The Colorado Rockies announced they have signed right-handed pitcher Tommy Doyle to a minor league deal with an invite to Major League Spring Training.

Doyle, 28, returns to his original team that drafted him in the second round from the University of Virginia in 2017. After a strong debut in the hitter-friendly Pioneer League with the Grand Junction Rockies in 2017, Doyle turned in a quality 2018 campaign with a 2.31 ERA in 58 1/3 innings for the Low-A Asheville Tourists. The following season with the High-A Lancaster Jethawks, Doyle posted a 3.25 ERA in 36 innings.

During the 2020 season, Doyle spent the year at the Triple-A reserves camp, eventually making his big league debut later in the season. His brief stint was ineffective, and he would miss most of 2021 and entirely of 2022 to injury before returning to Triple-A in 2023. He posted a 3.41 ERA in 37 innings before another 15-game stint with the big league club. He was released after the season and spent the 2024 campaign with the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves where he collected a 3.57 ERA with 43 strikeouts and 17 walks across 40.1 innings. All 18 of Doyle’s major-league appearances have come with the Rockies, as he’s put up an 8.31 ERA with 20 strikeouts and 17 walks over 26 frames.

The right-hander has proven a quality bullpen arm during his minor league career. In 203 innings over 186 games, Doyle owns a 3.55 ERA and a 1.281 WHIP. His success has come from his ability to throw strikes, contrary to the small sample size of big-league innings. He’s recorded 226 strikeouts against 74 walks, largely thanks to a  four or five-pitch mix. On his fastball, Doyle has managed to average 95 mph while mixing in a slider at 87 mph while mixing in a sinker, changeup, and cutter. Doyle’s uncharacteristic control issues in his brief big-league experience are likely an outlier that can be chalked up to inexperience among other things. He was considered a Top 30 prospect for the Rockies per MLB Pipeline as recently as 2021 and now looks to find a way to establish himself back with his draft team.

Doyle enters a crowded bullpen field as the Rockies try to reshape and continue some success from the end of the 2024 season. Youth took the pen by storm but the Rockies are always in the hunt for depth and the familiarity of Doyle is likely an easier assessment for the Rockies. Doyle has experience as a late-game arm, converting 53 saves in the minors, which the Rockies could look to if push came to shove. As of now, he is expected to start the year in Triple-A pending any sort of breakout performance in spring training.