After qualifying for the postseason in back-to-back seasons, for the first time in franchise history, Bud Black returned as the Colorado Rockies manager after signing a three-year extension that would last until the 2022 season. Colorado looked to make their third straight appearance in the postseason during the 2019 season, but the team collapsed by bad pitching, inconsistent offense and injuries in the second half of the season. They entered the final weekend with 91 losses, sitting at the bottom of the National League West basement.
20 games below .500 was not only worse than what the Rockies performed just a season ago but their biggest drop-off in franchise history. This Rockies team simply could not contend with their division rivals, or against some of their other NL foes. It’s just crazy how ten seasons prior, the Rockies had their biggest improvement in franchise history winning 18-plus games. Now it’s come full circle.
The 2019 Rockies Season Saw a Different Path
Offseason/In-Season Moves
Colorado went out and signed second baseman Daniel Murphy. The three-time all-star and 2015 NLCS MVP was on the tail end of his career at this point. The Rockies also went and traded Mike Tauchman to the New York Yankees for Phillip Diehl, who went on to play just three seasons in the majors. Colorado also released Mark Reynolds, Mike Dunn, and Chris Iannetta. They also released Seunghwan Oh, whose cutter on average was the slowest pitch in the MLB at 82 miles per hour.
The Rockies did sign Yonder Alonso, who in the year before hit over 20 home runs. In 54 games with the Rockies, and 121 in total, Alonso had just 10, and that would go on to be his final major league season.
Bad Play Against Nearly Every Team
The Rockies got off to a rough start going 3-12 out of the gate, the worst in club history. Early on in the season, they didn’t hit. But in May and June, the bats were starting to come to life and Colorado was winning games. That all changed in July when they reverted back to their ways from the start of the season. The Rockies went 6-19 in July, their worst calender month in franchise history. It was the final nail in the coffin for any chance at another postseason run.
Here’s how the Rockies fared against their division foes that season:
Los Angeles Dodgers- 4-15
San Francisco Giants- 7-12
Arizona Diamondbacks- 10-9
San Diego Padres- 11-8
Bad Pitching All-Around
There was confidence going in that Colorado would continue to pitch at the rate they did the last couple of years. However, at the height of their slide was awful pitching, the worst since before Colorado installed the humidor in 2002. After posting a 4.33 ERA in 2018, the 2019 staff dropped the ball, big time, posting a 5.61 ERA. Two pitchers in particular, Kyle Freeland had a crude 6.73 ERA. It was frustrating for the left-hander considering how well he pitched the previous season, with a 17-7 record and a 2.85 ERA, the lowest full-season ERA in team history.
Right-hander Wade Davis, who led the NL with 43 saves in 2019, got worse as the season went along. Davis ultimately lost his job as the closer and posted an 8.68 ERA. Veteran relievers Jake McGee and Bryan Shaw were just as bad. Essentially, Colorado’s pitching became a revolving door. The Rockies began the season with Germán Márquez, Jon Gray, Tyler Anderson and Chad Bettis as their rotation. Marquez ended up with right arm inflammation, Gray broke his foot, and both Anderson and Bettis ended up having surgery. They took their chances on Antonio Senzatela, Jeff Hoffman, Chi Chi Gonzalez and rookie Peter Lambert.
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