the average was higher than projected.

McMahon was also running neck-and-neck with the Pirates’ Ke’Bryan Hayes as the player most likely to end the Gold Glove streak of Nolan Arenado -- his predecessor at third with the Rockies.

However, McMahon struggled late in the year. In his final 46 games, he slashed .184/.272/.301 with four homers and 12 RBIs. Add that to a slow beginning while playing second, and McMahon’s full season -- .240/.322/.431 slash line with 23 homers and 70 RBIs, with 198 strikeouts against 68 walks -- represented not quite the production for his profile with this team. McMahon also did not move as well defensively in 2023. He was a finalist for the National League Gold Glove Award this past season, but Hayes took home the honor.

McMahon has not pinpointed any physical issue. He said in a late-season interview that there were “a few new things … the field doesn’t care, the game doesn’t care.” Instead, he focused on the younger players the Rockies expect him to lead.

“We have a lot of guys doing a lot of good things -- this is as encouraged as I’ve been,” said McMahon, who turns 29 on Thursday. “I’m pretty excited for the years to come.

“I just try to be here for them. They all have a pretty good idea of what they’re doing. They’re working hard with our coaches. We’ve seen Brenton Doyle [a Gold Glove winner in center field] look really good. Nolan Jones has done what Nolan has done. Everybody forgets Ezequiel Tovar is a rookie -- it seems like he’s been here for 20 years. All these young arms we brought up, there’s a lot of potential.”

McMahon hears quite a bit about his potential for 30 homers and 100 RBIs in a season. He has spent much of his career as a regular at 20-24 home runs and 86 (2021) is his RBI high. The Rockies want to see the incremental improvements that can limit the slumps.

“Put the ball consistently in play -- cut down on the strikeouts,” general manager Bill Schmidt said. “He’s capable of being that .260-.270 hitter, and I’ve told him that.

“He’s an above-average defender, which makes him the average player. But he can be better. There are a lot of people that believe that. And he’s aware of that.”

McMahon’s strong period after a slow start proved he can make necessary adjustments, though his swing wasn’t working well late in the year. He tried choking up slightly on the bat, rather than going lighter as he did in the past.

Whatever swing adjustment he makes for 2024, he believes the key is staying light -- when it comes to the load he puts upon himself.

“I don’t think we need me to be some elaborate whatever thing to win ballgames here,” McMahon said. “I think we’re going to have a team next year where different guys can carry us through a lot of different times. That’s what you see with good teams.

“You see the Braves. They’ve got all those guys at the top of the lineup, and they’re not always firing every single day at the same exact time. There are times when Matt Olson is carrying them. There’s times when Austin Riley is carrying them. Over the next couple seasons, you’ll see Nolan Jones is carrying us, McMahon is carrying us, Doyle, Tovar. That’s a good direction.”