Mile High sabermetrics - A Rockies Dynasty

[bombboy85]

Today the Colorado Rockies announced that after years of public outcry against GM Dan O'Dowd they have decided to hire someone new into the position. They have announced the hiring of Matt Hill to take that position. In an interview today the new GM gave us his overview of the franchises current situation.

"First off I want to say how excited I am to take over this franchise, I grew up watching them play. I even remember the first game they ever played I was in elementary school and they pulled everyone out of class and into the library to watch the game on TV and seeing Eric Young hit a homerun in the first at bat in a home game. This franchise is entering it's 20th season and in those short 20 years they have had an exciting history but there are many things that need to be fixed. In this franchises first year we set a MLB record for the highest attendance ever and for years we sold out every game. It feels like recently this franchise has lost touch with it's fans, we have the talent to compete but in the past moves have not been made that could have made the team better. I want to return this team to that level of selling out every game."

As we get prepped for the season Matt Hill has a lot of work ahead of him. The team has superstars in Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez and the frustrating Dexter Fowler who has the potential to be a star but is very streaky. The team has weaknesses at 2B, 3B and in their pitching staff. 1B Todd Helton is also looking at what could be his last season before retirement so a future replacement needs to be found.

[bombboy85]

New GM and Manager, first month

May 1st, 2013

W - 15 / L - 13 / GB - 3

It was an average month for the Colorado Rockies on the field as they finished the month 15-13. We expected them to be among the top offenses in the NL and they didn't disappoint as they lead the NL in batting average, on-base percentage, and runs scored. The pitching is where they were let down as they are dead last in overall ERA at 4.81.

The Rockies new GM did make his first move though setting up a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals. The Rockies sent 34 year old C Yorvit Torrealba, 21 year old minor league SS Christhian Adames and 24 year old minor league 2B DJ LeMahieu over the St. Louis. In return they got 22 year old minor league 2B Kolten Wong. To take Torrealba's spot as the backup catcher the Rockies promoted Matt McBride who was hitting .327 with 2 HR in AAA at the time.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - LF Carlos Gonzalez - .312/.356/.578 6 HR 20 RBI
MLB Pitcher - RP Wilton Lopez - 17.0 IP 1.06 ERA 1.12 WHIP

AAA Hitter - LF Corey Dickerson - .422/.509/.533 2 HR 19 RBI
AAA Pitcher - RP Mike McClendon - 10.2 IP 1.69 ERA 1.22 WHIP

AA Hitter - LF Henry Wrigley - .351/.405/.658 8 HR 29 RBI
AA Pitcher - RP Joe Gardner - 12.2 IP 2.13 ERA 1.11 WHIP

[bombboy85]

Tulo back on the DL
June 1st, 2013

W - 28 / L - 28 / GB - 5.5

The Colorado Rockies finished the month of May with a 13-15 record for the month. The teams offense and pitching could not be any more of polar opposites as the team leads the NL in Batting Average (.277), OBP (.339), Slugging (.465), OPS (.803), runs (291), hits (545), and extra base hits (204). Meanwhile their pitching is dead last in almost every single category with a team ERA of 4.80.

Coach Walt Weiss discussed the team with the media telling us "We knew coming into this year that we would be able to hit and you can see how well CarGo is hitting (.327/.388/.571 10 HR 39 RBI) and Tulo was really heating up this month until his wrist got sore on him and he couldn't get it to heal up the way we wanted to. Dexter is also really performing well out of the leadoff spot for us (.338/.410/.517 4 HR 18 RBI, 37 runs scored). When it comes to our pitching we just absolutely have to get better, I mean the back end of our bullpen is doing well with Rex, Wilton and Rafael all having ERA's under 2.50 but it's telling that even with them doing that our bullpen's ERA is 5.19. I'd really like to see these guys gets more focused and let our setup guys get a little time to breathe.

Injury Notes

- Eric Young Jr was injured with a sprained knee and spent 2 weeks on the DL (Reid Brignac activated from AAA)
- Troy Tulowitzki injured in a collision, wrist tendinitis out 2 weeks. 2B Kolten Wong activated from AAA.
- RP Edwar Cabrera and RP Edgmer Escalona returned to action from long DL stints and are now in AAA on rehab assignments.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - LF Carlos Gonzalez - .343/.418/.565 4 HR 19 RBI (21 runs scored)
MLB Pitcher - RP Rafael Betancourt - 12.2 IP 0.00 ERA 0.32 WHIP

AAA Hitter - 2B Charlie Culberson - .362/.397/.536 3 HR 8 RBI
AAA Pitcher - SP Christian Friedrich - 3-1 3.26 ERA 1.27 WHIP

AA Hitter - 1B Ben Paulsen - .369/.445/.532 4 HR 16 RBI
AA Pitcher - SP Rob Scahill - 2-4 3.68 ERA 1.17 WHIP

[bombboy85]

2013 First Year Player Draft
June 6th, 2013

Rookie GM Matt Hill along with rookie manager Walt Weiss took on a draft of guess what! Rookies!. Let's take a look at the first 5 rounds and gauge how they did. With a tighter budget than teams like the Red Sox and Yankees the Rockies went for picks that could contribute at the major league level eventually but weren't asking for tons of money as a signing bonus.

Round 1 Pick 3 - While some other maybe higher ranked pitchers were available they were all asking close to $10,000,000 in signing bonus from the Rockies. Instead the Rockies chose 23 year old SP Will Bateman out of Butte, Montana. This pick is where you could pick out the Rockies draft strategy, they could have pick Mark Appel but he wanted too much to sign with the Rockies so they chose a pitcher who has been known to work extremely hard, is a leader and has the intelligence to learn from his mistakes. In his senior season he went 10-4 with a 2.97 ERA.

Round 2 - The Rockies used their second round pick on a player who had fallen out of the first round, 3B Cavan Biggio. Cavan is another player known for his work ethic and as a leader in the clubhouse. He is 18 years old out of Houston, Texas. He still needs a little work on his feeling but he has good potential.

Round 3 - The Rockies third round pick was 20 year old SP Rafael Rodriguez out of the University of Georgia. Rodriguez is borderline between projecting as a starter or a bullpen arm and only time will tell. He was 7-2 with a 2.62 ERA last season. He features an arsenal of 5 pitches but needs to work on his control and build a little more stamina if he can.

Round 4 - The fourth round saw the Rockies pick another SP in 21 year old Andrew Mitchell. He was another player out of Houston, TX and is known as a hard worker who could end up either as a starter or bullpen arm.

Round 5 - The last pick we will preview was 22 year old LF Connor Harrell out of Houston, a teammate of Andrew Mitchell. He projects an average hitter with plus power.

[bombboy85]

The halfway point
July 1st, 2013

W - 39 / L - 44 / GB - 12

While it was another rough month for the Rockies on the mound as they went 11-16 the Los Angeles Dodgers went 18-10 to take a commanding lead in the NL West now sitting 5.5 games ahead of the second place Diamondbacks. The Good news was several players had good months at the plate and the team hopes they can continue. For the month of June Wilin Rosario, Michael Cuddyer, Todd Helton and Troy Tulowitzki all hit over .300 for the month and combined for 44 RBI's in the month.

In off the field news the Rockies made a couple of moves one of which was used to bolster their reeling bullpen. On June 12th GM Matt Hill struck a deal with the Los Angeles Angels which sent SP Jeff Francis and 2 minor league players in return for RP Sean Burnett. Francis was 2-4 with a 6.72 ERA for the Rockies in 13 starts this season. Burnett at the time of the trade had pitched 25.1 innings for the Angels and had a super low 0.36 ERA. The other 2 players included in the trade were 37 year old C Ramon Hernandez who was in AAA making $3,200,000 this season, a price too high for someone who would not even be on the active roster. Also involved in the trade was 25 year old minor league SP Christian Friedrich.

To take the place of Jeff Francis the Rockies made a waiver wire claim on 25 year old SP Felix Doubront from the Boston Red Sox. In 14 games Doubront was 6-5 with a 4.40 ERA. He has pitched 1 game for Colorado so far and went 7 innings while giving up 4 runs.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - C Wilin Rosario - .330/.361/.582 7 HR 18 RBI
MLB Pitcher - RP Sean Burnett - 11 IP 1.64 ERA 1.09 WHIP

AAA Hitter - CF Tim Wheeler - .309/.400/.536 5 HR 17 RBI
AAA Pitcher - SP Josh Outman - 0-2 2.48 ERA 1.52 WHIP

AA Hitter - RF Jaron Shepherd - .303/.385/.539 4 HR 10 RBI
AA Pitcher - SP Rob Scahill - 1-0 2.57 ERA 1.00 WHIP

[bombboy85]

Summer Settles in
August 1st, 2013

W - 56 / L - 53 / GB - 10.5

It was a wild and fun ride for the month of July for the Colorado Rockies as they lit up the scoreboards and went 17-9 for the month as well as saw some new faces. The offense got hot months from players like C Wilin Rosario (.295/.326/.648 8 HR 24 RBI), LF Carlos Gonzalez (.321/.351/.623 7 HR 21 RBI), and SS Troy Tulowitzki (.340/.395/.524 3 HR 19 RBI). The team also got a lot of improvement out of their bullpen with RP's Rex Brothers and Rafael Betancourt combining to pitch 25.2 innings and giving up just 1 run.

On the management side of the house we saw a lot of movement within the organization. The first move made is something we haven't seen the Rockies do a lot. They went out and signed a young international free agent into their international complex. 17 year old Gilberto Moran is a highly scouted starting pitcher who could turn into an excellent pitcher one day. The Rockies also made multiple trades before the trade deadline without giving up any true impact players they could miss long term.

Trade #1 - On the 7th of July the Rockies traded 29 year old RP Wilton Lopez to the Texas Rangers. Lopez was looking at arbitration in the offseason and with a 4.20 ERA on the season may not have been what the Rockies wanted to pay for. In return the Rockies got rookie RP Joe Ortiz who is only just developing but has pitched 13.2 innings for the Rockies thus far and has a 3.29 ERA.

Trade #2 - On the 18th of the month, in the midst of the All-Star Break the Rockies traded 3B Chris Nelson to the Oakland Athletics along with 24 year old minor league SP Eddie Butler. Nelson was playing fairly well at third for the Rockies hitting .282 on the season with 15 HR on the year. In return for those 2 players the Rockies got a player who pitched in the All-Star game 2 days earlier, SP Tommy Milone. Milone entered the all star break with a 13-4 record and a 2.27 ERA in his second season. Rockies brass felt comfortable enough to trade their starting 3B because they were promoting Nolan Arenado who in 12 games hit .346/.370/.558 with 2 HR and 6 RBI since coming up.

Trade #3 - Just a couple days after getting Tommy Milone the Rockies traded recently demoted SP Jon Garland to the New York Mets for 21 year old minor league 3B Wilmer Flores. In AAA this season Flores has been ridiculous hitting .393/.429/.631 with 5 HR and 16 RBI. It is not clear yet whether he will continue to play 3B or be tried out at 1B, it may depend how 1B prospect Ryan Wheeler performs.

Trade #4 - One final trade was made by the Rockies and we will see why it may have been bad timing when you read below but first the trade. Utility infielder/outfield Eric Young Jr. was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for 23 year old pitching prospect Taylor Jungmann. Jungmann was 9-5 with a 4.15 ERA in AA this season.

The reason it looks like bad timing for the Rockies with the trade of EY Jr. is that on the last day of the month the Rockies lost CF Dexter Fowler for 4 months as he tore a muscle in his back attempting to make a catch at the wall during an extra innings loss to the Atlanta Braves. Tyler Colvin will be taking his place in CF for the time being, he is hitting .273/.327/.547 in 139 at bats this year.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - LF Carlos Gonzalez - .321/.351/.623 7 HR 21 RBI
MLB Pitcher - RP Rafael Betancourt - 14.1 IP 0.00 ERA 0.56 WHIP

AAA Hitter - 1B Ryan Wheeler - .366/.444/.624 4 HR 18 RBI
AAA Pitcher - RP Adam Ottavino - 16.0 IP 1.69 ERA 1.19 WHIP

AA Hitter - RF Kyle Parker - .317/.414/.667 5 HR 11 RBI
AA Pitcher - SP Christian Bergman - 1-2 2.70 ERA 1.56 WHIP

[bombboy85]

The home stretch
September 1st, 2013

W - 71 / L - 66 / GB -12 / Wild card GB - 3

The Rockies went 15-13 in the month of August dropping further back in the NL West standings but there is still good news as they sit 3 games back in the Wild Card standings with 25 games to go. The 2 wild card spots currently belong to the Atlanta Braves and San Francisco Giants with the Diamonbacks, Phillies and Rockies right on their heels. In September the Rockies do not play Philadelphia but they do play divisional rival Arizona 6 times as well as 3 games against the Giants so they have some say in their fate. It will take some strong performances though as 2 players went down with injuries this month in addition to Dexter Fowler's injury last month. 2B Josh Rutledge fractured his foot and should be back in a few days, in his absence Kolten Wong has hit .241/.333/.276 in 35 games but has not been great with only 4 RBIs. Also out for a couple of weeks was 5th starter Felix Doubront. Josh Outman came out of the bullpen to pitch in his spot and has done very well going 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA in 2 starts. In Dexter Fowler's absence Tyler Colvin has filled in well and is hitting .272/.323/.481 with 12 HR and 32 RBI over the whole season.

As always on September 1st the roster expands and we get our chance to see if some young players can pitch in during key times.

Call ups:
SP Chris Volstad
RP Adam Ottavino
3B Wilmer Flores (tearing it up in AAA - .390/.431/.538 5 HR 22 RBI in 37 games)
CF Hernan Iribarren
LF Corey Dickerson


Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - LF Carlos Gonzalez - .346/.418/.645 8 HR 23 RBI
MLB Pitcher - RP Rex Brothers - 13.1 IP 0.68 ERA 0.60 WHIP

AAA Hitter - 3B Wilmer Flores - .400/.449/.568 4 HR 17 RBI
AAA Pitcher - SP Chris Volstad - 2-0 1.71 ERA 1.06 WHIP

AA Hitter - SS Trevor Story - .361/.417/.565 4 HR 18 RBI
AA Pitcher - RP Joe Gardner - 14.1 IP 3.14 ERA 0.98 WHIP

[bombboy85]

Back to the postseason
October 1st, 2013

Final Record - W - 86 / L - 76

It took a 15-10 record in September for the Rockies to stay in contention for the Wild Card spot they started the month 3 games out from. They ended up taking 4 of 6 from the Dbacks but lost 2 of 3 to the Giants, the 2 teams they were competing with for that final spot. It was part winning and part luck for the Rockies as they saw Arizona lose the final 5 games of their season and the Giants lose 8 of their last 10 to make way for the Rockies to move into the final wild card spot and beat out the Giants by one game.

It wasn't a smooth road though as multiple players missed a few games due to injury including LF Carlos Gonzalez who is still ailing with a sprained knee but could be good to go for their Wild Card round game against the Atlanta Braves. Even worse though is the loss of RP Rafael Betancourt who tore a ligament in his elbow and is expected to be out of action for 9 months. We likely won't see him before the All-Star break next season.

First year manager Walt Weiss had this to say "This was a tough year for us I mean just look at all the injuries we went through this season and the change we have seen around the organization. I think our new GM though did a good job giving us those extra couple of pieces we needed to make this run and also to stay competitive while guys were out with injuries. We also had a lot of players really step up for us this season who are young and things just really clicked for them, like Wilin Rosario just crushed the ball this year. We are going to go into this postseason playing our hearts out for 2 things... one is for the fans who deserve a championship team in this city... and two for Todd Helton, the Toddfather. That man has meant so much to this city and organization and with the year he has had (.274/.359/.426 11 HR 56 RBI) we have no idea yet what his plans are after this season but we'll worry about that later we want a title for him."

Team Stats: Starters
C Wilin Rosario - 133 Games - .287/.327/.574 41 HR 108 RBI - WAR 2.9
1B Todd Helton - 139 Games - .274/.359/.426 11 HR 56 RBI - WAR 1.2
2B Josh Rutledge - 124 Games - .246/.306/.427 14 HR 57 RBI - WAR 1.1
SS Troy "Tulo" - 147 Games - .282/.342/.502 30 HR 108 RBI - WAR 4.5
3B Nolan Arenado - 64 Games - .294/.317/.438 7 HR 24 RBI - WAR 0.8
LF Carlos Gonzalez - 149 Games - .315/.366/.568 32 HR 113 RBI - WAR 6.2
CF Dexter Fowler - 101 Games - .292/.367/.475 9 HR 41 RBI - WAR 2.5
RF Michael "Cuddy" - 149 Games - .257/.331/.467 25 HR 79 RBI - WAR -0.2

Contributors - minimum 30 games played
2B Kolten Wong - 55 Games - .258/.349/.344 2 HR 8 RBI
C/1B Matt McBride - 79 Games - .240/.282/.372 5 HR 29 RBI
UIF Jordan Pacheco - 89 Games - .279/.318/.383 2 HR 22 RBI
OF Tyler Colvin - 109 Games - .275/.321/.465 12 HR 35 RBI
OF Charlie Blackmon - 112 Games - .285/.301/.430 6 HR 26 RBI

Rotation
LHP Jorge De La Rosa - 12-12 / 4.40 ERA / 1.56 WHIP / 190.1 IP / 97 BB / 181 K
RHP Juan Nicasion - 14-12 / 5.05 ERA / 1.50 WHIP / 196.0 IP / 55 BB / 144 K
RHP Jhoulys Chacin - 11-10 / 4.91 ERA / 1.43 WHIP / 196.0 IP / 83 BB / 140 K
LHP Tommy Milone - 6-2 / 3.90 ERA / 1.20 WHIP / 80.2 IP / 17 BB / 51 K
LHP Felix Doubront - 6-3 / 4.94 ERA / 1.63 WHIP / 71 IP / 30 BB / 57 K

Bullpen (minimum 30 innings)
RHP Mike McClendon - 3-1 / 5.28 ERA / 1.45 WHIP / 58.0 IP / 18 BB / 46 K
LHP Joe Ortiz - 3-1 / 3.40 ERA / 1.29 WHIP / 39.2 IP / 16 BB / 33 K
RHP Matt Belisle - 5-0 / 4.18 ERA / 1.31 WHIP / 90.1 IP / 25 BB / 106 K
LHP Sean Burnett - 3-7 / 4.88 ERA / 1.34 WHIP / 62.2 IP / 26 BB / 52 K
LHP Rex Brothers - 5-3 / 2.60 ERA / 1.07 WHIP / 79.2 IP / 38 BB / 120 K
RHP Rafael Betancourt - 33 Saves - 2.04 ERA / 1.06 WHIP / 70.2 IP / 29 BB / 63 K


NL Playoff Teams
Washington Nationals - 100-62
Cincinnati Reds - 97-65
Los Angeles Dodgers - 97-65
Atlanta Braves - 95-67 (wild card)
Colorado Rockies - 86-76 (wild card)

AL Playoff Teams
Los Angeles Angels - 107-55
Detroit Tigers - 101-61
Baltimore Orioles - 86-76
Oakland Athletics - 84-78 (wild card)
New York Yankees - 83-80 (wild card)

[bombboy85]

Offseason begins

It was a pitcher's duel throughout when the Rockies played the Atlanta Braves in the Wild Card 1 game playoff. The only difference was a 2 run single by catcher Bryan McCann. Braves SP Kris Medlen spun a gem going 8 innings giving up no runs and just 3 hits. Medlen was a player who was involved in trade rumors with the Rockies earlier in the season before the Rockies got Tommy Milone instead.

The Rockies have a number of decisions in the upcoming offseason, They have 3 players with option years in their contracts:

RP Rafael Betancourt - $4,250,000 ($250,000 buyout)
RP Matt Belisle - $4,250,000 ($250,000 buyout)
SP Jorge De La Rosa $11,000,000 ($1,000,000 buyout)

They also have 6 players that are arbitration eligible:

SP Juan Nicasio - estimate $2,200,000
SP Chris Volstad - estimate $1,700,000
RP Josh Outman - estimate $750,000
2B Jonathan Herrera - estimate $1,000,000
SS Reid Brignac - estimate $750,000
LF Tyler Colvin - estimate $2,600,000

As well as one free agent that everyone in Colorado would love to see retire as a Rockie:

1B Todd Helton - asking $2,200,000

Available for Free Agents - $14,700,000
Available for Extensions - $6,700,000

As you can see the Rockies have a lot to decide. I would say the 3 biggest include Jorge De La Rosa's contract option, while he is Colorado's #1 starter he has not performed like it with a 4.40 ERA last season and only 14 quality starts in 34 starts. The question is do they stick with him as they don't have many better options or hope they can find a bargain deal to replace him in free agency? RP Rafael Betancourt was fantastic for Colorado this last season but with his current injury they would not see him on the field till at earliest July so is it worth it to pay half his salary while he recovers or let him go an appoint Rex Brothers the closer? And of course Todd Helton played well this year but also turned 40 so we don't know how he will perform next season and prospect Ryan Wheeler performed well in AAA. Stay tuned to see what happens.

[Scottiedog]

A start of another awesome dynasty for sure. I'll be following along. I really enjoyed your White Sox dynasty....I'm sure this one will be just as good.

[bombboy85]

Regular Season Awards

NL Gold Gloves
P - Adam Wainwright (St. Louis Cardinals)
C - Brian McCann (Atlanta Braves)
1B - Ike Davis (New York Mets)
2B - Brandon Phillips (Cincinnati Reds)
SS - Andrelton Simmons (Atlanta Braves)
3B - Chase Headley (San Diego Padres)
LF - Carlos Gonzalez (Colorado Rockies)
CF - Ben Revere (Philadelphia Phillies)
RF - Giancarlo Stanton (Miami Marlins)

AL Gold Gloves
P - Roy Oswalt (Seattle Mariners)
C - Matt Wieters (Baltimore Orioles)
1B - Albert Pujols (Los Angeles Angels)
2B - Ian Kinsler (Texas Rangers)
SS - Alcides Escobar (Kansas City Royals)
3B - Matt Dominguez (Houston Astros)
LF - Coco Crisp (Oakland Athletics)
CF - Peter Bourjos (Los Angeles Angels)
RF Michael Saunders (Seattle Mariners)

NL Rookie of the Year - 1B Matt Adams - St. Louis Cardinals
AL Rookie of the Year - SS Jurickson Profar - Texas Rangers

NL Manager of the Year - Don Mattingly - Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Manager of the Year - Mike Scioscia - Los Angeles Angels

NL Cy Young - SP Stephen Strasburg - Washington Nationals
AL Cy Young - Justin Verlander - Detroit Tigers

NL MVP - C Buster Posey - San Francisco Giants
AL MVP - 3B Miguel Cabrera - Detroit Tigers

[bombboy85]

Mid Offseason update
January 1st, 2014

The Rockies have had a busy offseason attempting to upgrade the team that lost in the wild card round last season. The team decided to execute the team options for all 3 players that had the stipulation in their contracts reupping Jorge De La Rosa, Rafael Betancourt and Matt Belisle for another season. With Betancourt looking to be out for half the season the team hopes that they can be doing well when he comes back and just get that much better.

In other big team news the Rockies re-signed 40 year old future Hall of Famer Todd Helton to a 2 year deal worth $1,750,000 per year. This likely will make sure he retires as a Rockie. Below is a summary of moves made this offseason by the club.

Arbitration
- The team did not offer arbitration to SP Chris Volstad, 2B Jonathan Herrera, and LF Tyler Colvin.
- The team offered and won arbitration cases with SP Juan Nicasio, RP Josh Outman, and SS Reid Brignac.

Free Agents
- The team signed RP Jhan Marinez, a free agent from the Chicago White Sox organization. Marinez had a rough season last year in AAA pitching 57.2 innings with a 5.77 ERA but in 2012 in AAA he threw 63 innings with a 2.86 ERA. Marinez signed for 3 years totaling $2,450,000 through the life of the deal.
- They also signed RP Jose De La Torre for 1 year $750,000. Jose pitched for the Pawtucket Red Sox AAA team last season and pitched 59 innings with a 4.27 ERA.
- Not an immediate impact for the team but they signed a promising young closer to a minor league contract. Christ Withrow was a 1st round pick in 2007 by the Los Angeles Dodgers out of high school and pitched in the 2013 southern league all-star game.

Other acquisitions
- The management group of the club likes to scour the waiver wires... and it paid off when someone in the Chicago Cubs organization made a mistake. The Rockies claimed 21 year old prospect RF Jorge Soler from the Cubs, he was rated the #32 prospect in the MLB last season and hit .323/.380/.497 with 17 HR and 67 RBI's in AA last season.
- During the Rule 5 draft the Rockies also picked up RP Dan Jennings from the Miami Marlins. Jennings has bounced back between AAA and the big leagues the last couple of years even though he was succesful in the bigs. At the major league level he has totaled 46.1 innings and a 2.53 ERA.

Trade
- The last move the Rockies completed happened in early december when they traded 2B Josh Rutledge (.246 14 HR 57 RBI in 2013) to the Baltimore Orioles for the 22nd overall prospect in MLB, SP Kevin Gausman. Gausman is 22 years old and could develop into a front line starter within a year or two. He was the #4 overall pick in 2012 and immediately became the Rockies top prospect.

With 2 more months before spring training starts could we see the Rockies make any more moves?

[mpejkrm]

Nice first season, tough playoff loss. Getting Soler shows how the CPU breaks the waiver system sometimes... they DFA good prospects.

[bombboy85]

Spring Swings
April 1st, 2014

Spring Record - W - 16 / L - 7

It was a very good spring for the Rockies both at the plate and on the mound as they look to build on last seasons playoff loss in the first round. The only rough spot from the the month playing down in AZ is that LF Carlos Gonzalez will begin the season by missing a few games as he is still about a week from being recovered from straining his PCL 2 weeks ago. Let's take a peek at the expected starters.

Starters
C - Wilin Rosario
1B - Todd Helton
2B - Kolten Wong
SS - Troy Tulowitzki
3B - Nolan Arenado
LF - Carlos Gonzalez
CF - Dexter Fowler
RF - Michael Cuddyer

Bench
C/1B - Matt McBride
2B/SS - Reid Brignac
UIF - Jordan Pacheco
OF - Tim Wheeler
OF - Corey Dickerson

Rotation
RHP Jhoulys Chacin
LHP Jorge De La Rosa
LHP Tommy Milone
RHP Juan Nicasio
LHP Felix Doubront

Bullpen
LHP Dan Jennings
RHP Jose De La Torre
RHP Jhan Marinez
LHP Joe Ortiz
LHP Sean Burnett
RHP Matt Belisle
LHP Rex Brothers
(injured Rafael Betancourt)

Consensus Season Prediction - 88-74

[bombboy85]

Falling Behind Early
May 1st, 2014

W - 9 / L - 12 / GB - 5.5

It was not as good of a first month as the Colorado Rockies had hoped for as they went 9-12 in the month while the Dodgers and Diamondbacks are both playing very well to start the season. The starting pitching has not been good for the Rockies as only one pitcher has recorded wins and that is Tommy Milone who has a 3.00 ERA and Felix Doubront has not won a game but has an ERA of 2.45. SP Juan Nicasio has been terrible to start the season starting 4 games and only recording 12 innings in those 4 games with a 15.32 ERA so far.

On the offensive side of the ball CF Dexter Fowler has been a dissapointment hitting just .135 in the month of May but have gotten great months from Wilin Rosario and Michael Cuddyer. 40 Year 1B Todd Helton continues to play better than many expect having a .396 OBP this month.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - C Wilin Rosario - .380/.405/.608 5 HR 15 RBI
MLB Pitcher - RP Jhan Marinez - 11.0 IP 0.82 ERA 1.27 WHIP

AAA Hitter - RF Kyle Parker - .402/.435/.759 8 HR 22 RBI
AAA Pitcher - SP Drew Pomeranz - 3-0 2.96 ERA 1.65 WHIP

AA Hitter - 3B Rosell Herrera - .347/.392/.597 4 HR 13 RBI
AA Pitcher - RP Dan Houston - 18.1 IP 1.96 ERA 1.42 WHIP

[bombboy85]

The Injury Bug hits Colorado
June 1st, 2014

W - 22 / L - 27 / GB - 9

The Rockies showed they are intent on not letting their playoff appearance last season go to waste as they made 3 surprise trades this month to shore up their pitching.

May 1st Trade - The Rockies made 2 trades to start the month, the first was a blockbuster trade that sent 24 year old minor league SP Taylor Jungmann (1-1 3.71 ERA in AAA) #99 overall prospect 21 year old minor league SS Trevor Story (.302 avg in AAA) and 27 year old SP Juan Nicasio (0-2 15.32 ERA this season) to the Miami Marlins. In return the Rockies received one of the top young arms in the majors in SP Jose Fernandez. Fernandez at the time of the trade was 2-0 with a 2.10 ERA for the Marlins, he has not been quite as good in Colorado but may just need to adjust to Coors. Fernandez will not be arbitration eligible until possibly next season and is paid the league minimum until then.

May 1st trade #2 - The second trade made that same day sent 33 year old RP Matt Belisle (8.1 IP 5.40 ERA) to the San Francisco Giants. The Rockies received 25 year old minor league RP Heath Hembree. Hembree was immediately moved to the major league team and has pitched 11.1 innings so far with a 3.18 ERA.

May 14th trade - The third trade made in May for the Rockies was once again for pitching. Colorado sent 17 year old international prospect C German Carmona and 26 year old SP Jhoulys Chacin to the Atlanta Braves. Chacin has struggled this season going 0-3 in 7 starts with a 6.87 ERA. In return the Rockies received another good young pitcher in 27 year old SP Brandon Beachy who was 5-2 in Atlanta with a 2.12 ERA and has been even better in Colorado going 2-1 so far with a 1.35 ERA. Beachy is scheduled to make $32,500,000 over the next 4 seasons.

It was a good start to May for the Rockies as they won 7 in a row against division rivals Arizona and San Francisco before injuries started to hit them hard. They lost RF Michael Cuddyer (4 Weeks), 2B Kolten Wong (6 weeks) and LF Carlos Gonzalez (5 weeks). Kyle Parker and Tim Wheeler were promoted to help fill in the outfield and 2B Matt Wessinger filled in the backup role at 2B while Reid Brignac got the starting nod.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - SS Troy Tulowitzki - .294/.373/.441 3 HR 17 RBI
MLB Pitcher - RP Sean Burnett - 12.2 IP 0.71 ERA 1.11 WHIP

AAA Hitter - 1B Ben Paulsen - .337/.389/.663 10 HR 23 RBI
AAA Pitcher - RP Mike McClendon - 16.0 IP 2.25 ERA 1.19 WHIP

AA Hitter - RF Julian Yan - .300/.359/.667 12 HR 33 RBI
AA Pitcher - SP Christian Bergman - 3-1 2.11 ERA 0.96 WHIP

[bombboy85]

2014 First Year Players Draft
June 6th, 2014

Round 1 - The Rockies made an expensive pick with their first pick as they picked CF Jose Soto. Soto is 22 years old out of Wichita State, KS and is expected to have a fairly high signing bonus demand but he is considered by many to be already almost major league ready. He projects as a great leadoff hitter, he may not hit for many home runs but he is very patient at the plate and is a speed demon on the base paths. He can play any outfield position and even has experience at 3B and 2B. His last season in 47 games hit .324/.456/.453 with 6 HR 40 RBI and 36 Stolen Bases. If he ends up as the future in Center for Colorado it could mean they need to find a place for or move Dexter Fowler and top prospect David Dahl.

Round 2 - The second pick of the day for the Rockies was SP Jim Collins who is 21 years old out of Miami University. He went 9-3 with a 2.88 ERA his last season.

Round 3 - The third pick of the draft for Colorado was SP Bill Moore, he is 20 years old and pitched this season at Eastern Illinois university going 8-4 with a 2.96 ERA. He projects as a middle to end of rotation starter.

Round 4 - SP Lonnie Daniels is 19 years old out of Abbeville Christian Academy in Alabama. He will likely end up being a bullpen arm unless he can develop more pitches. He went 9-1 with a 1.33 ERA in his senior year.

Round 5 - SP Octavio Jimenez is 19 years old out of Oakley, Utah and is another likely bullpen arm. He could make the majors but needs to fill out his frame and gain some velocity as his pitches include a fastball and slider but his velocity is currently in the high 80's.

[bombboy85]

Just getting by
July 1st, 2014

W - 36 / L - 41 / GB - 9.5

It was a slightly better month for the Rockies as they finished 14-14 in the month and made a couple small changes in the lineup to attempt to kickstart their offense. Last season they were #1 in most offensive categories and this year they are more towards the middle of the pack. CF Dexter Fowler who has hit just .195 this season has lost his starting job to Rookie Tim Wheeler who in a bench role has hit .277/.367/.489 with 6 HR and 24 RBI. As well 1B Todd Helton who started off the year hitting very well has tailed off a bit as he approaches 41 years old, to take some pressure off of him they have called up 1B Ryan Wheeler to play for Helton every couple of games. Wheeler was hitting .301/.418/.557 with 16 HR and 48 RBI in AAA this season. As the trade deadline approaches expect the Rockies to make a couple of moves to continue to shore up their pitching as both SP Jorge De La Rosa and Felix Doubront have been quite unspectacular this year.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - C Wilin Rosario - .302/.346/.688 10 HR 32 RBI
MLB Pitcher - SP Brandon Beachy - 5-0 2.04 ERA 1.06 WHIP

AAA Hitter - 2B Wilmer Flores - .371/.477/.551 4 HR 10 RBI
AAA Pitcher - SP Josh Outman - 5-0 2.32 ERA 1.08 WHIP

AA Hitter - CF Delta Cleary Jr. - .333/.421/.452 1 HR 6 RBI
AA Pitcher - RP Bruce Kern - 15.1 IP 1.17 ERA 0.98 WHIP

[bombboy85]

The stretch run
August 1st, 2014

W - 49 / L - 54 / GB - 13

It may not be the end of the season yet for many teams but for the Rockies at 5 games under .500 it is time to step up or go home. The team went 13-14 in the month of July although on a good note they did send 2 players to the All-Star game, SP Brandon Beachy (12-5 2.51 ERA) and C Wilin Rosario (.323/.355/.573 22 HR 74 RBI). The team also got a few players back from the DL including 2B Kolten Wong, LF Carlos Gonzalez and Closer Rafael Betancourt. Carlos Gonzalez finished the month on the DL again though for 2 weeks with a lat strain, he has only played in 69 of the team 103 games this season and they need him as he is hitting .309.

The team made 2 trades before the deadline to infuse more talent into their team

Trade #1 - During the all-star break the team traded 2B Kolten Wong (.245 4 HR 24 RBI), SP Felix Doubront (2-11 5.64 ERA) and minor league 3B Samuel Mende to the Kansas City Royals. In return they got rookie SP Ryan Verdugo who was 8-3 with a 2.58 ERA for the Royals this season and selected to the All-Star game.

Trade #2 - The team said goodbye to one of the local favorites and frustrations in CF Dexter Fowler (.190 2 HR 25 RBI) as well as 26 year old minor league SP Edwar Cabrera to the Toronto Blue Jays. In return they got 23 year old minor league RP Marcus Stroman who was a top 100 prospect this year and also got RP Aaron Loup who has pitched 90 innings for Toronto the last 2 years with a 3.02 ERA.

To replaced Wong at 2B Wilmer Flores was recalled from AAA and Fowler had already lost his starting spot to Tim Wheeler.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - SS Troy Tulowitzki - .380/.422/.657 8 HR 20 RBI
MLB Pitcher - SP Jorge De La Rosa - 3-1 1.57 ERA 0.87 WHIP

AAA Hitter - RF Jorge Soler - .371/.419/.598 5 HR 21 RBI
AAA Pitcher - SP Josh Outman - 3-1 2.89 ERA 1.34 WHIP

AA Hitter - LF Rafael Ortega - .325/.401/.492 2 HR 24 RBI
AA Pitcher - RP Tyler Gagnon - 12.2 IP 1.42 ERA 0.95 WHIP

[bombboy85]

Closing In
September 1st, 2014

W - 67 / L - 62 / GB 8.5

Something clicked with the Colorado Rockies in the month of August as they went 18-8 to gain a little bit of ground in the division and wild card. Maybe it was Rookie of the Month 2B Wilmer Flores who came in and hit .385/.383/.625 with 5 HR and 19 RBI in his first month in the big leagues. Or it was the return of LF Carlos Gonzalez who has been great when not on the DL this season, in August he hit .342/.377/.740 with 8 HR and 20 RBI. RF Michael Cuddyer has made it tough for any young outfield talent to get a shot as in a contract year he has hit .328/.390/.594 with 19 HR and 66 RBI.

Whatever it was that sparked this winning month it is the month ahead that the Rockies must do well through to make it into October baseball. They currently sit behind the Dodgers and Diamondbacks in the NL West and this entire month minus 3 games is games against NL West foes including 6 games against AZ and 7 against LA.

Top Team Performances

MLB Hitter - RF Michael Cuddyer - .345/.402/.473 5 HR 22 RBI
MLB Pitcher - RP Rex Brothers - 17.1 IP 1.56 ERA 0.98 WHIP

AAA Hitter - 1B Ben Paulsen - .434/.496/.736 8 HR 23 RBI
AAA Pitcher - RP Joe Gardner - 11.1 IP 0.00 ERA 1.06 WHIP

AA Hitter - RF Jaron Shepherd - .346/.458/.551 3 HR 15 RBI
AA Pitcher - RP Bruce Kern - 19.2 IP 0.46 ERA 0.66 WHIP