The Colorado Rockies have made their second significant free agent signing of the week, inking veteran infielder Kyle Farmer to a one-year deal with an option per a report from FanSided’s Robert Murray.

Farmer, 34, joins the Rockies after spending the last two seasons with the Minnesota Twins. The Twins declined Farmer’s $6.25 million for 2025, making him a free agent after he struggled at the plate in 2024. In 107 games last season, Farmer slashed .214/.293/.353 with five home runs and 25 RBI for a -0.3 rWAR.

Originally drafted in the eighth round back in 2013 by the Los Angeles Dodgers, made his debut in 2017 with the Dodgers, spending parts of two seasons with the National League West titans before being sent to Cincinnati in a blockbuster deal that sent Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp and Alex Wood to the Reds for Homer Bailey, Jeter Downs and Josiah Gray. From 2019-2022, Farmer played in a semi-regular role with the Reds before being traded to the Twins before the 2023 season. Farmer finally began to hit his stride in 2021 when he played in .263/.316/.416 with 16 home runs.

From 2021-23, Farmer slashed .258/.316/.402 with 41 home runs and 187 RBI in 412 games for a 4.2 rWAR before his down year in 2024. The right-handed hitting infielder owns a career .318 OBP and 87 OPS+ in his eight seasons while showcasing a below-league average 20.2% strikeout rate and a respectable 5.6% walk rate. He tends to swing on a more even plane, owning a 41.3% ground ball rate and 36.3% fly ball rate.

His 2024 was a tale of two seasons as he struggled in the first half while trying to play with an injured shoulder. During the second half, Farmer slashed .253/.297/.494 with five home runs in his final 44 games, looking more like the player he had been the previous three seasons.

The move comes on the heels of the Rockies non-tendering previous second baseman Brendan Rodgers. In an effort to cut payroll, the Rockies decided to make the difficult decision to move on from the former third overall pick and his projected $6 million salary with what seemed to be an intention to allow a younger prospect to take over the position. The move becomes more perplexing when Rodgers is arguably the better offensive player when healthy, especially after the 2024 Farmer.

The choice to have a younger player could still be the case, but the Rockies are sure to be hoping that the veteran influence of Farmer can be a positive voice in the clubhouse and maintain the defensive excellence the Rockies have come to expect. Farmer is capable of playing any infield position, with second base being his best spot with 5 DRS.

It looks as if Farmer will slot in as the starting second baseman as a placeholder to give the Rockies more time to develop and make sure their prospects are ready to go. Top infield prospect Adael Amador debuted briefly in 2024 but showed obvious struggles that could use some refinement in Triple-A. Aaron Schunk could be the likeliest to compete for the spot in spring training but figures to be a bench player like he was in 2024. The Rockies also have veteran infielder Owen Miller whom the team acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers earlier this offseason and has a non-roster invite to spring training.