Baseball Prospect Zac Veen Gets Sober, Gains 40 Pounds

When Zac Veen showed up to spring training this year, his Colorado Rockies coaches barely recognized him—and that's exactly the point.

The 24-year-old outfielder arrived in Scottsdale weighing 245 pounds, up from an unhealthy 202 last season. But the biggest transformation isn't visible in the mirror.

"Definitely one of the bigger, main things was sobering up," Veen said. "I had a pretty big substance abuse problem for a few years. But I'm completely clean and sober."

For three consecutive years since 2021, Veen hadn't gone a single day without marijuana or alcohol. Last April, after hitting his first major league double, he celebrated with a gesture mimicking smoking weed. Rockies officials called it "cringe."

The moment became a turning point. After struggling through injuries and a brief demotion last season, Veen returned home to Florida and faced hard truths.

His high school coach Johnny Goodrich didn't hold back. "I didn't know that guy," Goodrich said of the player Veen had become. "And I didn't particularly like that guy. And, yeah, I wasn't afraid to tell him that."

Those words stung, but they also saved him. Veen enrolled in an 11-week recovery program for substance abusers and alcoholics. He started attending church and Bible study every Wednesday. In a powerful moment of commitment, he got baptized.

"Looking back, a lot of my meals were smoke—and things that shouldn't have been," Veen explained. "Being able to cut that out of my lifestyle and replace that with protein is very beneficial."

Why This Inspires

Veen's journey shows that asking for help isn't weakness. With support from Goodrich and Rockies player development director Chris Forbes, he found his way back. His coach describes improvements not just in character but in speed, leaping ability, and hitting power with his new muscle mass.

The Rockies' No. 11 prospect knows he's just getting started. Some teammates had rolled their eyes at his name before. Earning back trust takes time.

"I'm immensely proud of Zac," Goodrich said, and asked that those words make it into print.

Veen now surrounds himself only with people who knew him before everything went wrong. He's kept his old trainers, found mentors like White Sox outfielder Austin Hays, and reconnected with his faith. Even his hair is back to its natural brown—no more purple dye attempting to match team colors.

"We're here to do everything we can to support him and lift him up," said Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer.

Opening Day roster spots are competitive, but for Veen, sobriety comes first. The stats and the speed will follow.