SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — From a red and gold espresso machine to Up with Purple.

Michael Lorenzen has lived the spectrum this spring.

He experienced the raucous World Baseball Classic — Team Italy provided caffeine shots in the dugout — and the fist-in-the-face reality of raising the Colorado Rockies from the ashes.

At 34, he is the right arm at the right time, embracing accountability and analytics at a time when new leadership attempts to solve the Rubik’s Cube of pitching at altitude.

“I wouldn’t say I am happy with the results of my career. But I am happy with what I have learned,” Lorenzen said Thursday. “They didn’t have to convey to me what they were trying to do here. I was conveying to them that I wanted to be here. This is another challenge to run towards. I didn’t sign in Colorado to win the Cy Young. I signed because I believe I can help.”

To understand why he chose to pitch in Denver — his $8 million deal is the most the Rockies have spent on an external free agent pitcher since 2015 — you have to understand Lorenzen.

He has been on a journey of failure and faith for nearly two decades. At age 16, spiraling from bad choices and a tough home environment in Southern California, the Bible and baseball saved his life.

Hanging out at the pier and getting into trouble, he discovered faith through the words of an evangelist on the beach.

As he read scripture, he found solace on the diamond. The Tampa Bay Rays drafted him in the seventh round out of Fullerton (Calif.) Union High School, but Lorenzen chose to attend college. At Cal State Fullerton, he doubled as a center fielder and closer.

“I would just come in and kick my leg high as I could and throw hard,” Lorenzen said. “I was mad when I got drafted (again in 2013 in the first round by Cincinnati Reds) as a pitcher because I saw myself as a hitter.”

With Cincinnati, he was nicknamed “Michael Muscles” for his grapefruit-sized biceps. He was not Shohei Ohtani, but showed it was a possibility.

Lorenzen broke into the big leagues as a starter in 2015. He struggled to gain traction and spent the next six seasons coming out of the bullpen. In 2018, he posted a 3.18 ERA in 45 appearances and smashed four of his seven career home runs.

Could he be a two-way player for the Rockies?

“Maybe,” he said with a laugh. “We will see.”

Lorenzen returned to the rotation in 2022, where he remained almost exclusively for his last five teams. In 2023, he threw a no-hitter in his first home start for the Philadelphia Phillies after the Detroit Tigers traded him following an All-Star berth.

With his mother, wife and daughter in the stands, the night represented a personal zenith.

But it is not those moments that shape Lorenzen. It is how he has dealt with adversity — five losing seasons, his career a series of one-year contracts — and his willingness to experiment that make him a rudder for a rotation that posted the highest starters ERA (6.65) since it became an official stat in 1913.

Depending on the day, Lorenzen features seven or eight pitches that range from 82 to 94 mph: 4-seam fastball, curveball, cutter, sweeper, sinker, slider and changeup (which has multiple variations).

“It has become a big trend in the game. I think it’s that much more important for us. A deep arsenal is hard on a hitter because you have to account for so many speeds and shapes,” Rockies general manager Josh Byrnes said. “That’s something that should translate at altitude. And it’s something we talked about with Michael and he embraces.”

Lorenzen walked into the Rockies clubhouse with eyes wide open. He has known new pitching coach Alon Leichman for nearly a decade, their paths crossing because of mutual interest in health and fitness.

With Rockies president Paul DePodesta empowering innovation, the pitcher and coach provide the right “open” mindset.

“You have to be your best coach, and you have to take ownership of your career. But that being said, having a group of like-minded people around me makes it way better,” said Lorenzen, who posted a 4.64 ERA in 141-plus innings for the Royals last season. “I think it will fast-track the learning curve at altitude. Going through what I have, I had to reverse engineer to build who I am now. The more comfortable I get with the information (analytics), the more I am able to share it. And I want my teammates to know I am always available to talk.”

Which brings us back to the WBC.

It provided a snapshot of Lorenzen’s value and humility. Lorenzen helped author one of the greatest upsets in tournament history, posting 4 2/3 scoreless innings in Italy’s 8-6 victory over Team USA.

He muzzled a lineup that included Aaron Judge, Bobby Witt and Kyle Schwarber, allowing two hits with a pair of strikeouts. He repeatedly took his foot on and off the throttle, while commanding all quadrants of the strike zone in 67 pitches.

“People ask why I wanted to throw against Team USA. Why wouldn’t I?” Lorenzen said. “That is exactly what I signed up for.”

A disappointing relief outing in the semifinals against Venezuela followed — four consecutive two-out hits resulted in three runs. This game painted a fuller picture of who Lorenzen is.

“The definition of a Christian athlete, the way I present that, is being willing to do anything necessary for the team. There should be no unselfishness. That is something I struggled with early in my career and regret,” Lorenzen said. “And that last game, I thought I was going to start, and they came and asked if I could throw out of the bullpen. I had just thrown the heck out of the ball, and, in my mind, I questioned it. It only took one outing to start thinking good about myself. It served as a reminder of where my heart needs to be.”

Now, in his 12th season, he is in Colorado. And it sure feels like it is exactly where he is supposed to be.

____

©2026 MediaNews Group, Inc. Visit at denverpost.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.