Shaker Grad Continuing to Grow With Rockies (AUDIO)

We are now inside of three weeks until the official start of the 2016 baseball season. For Capital Region fans, there's plenty more to cheer about than just the Yankees and the Mets: There are several local players playing professionally that fans should have their eye on.

We were joined by one of them today in Shaker High graduate and Colorado Rockies prospect Jeff Hoffman.

Hoffman, the No. 9 pick in the 2014 MLB Draft, was traded from the Blue Jays to the Rockies last summer as part of the Troy Tulowitzki deal. We asked him what his emotions were like upon being traded, what he's working on this season in Colorado, if he's excited to pick up the bat again and about some of the Capital Region connections he's had in pro baseball.

Hoffman joins Mike Fish (Bethlehem/Angels), Jaime Schultz (Maple Hill/Rays), Will Remillard (LaSalle/Cubs), JP Sportman (LaSalle/A's), Murphy Smith (Shen/Blue Jays) and Garrett Whitley (Niskayuna/Rays) as local ballplayers who have joined us this spring.