Lame Quote of the Day

April 7, 2012 - "Twenty years ago, in the Rockies' first home game, dad Eric Young Sr. provided a moment that lives in snapshots forever." by Troy E. Renck (in this case, the "E" is for error) in the Denver Post. The Eric Young Sr. moment occured on April 9th, 1993. You do the math. This may be the Rockies' 20th season, but that day was still less than 19 years ago.

Rockies Win First Game of 2012

April 6, 2012. Eric Young Jr. scored the winning run on an errant throw from Astros' catcher Jason Castro as the Rockies moved to 1-0 on the 2012 season. Colorado is now 12-8 on opening days with a 818-947 (.463) record and one playoff appearance when starting the season with a win. Conversely, the 8 times they have fallen in the opener, their record is 620-632 (.495) with two playoff appearances (2007 and 2009) including their only trip to the World Series in 2007. (Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com)

It Looks Like 2012 Will Be Another Year of Disappointment for Rockies Fans

2011 Major League Baseball Playoffs Ex-Rockies Factor

There are scant few ex-Rockies in the playoffs this year and they are evenly distributed between the teams, but, as it has gone for almost a decade, it will be an accurate predictor of the outcome of the playoffs. Actually, it may make the Baseball Observer work a little harder in order to determine the rules in play and the actual percentage of Rockies-ness held by each player. So, since there are two matchups where each team has two ex-Rockies (Phillies-Cardinals, Brewers-Diamondbacks) the degree of Rockiesness, which equals the actual time spent on the Colorado team must be used to weight the matchup, although it is apparently only applicable when an XR is in the same role with his new team as he was with the Rocks. Those teams with no ex-Rockies players, namely the Yankees and Tigers, must be rated on coaches, so one would think that the Yankees would clearly win because Joe Girardi spent several years on the team while Jim Leyland was only in Denver for 1 (2005). However, it turns out that Girardi was a catcher with the Rockies, and is now a manager with the Yankees, so his years of service clearly did not weigh into the decision, as the Tigers won.

For ease in viewing the inevitable results, the Baseball Observer has concocted a rating system, whereby an ex-Rockie is awarded one point for being an active participant in the playoffs, or a half point for being on the roster, but inactive. An additional tenth of a point is awarded for each year of service. In the case of the manager, a full point is awarded for being an ex-Rockies manager in the playoffs, along with a tenth of a point for each year. A manager participating in the playoffs who is an ex-Rockies player, but did not manager the Rockies, gets a point for managing, but no credit for years of service.  

Division Championship Series

Texas (2.5) beats Tampa Bay (1.1)

Detroit (1.1) beats New York (1.0)

St. Louis (2.6) beats Philadelphia (2.2)

Milwaukee (2.3) beats Arizona (1.7)

League Championship Series

Texas (2.5) beats Detroit (1.1)

St. Louis (2.6) beats Milwaukee (2.3)

World Series

St. Louis (2.6) beats Texas (2.5)

What's Next For The 2012 Rockies?

After the second disappointing year in a row (and 18th of 19), what can loyal fans of the Rockies expect in the future? We can expect more of the same, because the Monfort brothers are unwilling and incapable of doing any better. Yes fans, your team owners are running your team more as a pleasant diversion, a hobby if you will, rather than a serious enterprise. They just want to keep it going, making as much money as possible and avoiding using any of their personal funds, so they can enjoy it until they die, then can pass it on to their kids for their amusement. The only time Colorado went to the World Series was a total fluke, ended quickly by a serious team, the Boston Red Sox. You see, Boston, like most other baseball teams, is owned and run by professional sports managers who intend to use all of their resources to win or know the reason why. On the other hand, our Rockies are just a fun pastime for a couple of accidental millionaires who made their money the old fashioned way - by inheriting it. They got control of the Rockies the old fashioned way, too - through political hijinks and criminal activity by others. The Monforts benefitted from the illegal activities of one of the original owners, Mickey "Mouse" Monus. After Mr. Monus’ problems became public, in order to keep the franchise in Colorado somebody whose reputation was at least not totally sullied had to step forward and take his place in the ownership group. Thus, the Monforts and Jerry McMorris were recruited and practically given the team because they weren't convicted criminals and appeared to have a lot of money. Jerry later had his own financial problems and was rousted by the Monforts who took total control over the team in 2005 - the rest is history. Dick and Charlie Monfort have been very consistent in the way they operate the Rockies. They might tell you they are following the “Moneyball” blueprint made famous by Billy Bean and immortalized in the book and movie. “Moneyball” is based on using scientific and statistical methods to devise a playing strategy and then getting players that fit into that system. “Moneyball” was successful for the Oakland A’s, and later for other teams using the same philosophy, mainly because it involved getting players that other teams using conventional scouting methods were not recruiting, making those players cheaper and more effective. The Rockies are not using the “Moneyball” philosophy, which is obvious from their draft record, coaching decisions, and style of play. The Monfort brothers are outspoken proponents of developing talent through their farm system only because it is cheaper. If you look at the trades they have made, notably the most recent blockbuster involving Ubaldo Jimenez, they are usually dumps of highly paid stars, with questionable players in return. For years they have stuck with Dan O’Dowd as the General Manager in spite of his lack of performance. They only seem to hire mediocre (Tracy, Bell) or totally inexperienced (Baylor, Hurdle) managers, with the notable exception of Jim Leyland who has had spectacular success everywhere else he has been. Makes you wonder what the brothers did to make sure he did not succeed in Colorado, doesn’t it? The Baseball Observer even suspects that the Monforts only put the humidor in to save money on lost baseballs on homeruns by the Blake Street Bombers. If the fans had a vote, they would probably want to junk the ball moisturizer and go back to the days when the Rockies were unbeatable at home and thrilling to watch. How many times these days do you hear a spontaneous, deafening roar of “GO! Rockies!” as you did in the early years at Mile High Stadium and Coors Field? If the Monforts have any interest in building a championship team, they would send Tracy and his coaches packing, fire O’Dowd, get some experienced executives, hire Tony Reagins (recent Los Angeles Angels GM) and get Terry Francona or Ryne Sandberg to manage the team. To pay the extra salaries, they should quit giving Coors/Miller a free ride and sell the naming rights to the stadium to someone who is willing to pay for them. Maybe Sports Authority would like their name on two stadiums, particularly if they know that ownership is willing to commit to winning after all of these years by hiring some good people.

Opening Day 2011 - Bright Start, Foul Finish
The weather was perfect, and hopes were high when the Rocks raced out to a 3-1 lead, only to fall behind 6-3. Then, thanks to some clown-like throwing errors by Arizona, the game was tied at 6-6 and the fans were high again. It all came crashing down in the thirteeth after Arizona scored and some Putz closed the Rockies out 1-2-3. Well, there is always tomorrow.

On Saturday, April 2, the fool's joke was over, as the Rockies, behind Jorge De La Rosa slammed the door on the desert visitors, 3-1.

April 3, 2011. The Rockies and DiamondBacks were snowed out!