The Colorado Rockies had their ups and downs in the 2013 season. They started off as one of the hottest teams in baseball, going 13-4 in their first seventeen games, bringing high hopes to the city of Denver. The team looked as if it was going to make some noise in the MLB, but they just couldn’t pull it together. The one thing they were missing was depth. The Colorado Rockies were ranked 23rd in all of Major League Baseball in farm systems according to Keith Law, ESPN Writer. Certainly that’s unacceptable. The Rockies have been one of the worst franchises in the past 20 years of developing and scouting players, resulting in why the team has never won the World Series, or even a National League West championship.
Over the past thirteen-seasons, five of the Rockies first-round picks are in the MLB. Here is a look at what the Rockies have done with their first-round picks:
2000: RHP Matt Harrington never signed.
2001: Jayson Nix was selected by the Colorado Rockies. A career (.218) hitter is now a utility player for the New York Yankees that never panned out.
2002: Canadian left-hander Jeff Francis was selected. He has a career record of 70-78, with a 4.94 ERA. He was a key member of the 2007 World Series run however, but other than that, he has been an average to below-average starting pitcher. He is currently on the Colorado Rockies 40-man roster.
2003: The Rockies were high on third-baseman Ian Stewart. His highest batting average for a season was .259, but his strikeout rate was abysmal. Out of his 1421 at-bats, he struck out 442 times, 31% of the time. Although he was never a bad defender, his bat was always a big problem. He was released by the Chicago Cubs in June.
2004: Rockies selected shortstop converted to third baseman Chris Nelson. Started out the 2013 season batting .242 (16-66) with just three extra-base hits, and no home runs. He was traded to New York and after ten games was put on waivers. Los Angeles Angels then claimed him and he is currently on the Los Angeles Angels 40-man roster.
2005: Rockies selected shortstop Troy Tulowitzki. So far in his career, he is a 3-time all-star, 2-time Gold Glove winner, and 2-time Silver Slugger. In 2013, he hit .312, with 25 HR, 82 RBI despite only playing in 126 games. He is currently on the Colorado Rockies 40-man roster.
2006: Greg Reynolds was selected by the Rockies 2nd overall. He made 13 starts for the club in 08’, going 2-8 with an 8.13 ERA. In 2001, he got another chance, going 3-0 with a 6.19 ERA. But he never panned out into the dominating sinker-baller the Rockies hoped, was released by the club that year. He is currently on the Cincinnati Reds 40-man roster.
2007: Rockies selected Casey Weathers 8th overall, a relief pitcher. In the Minor Leagues, Weathers pitched in 163 games and went 8-7 with a 4.69 ERA. Weathers suffered a tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow and need Tommy John Surgery. Was signed by the Chicago Cubs, but never made the big-league roster. He is no longer playing baseball.
2008: The Rockies selected left-handed pitcher Christian Friedrich 25th overall. He made the club in 2012, starting 16 games going 5-8 with a 6.17 ERA. Suffered a back injury during the season, and started the 2013 season in Triple-AAA. He is currently on the 60-Day DL, for the Colorado Spring Sky Sox.
Enough with the draft, you get my point. Rockies management has been terrible evaluating and developing talent. That’s where the fear with this team lies; depth, depth, and more depth. At one point during the season, Dexter Fowler, Troy Tulowitzki, and Carlos Gonzalez all got hurt in the same game, and they were still competing in the National League West standings, sitting at 35-32. Would the Rockies management make a trade to help the club while their star players were out? The answer is no.
The players who were called up looking to fill the void for the injured stars were Tyler Colvin, and Josh Rutledge. Colvin had a spectacular 12’ season, batting .290 with 18 homeruns and 72 runs batted in. He didn’t make the big league roster after spring training, the Rockies saw something they didn’t like, and well, they made the right choice. Colvin ended up batting .160, (12-78) with three homeruns, and his on-base percentage was .192. That wasn’t going to get the job done.
Josh Rutledge on the other hand, was a journey-man throughout the season for the Rockies and their Triple-AAA affiliate Colorado Spring Sky Sox. Rutledge was a September call up in 12’ hitting .274, 8 HR, 37 RBI. He hit a whopping .213 in April and was sent down in May, and called back up in June. He finished the 2013 season hitting .235, with 7 homeruns and 35 runs batted in.
The team from June 14th and on went 40-56, finishing the season at 74-88. Although it was a ten-game improvement from 2012, but it was a recurring theme. They were a ball club that continually dealt with injuries, having no impulse to make a trade to acquire depth.
On the bright side, the Rockies have two promising pitchers who can help fill a void for the pitching staff that was surprisingly strong this past season. Jonathan Gray, a 2013 first-round draft pick, 2nd overall was brilliant in Single-A Modesto. He went 4-0, with a 0.75 ERA, striking-out 36 batters in 24.0 innings pitched. Gray is the type of pitcher the Rockies have been missing since Ubaldo Jimenez. Eddie Butler on the other hand, had quite the season at Double-AA Tulsa. He started six-games, went 1-0 with a 0.65 ERA in 27.1 innings pitched. If these two can join the club somewhere by June next year, the Rockies, yes the Rockies, will have one of the top pitching rotations in the NL and that’s if they of course pan-out.
The Rockies, however, seem to have their set-up men figured out next year. Adam Ottavino and Chad Bettis, and have Rex Brothers slotted in the closer role. Matt Belisle also has a $4.25 million option for next season, but I don’t expect the team to pick that up. They need to fill the hole of Rockies legend Todd Helton. Helton said goodbye after 17-seasons; putting up hall-of-fame numbers, batting .316, 369 home runs, 1406 runs batted in. It will be hard to replace Todd, he was a consistent major league hitter and saved runs game in and game out with his brilliant defense. The idea is to move Michael Cuddyer in from right-field to take over first-base. Rockies coach Walt Weiss did say the team will be aggressive this off-season in pursuit of a starter, a relief pitcher, and a outfield power hitter.
The bottom line is the Rockies management needs to make a trade to solidify their ball club. I’m not necessarily saying they should trade Troy Tulowitzki or Carlos Gonzalez, but if their 2014 season is a dud, they might have to look into that. They have a talented, promising roster; the only things they need to do is stay healthy and have the depth necessary to respond to injuries if they come about.
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