MLB Season Preview: Colorado Rockies

Colorado Rockies


Last Season's Standings: The Rockies went 76-86 last season and were .500 in their last ten games. They were dead last in the NL West Divison

In: RP Eric DuBose (prev. team: Baltimore Orioles); RP Mike Gallo (prev. team: Houston Astros); RP Danny Graves (prev. team: Cleveland Indians); RP LaTroy Hawkins (prev. team: Baltimore Orioles); SP Byung-Hyung Kim; 2B Kazuo Matsui; CF Willy Tavares (via trade w/ Houston Astros); SP Jason Hirsh (via trade w/ Houston Astros); SP Taylor Buchholz (via trade w/ Houston Astros)

Out: RP David Cortes (new team: SF Giants); RP Nate Field (new team: Florida Marlins); RP Justin Hampson (new team: San Diego Padres); RP Ray King (new team: Washington Nationals); RP Jose Mesa (new team: Detroit Tigers); RP Mike Venafro (new team: Minnesota Twins); SP Jason Jennings (via trade w/ Houston Astros); SP Miguel Asencio (via trade w/ Houston Astros)

Starting Pitching: Staff ace Aaron Cook will be looking to improve upon his abysmal 9-15 record and 4.23 ERA. These are not legitmate ace pitcher numbers and Cook knows it. He needs to at least pitch .500 ball and better if the Rockies expect to go anywhere next season. Canadian Jeff Francis is the second oitcher on this staff, assuming the Rockies don't acquire another pitcher before spring training either through free agency or a trade. Francis went a respectable 13-11 with a 4.15 ERA last season including a 2-hit shutout against the mighty St. Louis Cardinals. Coors Field is traditionally a hitters ballpark. The third pitcher on the Rockies depth chart is Josh Fogg. Fogg will be looking to equal or better his 11-9 record from last season. He needs to pitch into the 7th or better as much as pssible to save a bullpen that will be seeing a lot of innings next season. Byung-Hyun Kim will be forever known as the pitcher who almost cost the Arizona Diamondbacks the World Series. As a starter, he's not much better going 8-12 with a brutal 5.57 ERA. He needs to get better control of his pitches with his side-arm delivery. The fifth and final starter's spot will be a toss up between sophomore Taylor Buchholz and rookie Jason Hirsch. Expect Buchholz to get the nod unless Hirsch can really turn some heads with some solid spring training starts. More than likely Hirsch will start the year in Colorado Springs, with the AAA team.

Bullpen: Closer Brian Fuentes needs to get to the point where he can pitch consecutive days without having his performance suffer. He has good, hard stuff and it'll be utilized often this season. Expect him to make b/w 70-75 appearances, with around half being save opportunities. Southpaw Jeremy Affledt needs to make sure his command is there night in, night out, because he sure won't blow any hitters away with his velocity. Look for him to make his appearances against mostly left-handed batters in the later innings. He can also be used as an emergency starter for a few innings. Sophomore Ramon Ramirez is vying for a setup/middle relief role in the Rockies bullpen. He should stand a pretty good shot as he went 4-3 with a good 3.46 ERA last season in 67.1 innings. Manuel Corpas is looking to earn a spott as a middle reliever. He'll have to prove he's major-league ready. He'll likely start the year in Colorado Springs. Denny Bautista is likely penciled in as the Rockies middle-long reliever. He can do spot starts as well. Ubaldo Jiminez will likely start in Colorado Springs as well, and is looking for a long reliever spot in the Rockies 'pen. Finally, veteran reliever LaTroy Hawkins is all but certain to be spotted somewhere in the Rockies bullpen, likely as a setup man.

Catcher: The catching situation in Colorado could be interesting as the guy slated to be the #1 catcher has been a back-up his whole career. Yorvit Torrealba has only played 76 games in one season. He'll be playing at least 100 games. His endurance could be a question mark. Torrealba will hit 8th in the Rockies line-up. Backup Chris Iannetta has had all of 21 games of experience in the bigs, but he'll likely start the season in Colorado unless the Rockies sign another catcher. Look for third catcher Alvin Colina to be a September call-up.

1st Baseman: Todd Helton is the heart and soul of this team. If he's not in the line-up or in a slump, the Rockies have trouble scoring. Helton hit .302 and will need to equal or better that to keep these Rockies competitive. Helton will be the cleanup hitter. At this point, rookie Jeff Baker is the only player with experience at first base who can give Helton the odd day off. He'll be soaking it all in on the bench most games.

2nd Baseman: Jamey Carrol is another key part of the Rockies line-up. He's a decent performer and will likely hit 6th and be expected to drive in runs, which he struggles to do on a consistent basis. Carrol's back-up is Japanese bust Kazuo Matsui. There was a huge hype about him when he first came over from Japan 3 seasons ago, but it quickly became clear that the hype was all for naught as his average was bad, he strikes out too much and seems intimidated by the big-league game. He's now a back-up in Colorado and fighting to stay in the line-up consistently. 3rd backup Clint Brmes will likely play more at shortstop than at second base. He'll also pinch hit. Same with Matsui with pinch hitting.

Shortstop: Look for Troy Tulowitzki to get a good hard look, but he'll likely start the season as either the backup in Colorado Springs. Expect Barnes to get the bulk of the playing time at shortstop. Barnes would hit 5th in the line-up. Matsui and Carrol could also see some time at shortstop.

3rd Baseman: Garrett Atkins is the primary third baseman for the Rockies. He's not great in the field, but can contribute offensively and should hit 2nd in the line-up. Atkins has a strong arm. Backing him up are Baker, Carrol and Barmes with Baker likely getting the bulk of the work. Atkins should play about 145-155 games.

Left Fielder: Matt Holliday is yet another long-serving Rockie who put up career numbers in average, HR and RBI's. He'll be looking to aim that high again. He'll see plenty of hittable pitches with Helton in the on-deck circle. Look for Holliday to play about 150 games if he stays healthy. When Holliday's not in the line-up, Cory Sullivan will be in his place. Sullivan has the tools, but his stuff isn't good enough to be an everyday player unless there's an injury. Baker can also play Left field.

Center Fielder: Speedster Willie Tavares will patrol center field and bat lead-off. He's a real spark plug who could be a catalyst to the offense. His speed makes center field an ideal position for Tavares. Battling for the backup job will be Sullivan, Choo Freeman and rookie Jeff Salzaar, who will all but certainly start the year in Colorado Springs. Freeman will likely primaily pinch hit and play backup.

Right Fielder: Former Vancouver Canadian Brad Hawpe patrols Right field for the Rockies and should bat 2nd for the team. His defense is still a work of art and he needs towork on his AB's against southpaws. Other than that Hawpe should be an asset to this team and will see 135+ games. Backing him up will be Baker, sophomore Ryan Spilborghs and Freeman. Expect Spilborghs to start in Colorado Springs.

Season Prediction: I expect the Rockies to struggle offensively. Their pitching could be a big factor in how they perform. Look for this team to finish the '07 season in the basement of the NL West.