{"id":114693,"date":"2026-02-25T11:05:27","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T16:05:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=114693"},"modified":"2026-02-25T01:03:47","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T06:03:47","slug":"zac-veen-off-to-good-start-in-cactus-league-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2026\/02\/25\/zac-veen-off-to-good-start-in-cactus-league-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Zac Veen off to Good Start in Cactus League Action"},"content":{"rendered":"

Zac Veen<\/a> was one of the most highly anticipated Colorado Rockies’ prospects when he was drafted ninth overall in 2020. Veen was one of the best high school hitters in the 2020 draft class out of Spruce Creek High School in Port Orange, Florida. He was seen as a prospect with a five-tool ceiling. MLB Pipeline<\/a> gave Veen above-average grades<\/a> on both his speed and arm talent. But the journey has been a challenging one for the now 24-year-old Veen.<\/p>\n

Zac Veen’s Disappointing 2025<\/h2>\n

Veen followed up an impressive spring with an early call-up on April 8 last season. But Veen’s bat was not Major League-ready. Over just 10 games, Veen went 4-34 with a .118\/.189\/.235 slash line. This resulted in a demotion to Triple-A Albuquerque, and Veen did not return to Colorado for the rest of the season. He has been open about the difficulties he faced off the field last season, including substance abuse, in what became an inflection point in Veen’s career.<\/p>\n

In a story on MLB.com<\/a> by Thomas Harding, Veen told Harding that following last season, he went back home to Florida. Where his old high school coach, Johnny Goodrich, and the Rockies’ player development director, Chris Forbes, helped Veen get his life back on track.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt was a collaborative thing \u2013 I can\u2019t thank them (Forbes and Goodrich) enough,\u201d Veen said. \u201cI participated in an 11-week program with substance abusers and alcoholics \u2013 people wanting to better themselves. I started going to church, got baptized, and went to Bible study every Wednesday.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Veen is now fully sober and is up to 245 pounds after being just 202 lbs at the end of last season. He is out to be a better teammate and put the antics and off-the-field issues of last season behind him. On the field, he was solid offensively for Triple-A Albuquerque last season and will look to build on that this spring. He will need to, as it is a crowded outfield currently<\/a> in Colorado. But Veen is off to a good start.<\/p>\n

Starting Spring Strong<\/h2>\n

Veen hit the first homer of the spring for the Rockies with a 468-foot walk-off home run to clinch a 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox. He shared a special moment with his manager and teammates following the go-ahead bomb. A welcome result after an arduous offseason full of hard work.<\/p>\n

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Zac Veen’s walk-off homer<\/p>\n

113.3 MPH, 468 feet<\/p>\n

Veen put on 43 pounds over the offseasonpic.twitter.com\/PqSdeB3iQ3<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) February 23, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n