Warren Schaeffer is taking over as the interim manager of the Colorado Rockies.
Justin Edmonds / Getty Images 
Schaeffer, who had been the team’s third base coach, accepted the promotion after the Rockies fired manager Bud Black over the weekend. He’s inheriting a team that has posted the worst start (7-33) since the 1988 Baltimore Orioles began 6-34. It’s an uphill climb for Colorado to avoid a third straight 100-loss season. They have to go 56-66 the rest of the way. They’ve won back-to-back games just once and have three separate eight-game losing streaks.
Colorado is currently second-to-last in runs and first in strikeouts. The pitching staff has surrendered the most runs in the big leagues and fanned the fewest batters.
Schaeffer brings energy and exuberance to the Rockies clubhouse. He had been Colorado’s third base and infield coach since the 2023 season. Prior to joining the MLB team, he spent 10 seasons as a manager and coach in the Rockies’ minor league system.
“A positive atmosphere in the clubhouse, and we’re ready to move forward,” Schaeffer said Monday before the game against the Rangers in Texas that marked his debut at interim manager. “I just want them to play loose. From my vantage point, it’s a fresh start.”
Relief pitcher Jake Bird, one of several Rockies who played for Schaeffer when he was a minor league manager, described him as a good communicator who is intelligent and passionate.
“Something just feels different. So I’m really feeling optimistic about the direction moving forward,” Bird said. “I think our team’s a lot more capable than what we’ve been playing.”
General manager Bill Schmidt said after the move was made Sunday that the 40-year-old Schaeffer’s connection to players was a big part of what he brings to his new role.
“I think just a different voice here — we’re at that point where we needed to do that,” Schmidt said.
The Rockies haven’t been to the postseason since 2018. Their only World Series appearance was 2007, when they were swept by the Boston Red Sox. Their manager then was Clint Hurdle, who is now the interim bench coach under Schaeffer.
