The writing was on the wall for Bud Black: 7-33.
So, after weeks of speculation, the Rockies fired their manager on Sunday amid the ballclub’s historically bad start to the season. The Rockies also fired bench coach Mike Redmond.
Black was replaced by third base coach Warren Schaeffer, 40, who will serve as interim manager. Interim hitting coach Clint Hurdle has been named the interim bench coach.
Black, 67, was in his ninth year as the Rockies’ manager and was the longest-tenured manager in team history. This was the final year of his contract.
The Rockies are 7-33, last in the National League West and own the worst record in Major League Baseball. Their start ranks second-worst through 40 games in baseball’s modern era (since 1901), trailing only the 1988 Baltimore Orioles (6-34). The Rockies are coming off back-to-back 100-loss seasons — and appear headed toward a third.
“It’s the result of how we have been playing,” general manager Bill Schmidt said when asked to explain Black’s firing. “We’ve had a lot of internal talks, for a while. I think we are capable of playing better than we have played. It was time to make a change.”
The players learned about the moves shortly after Colorado played one of its best games of its awful season, beating San Diego, 9-3, to snap its third eight-game losing streak. Schmidt informed the players during a short team meeting.
Schmidt, who called Black a “great baseball man,” was adamant that there was no disconnect between the front office and Black. However, Schmidt and several veteran players said the club needed a change of direction, a fresh voice and new energy.
“I have a lot of different emotions right now,” said veteran left-handed starting pitcher Kyle Freeland from the somber Rockies clubhouse. “I have been with Buddy and ‘Red’ my entire career. Both are great guys, and they have been in my corner my entire career. I love both those guys.
“But clearly some changes needed to be made to start turning this thing around and get us going in a new direction, get us some traction.”
Veteran third baseman Ryan McMahon called the day “incredibly emotional.”
“It’s tough. I don’t think it was Buddy’s fault, much,” McMahon said. “We didn’t play to our capabilities, but this is the direction the organization decided to go, so we’ll roll with it. But it’s going to be tough without Buddy. He’s the only manager I’ve known in the big leagues. I learned a lot from him.”
McMahon hopes the changes will get the Rockies out of their season-long rut, but added: “I don’t think we will know until we get some games in under our belt.”
Asked if more organizational changes might be coming, McMahon said, “Hey, it might be a kick in the ass. Like, ‘Heads up!’ We’re in a spot where we need to make some moves and start doing some stuff, or things like this are going to happen.”
Rockies owner Dick Monfort, who ultimately decided to fire Black and Redmond, was blunt.
“Our play so far this season, especially coming off the last two seasons, has been unacceptable,” Monfort said in a statement. “Our fans deserve better, and we are capable of better.
“While we all share responsibility in how this season has played out, these changes are necessary. We will use the remainder of 2025 to improve where we can on the field and to evaluate all areas of our operation so we can properly turn the page into the next chapter of Rockies baseball.”
Monfort showed gratitude to Black and Redmond.
“I want to thank Bud Black and Mike Redmond for their contributions to the organization across their eight years here,” he said. “I appreciate their hard work and dedication and wish them nothing but the best going forward.”
Sunday marked the Rockies’ first in-season managerial change since Jim Tracy replaced Hurdle on May 29, 2009.
Black found success early in his tenure with Colorado, leading the team to its only back-to-back postseason appearances in 2017-18. But it’s been all downhill since. Amid a youth movement, the franchise is headed toward its seventh consecutive losing season, the longest streak in franchise history.
Hamstrung by the worst offenses in franchise history, the Rockies lost 103 games in 2023 and 101 games in ’01, marking the only times the club suffered triple-digit losses in a season. The 2024 club’s .242 average, .304 on-base percentage and .704 OPS were all the lowest in franchise history, while its 1,617 strikeouts were the most in club history.
This year’s team is hitting .219 (third-lowest in the majors), and its starting pitching owns a major-league-worst 5.77 ERA.
Black managed more games than anyone in club history (1,233), won more games (544), but also lost more (660).
Personable and charismatic, Black had a strong, friendly relationship with his players, the front office and staff, and the media.
Right-hander German Marquez, who broke out of a slump to pitch the Rockies to a win on Sunday, was teary when talking about Black.
“It’s sad, I’ve been with Buddy since ’17,” Marquez said. “It’s been a lot of years with that guy. A lot of good times, a lot of up and downs. But it is what it is, but baseball is like this. You have to keep moving forward.”
Several Rockies players, including Freeland, Marquez and McMahon, met with Black privately after the news to thank their ex-manager.
“He always had my back,” Marquez said. “He was always coaching me to be a better pitcher and a better person. I’m very thankful to Buddy.”
A major league pitcher for 15 seasons, Black brought a pitching-rich background to Colorado when he was hired before the 2017 season. He replaced Walt Weiss and inherited a team that went 75-87 in 2016.
The ’17 Rockies finished 87-75 and advanced to the postseason but lost 11-8 to Arizona in the National League wild-card game.
Colorado improved to 91-72 in 2018 and came one game away from winning its first division title. The Dodgers and Rockies finished the regular season deadlocked, forcing a one-game playoff in Los Angeles. The Dodgers won, 5-2, to clinch the NL West title.
The Rockies beat the Cubs 2-1 in a dramatic 13-inning wild-card game at Wrigley Field but were then swept in three games by Milwaukee in the NL divisional series.
Under Black’s tutelage, Freeland and Marquez blossomed into two of the best pitchers in franchise history. In 2018, Freeland finished fourth in the NL Cy Young Award voting after posting a 2.85 ERA, the lowest in a full season in franchise history and the fifth-lowest in the NL in 2018.
In 2021, Marquez was one of the best pitchers in baseball in the first half of the season and made the All-Star team. He finished with a 4.40 ERA and led the NL with three complete games.
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