The Rockies announced three roster moves on Sunday, including the selection of John Brebbia‘s contract from Triple-A Albuquerque. (MLB.com’s Thomas Harding noted earlier today that Brebbia had a locker in the Colorado clubhouse.) In corresponding moves, the Rox placed right-hander Blas Castano on the 15-day injured list due to a right pectoral strain, and left-hander Sammy Peralta was designated for assignment.
A veteran of eight big league seasons, Brebbia will notch his ninth year once he makes his first official appearance in a Rockies uniform. Brebbia inked a minors deal with Colorado back in December, but was released just prior to Opening Day, as the right-hander then signed a minor league deal with the Twins. That stint didn’t result in any calls to the majors, so Brebbia triggered an opt-out clause a month ago to return to the open market, and the Rox came calling again with a fresh minor league contract in late May.
After posting a 6.20 ERA over 20 1/3 innings with the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate, Brebbia’s time in Albuquerque has been a huge improvement. Brebbia has tossed nine scoreless innings over seven appearances, recording 10 strikeouts while allowing only six hits and no walks.
The Rockies naturally aren’t expecting such lockdown work, but they’d be happy if Brebbia can recapture some of his past form as a reliable bullpen arm with the Cardinals and Giants. The results haven’t been there for Brebbia over the last two years, as he posted a 6.41 ERA over 78 2/3 innings with the White Sox, Braves, and Tigers over the 2024-25 seasons.
Peralta was claimed off waivers from the Brewers at the start of April, and he has a 10.13 ERA over 2 2/3 innings and two games for Colorado amidst four different options back and forth from Triple-A. With Peralta also struggling to a 5.06 ERA over 32 innings in Albuquerque, the Rockies chose the DFA route and the possibility that Peralta could depart the organization. Because Peralta has been outrighted in the past, he can elect free agency over another outright assignment if he clears waivers.
Though he has a 5.40 ERA over 48 1/3 career MLB innings and a 4.79 ERA in 229 1/3 innings at Triple-A, Peralta has been claimed off waivers four different times in his career. He has exhibited excellent control and flashes of strikeout ability in the minors, while also routinely throwing multiple innings during his relief appearances. It is possible another team might claim Peralta yet again, perhaps thinking that his rough 2026 numbers could be impacted by pitching in hitter-friendly environments.
Castano made his MLB debut in the form of one game with the Mariners last season, and the Rockies claimed him off waivers in April. Since coming to Colorado, Castano has been a decent bullpen arm for the Rox, posting a 3.92 ERA, 48.3% grounder rate, and a 7.1% walk rate over 20 2/3 innings, though with only a 20% strikeout rate. Castano has become more of a grounder specialist as his career has developed, though batters have done damage this year (four homers allowed) when they’ve been able to launch Castano’s offerings into the air.
