Kevin Kouzmanoff’s struggles offensively continued after being traded from Oakland to Colorado in mid-August, leading to the Rockies dropping the veteran third baseman from the 40-man roster and Kouzmanoff opting for free agency.
That was mostly just a timing issue anyway, because Kouzmanoff would have been in line for a $5 million salary via the arbitration process and there was never any chance of a team making that commitment to a guy who failed to crack a .700 OPS in back-to-back seasons.
Kouzmanoff’s stock has fallen to the point that he may have to settle for a bench job or perhaps even a minor-league contract. Any promise he showed by hitting .275 with 18 homers and a .786 OPS as a 25-year-old rookie with the Padres in 2007 has given way to four straight underwhelming seasons and Kouzmanoff is already 30 years old.
