A Thousand for the Hometown Team

The Glove He Took to Bed

Growing up in southeast Denver, Kyle Freeland's father Don would come home from work and spend hours playing catch or hitting grounders with Kyle and his older brother Colin at a local park. As a child, Kyle took his baseball glove to bed with him. His mother Susan teaches at the Denver elementary school he attended. At Thomas Jefferson High School in Denver, he set a Colorado state record with 145 strikeouts as a senior in 2011. The Phillies drafted him in the 35th round that year; he chose the University of Evansville instead. Three years later, the Rockies took him eighth overall in the first round of the 2014 draft. On April 7, 2017, he started the home opener at Coors Field against the Dodgers.

A Thousand Missed Bats

On June 19 of this year, Freeland recorded his 1,000th career strikeout. The count now sits at 1,027, accumulated over ten seasons and 1,354.1 innings pitched — every one of them for Colorado, the only organization he has ever known. The 6-foot-4, 202-pound left-hander has made 249 starts across 254 appearances. His WHIP is 1.43, his ERA 4.73, his record 67-99. In 18 appearances this season he has added 83 more strikeouts to the total.

Still Here

He was around 140 pounds as a sophomore at Thomas Jefferson when his coach called on him to pitch a key game against Denver East to defend a city title. He dominated the outing in one of the best performances his coach had ever seen from a player that young, establishing himself as an ultra-competitive talent. After two rough early starts in 2024 left him distraught at his locker, teammate Tyler Kinley walked over and the two shared a long, supportive embrace. Freeland is 33. He has appeared in 18 games for Colorado this season.

Reporting: The Denver Post, Colorado AvidGolfer. Career and biographical data: MLB StatsAPI, via the Fever engine.