SAN FRANCISCO — The Rockies lost 4-0 to the Giants on Sunday afternoon at Oracle Park, a fitting eulogy to the worst season in franchise history and one of the most futile seasons in baseball’s modern era.
Let the record books show that the Rockies finished 2025 with 43 wins and 119 losses, tying the 2003 Tigers for the third-most losses. Only the 1962 Mets (120) and 2024 White Sox (121) lost more games.
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Interim manager Warren Schaeffer, who has not been told if he will return next season and says he does not know about possible changes to the Rockies’ front office, was blunt about the state of the team.
“It’s painfully obvious to the whole world, it was not a good season, obviously,” he said. “It was a horrible season. But throughout that, we’ve learned that we never want to be here again.
“But also, I’m just extremely grateful to the players. They worked hard all year, and they made the manager’s job, especially a first-year manager’s job, a lot easier, especially when you know that the boys will give their whole effort for the whole game.”
It is clear that, regardless of their desire and effort, the Rockies lack the talent and experience to compete on a daily basis. They finished their season with six consecutive losses and were swept in a series for the 21st time.
The players say they have been told, and are well aware, that losing 100 games for three consecutive seasons is unacceptable. What they don’t know is what changes will be made to the roster, and more importantly, to the front office, now that the season is over.
“We can all play ownership, we can all play general manager on the ways we think things are going to go,” veteran left-hander Kyle Freeland said. “I really don’t know. Obviously, three straight years of 100-plus losses raises a lot of flags. There are a lot of questions being asked of players, of the front office, of coaches about what’s going on. But I really don’t know.”
The essence of the Rockies’ wretched season was illustrated in the first inning of loss No. 119. Giants veteran right-hander Logan Webb struck out the side, fanning Ezequiel Tovar, Hunter Goodman and Blaine Crim on 13 pitches.
Then, after throwing his very first pitch of the game, Rockies rookie right-hander McCade Brown turned around to watch as Willy Adames’ 417-foot home run cleared the center-field fence. In the fourth, Rafael Devers led off with a homer to right off of Brown to make it 2-0.
That was all the Giants needed to win the game and finish their season 81-81. San Francisco padded its lead in the eighth on Jung Hoo Lee’s two-run single off reliever Juan Mejia. Tovar’s error on a grounder to short opened the door for the Giants’ rally.
Webb dominated Colorado, as he usually does, pitching 5 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits, walking none and striking out eight. He improved to 11-3 with a 2.97 ERA over 19 career games (18 starts) against Colorado. In three starts this year against the Rockies, Webb was 3-0 with a 1.56 ERA.
The Rockies were blanked for the 18th time, extending their dubious record for most times being shut out in a season. They struck out 13 times Sunday, bringing their season total to 1,531 Ks, the third most in club history. Only the 2024 team (1,617) and the ’23 team (1,543) struck out more.
“Our consistency at the plate has to be there more often,” center fielder Brenton Doyle said. “We are a very young team, and we had guys who had to experience what it’s like to play a full big-league season. I think, in the long run, that will help us. But, at the end of the day, we have to win more games. Plain and simple. This season needs to be a learning experience for all of us.”
Brown pitched just three innings, giving up two runs on four hits, and finished 0-5 with a 7.36 ERA, another example of how far the Rockies have to go before they are a competitive team. Rockies starters finished the season with a 6.65 ERA, not only the highest in team history, but the highest for a starting staff since ERA became an official stat league-wide in 1913. The 1996 Tigers owned the previous record, posting a 6.64 ERA.
The Rockies’ finale ended as it started. Giants reliever Spencer Bivens struck out first baseman Blaine Crim on three pitches, fanned Jordan Beck on eight pitches and K’d Doyle on six pitches.
One final statistic illustrates the Rockies’ historic ineptitude: They were outscored by 424 runs, the largest run differential in baseball’s modern era, by a wide margin. The 1932 Red Sox are a distant second, with a minus-349 run differential.
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