What to Watch For

What to Watch For

                This season has been a difficult one to watch for many Rockies fans. For the Majority of the season they have looked like they are as far away from being competitive in the NL West as they have ever been. However, they have the talent offensively; they will just need to harness some of the bullpen issues, which have cost them multiple games throughout the year. The calendar is about to turn to September, which means, the Rockies fans will be able to get a firsthand look at the future of the Rockies as they expand the roster to 40. The Rockies faithful will be pleasantly surprised by some of the talent they have waiting in the minor leagues and we will get a look at the future of the pitching staff as they will most likely call up Jonathan Gray from AA Tulsa in order to get his feet wet at the Major League Level.

                First, let’s look at a few newer names that were called up a couple of days ago. Christian Friedrich made his return to the majors on the 27^th and will most likely get a look in the bullpen and see if that is going to be a role that he can succeed in moving forward in the future. He has struggled this year at the AAA level with the Sky Sox as he has posted an ERA of 7.00 and has an abysmal record of 2-9. He has split time in the bullpen and the starting rotation, but has been unable to regain the talent which he displayed at Eastern Kentucky university which ultimately made him a first round draft choice back in 2008. The 27 year old will need to show something in the last month in order to remain with the Rockies Organization moving past this year. The other name that was called up was catching prospect Jackson Williams. Williams was also called up on the 27^th and made his Major League debut on the same day. He ultimately wound up going 1 for 2 with a walk and a strikeout. Williams was a former first round selection of the Giants and played within their minor league system up until this year, when the Rockies signed him to be a backup catcher at the AAA level. He is a solid player, but like most catchers, he leaves something to be desired with the bat. Solid all-around player, and will be looking at this next month as an audition for next year as he tries to remain employed as a professional baseball player.

                When the Rockies expand the roster, they will ultimately be looking for help for their beleaguered pitching staff. That help could come from Kraig Sitton, the tall left handed reliever who spent this year at the AA level with the Drillers. He put up solid numbers this year with the Drillers as he had a 3.68 ERA over 48 appearances on the year. Those 48 appearances stretched over 66 innings while he walked just 24 and struck out 43. He does not have over powering stuff on the mound, but can work the edge of the zone and get a lot of weak pop ups and grounders. Other arms that you will probably see in September would be Jon Gray and Eddie Butler. Gray is currently on the 7 day DL, but could be called up to make his debut on the mound later on in the month. It has been an up and down year for Gray as he has either been really good, or really bad, and has struggled to find the middle ground between the two. On the year he is 10-5 with a 3.94 ERA. In just over 124 innings of work, he has struck out 113 batters while walking 41. All around decent numbers for a sophomore campaign, but he was looking to dominate this year, in hopes of making an impact at the Major League Level. Butler too has had an up and down year. He made his Major League debut with the Rockies earlier in the year, but did not fare well in his short stint with the team. He made a spot start in June and was roughed up allowing six runs in 5 1/3^rd innings of work. He will be looking to bounce back and prove that he belongs in the Majors. Combined on the year, he had a 6-10 record with a 3.99 ERA. He showed good command of the zone as he walked only 37 in over 117 innings of work. Butler pitched with Modesto, Colorado Springs, Tulsa, and with the Rockies this year, so he has seen a majority of hitters and talent levels and has had to make a lot of adjustments to his game throughout the year. Look for Gray and Butler to be in the running to make the team out of camp next year and could easily be a #1 and #2 starters in the very near future.

                Offensively, the future is bright as the Rockies farm system is chalked full of talent in the infield and outfield. Players like Correlle Prime, Christian Adames, Rosell Herrera, Kyle Parker, Trevor Story and David Dahl. When you talk about the future, these players will be a huge part of it as long as they continue to develop the talent that they have displayed this far in their professional careers. Correlle Prime broke onto the scene this year with Asheville as he hit .288 with 21 homeruns and 100 RBI through 126 games. David Dahl had a .302 average with 10 homeruns and 41 RBI also for Asheville. Both Dahl and Prime are only 20 years old. Adames had a sip of coffee at the Major League level earlier in June as he played in one game before being sent back to the minors. Combined on the year he hit .291 with three homeruns, and 52 RBI. Rosell Herrera has had a down year this year and has been battling injuries throughout. In limited action he has a combined .244 average with four homeruns, and 23 RBI for high A Modesto. Kyle Parker also saw limited time at the Major League level this year, but ultimately spent the majority of the year at the AAA level. On the year he hit .286 with 15 homeruns and 72 RBI. He is a typical corner outfielder in the fact that he has good power and can hit for a decent average. Does not possess great speed, but the former college quarterback at Clemson has a cannon from the outfield. Trevor Story is a name that you will want to familiarize yourself with right now. He has mountains of talent and if he can harness it sooner rather than later, then you may see the Rockies start to listen to some offers on prized shortstop Troy Tulowitzki. Combined on the year, he had a .265 average with 14 homeruns, 48 RBI, 22 stolen bases, eight triples, and 26 doubles. As you can see by the stats, the sky is the limit for this 21 year old, as long as he can learn to become more patient at the plate and start taking pitches the other way. He has struggled with strikeout in his young career and this year fanned 140 times in 454 plate appearances, which is much too high. Should he rein this part of his game in, then he could grow into one of the best players in the game of baseball. You will most likely not see the majority of the players mentioned here in September, with the exception of Adames and Parker as they are already on the 40 man roster and could find themselves on the team by the weeks end.

As you can see, the future shows signs of hope despite the rough season that we are enduring this season. If nothing else, then at least the last month of the season will give you the chance to become familiar with some new faces, and say bon voyage to some others, because when spring training rolls around next year, this team is going to look very different.    

New Year, New Hope

   Unlike winters past, the Colorado Rockies made some moves that could prove fruitful heading into the 2014 season. They did not make any big splashes in the free agent market, but added some much needed depth at starting pitcher and bullpen. The front office is hoping that the moves they made are going to make them competitive against the competition in the National League West against the money pit in Los Angeles, the Diamondbacks, Giants and Padres. The Rockies are hoping to become the Cinderella story in 2014, and regain the LODO magic that they had in 2007 and 2009. They have something that they have not had in a while in options on the mound. This could be the deepest pitching staff that the Rockies have ever had. It is a clean slate and the Rockies are ready to get back to business and shake things up around Major League Baseball.

     They say you can never have enough pitching, and the Rockies took that advice to heart during the winter as they made moves to bolster their bullpen and starting rotation. The biggest need heading into the off-season was the lack of decent arms coming out of the bullpen. Last year the Rockies blew too many games to count in which they had a lead heading into the seventh inning. This was evidenced early in the season when newly acquired reliever Wilton Lopez blew a lead in the 8th inning against the Brewers in the opening series of the year. Unfortunately this was a trend for Lopez throughout the year. Even Matt Belisle had a down year which may be attributed to the amount of appearances and innings that he has accumulated over the course of the last three seasons. The first signing for the Rockies in the off-season was of veteran right handed pitcher and former Rockies pitcher Latroy Hawkins. The well traveled 41 year old will begin his second stint with the Rockies and will look to add stability to the back end of the bullpen. In 2013 Hawkins had one of his best years at the Major League level. Pitching for the Mets he compiled a 2.93 ERA spanning over 72 games. He struck out 55 and walked only 10. Next the Rockies signed former Yankees left hander Boone Logan. The 6'5" 215 lb 29 year old has made his name as a left handed specialist in the American League. Over the last four years he has stifled hitters in the AL East. In 2013 he posted a 3.23 ERA over 61 appearances. The Rockies will have a bonafide left handed specialist this year which will be a vital tool for success throughout the year. The Rockies will also be welcoming back Franklin Morales who was traded to the Rockies along with minor league pitcher Chris Martin. 27 year old Martin could be a key piece to the trade as he has put up some great numbers throughout the last couple of years and could easily fit into the bullpen with the Rockies this year. Another talented pitching acquisition for the Rockies was the signing of Brett Anderson. Anderson was a top pitching prospect for the Oakland A's but has been plagued by injuries in the last couple of years. He threw 175 innings in his rookie season in 2009 and then 112 in his second year with the team, but has failed to throw more than 83 innings in a year since then. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2011 and was out of baseball rehabbing for 13 months. After his return he pitched in six games before being placed on the DL again with an oblique strain. He missed time last season after being diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right foot. The good news is that he has not battled any arm issues since the Tommy John surgery but he has been unable to stay healthy for an extended amount of time. He looked good in the spring for the Rockies as he threw 22 innings and had a 3.27 ERA over five appearances. He struck out 11 and walked only two. He will be the Rockies number two starter coming out of camp because of the injury to Jhoulys Chacin. Anderson was aquired by the Rockies in a trade that sent Drew Pomeranz to the A's. His fastball works in the low 90's and he mixes in a curve slider and a change. Should he be able to stay healthy then he has a chance to be a very good pitcher for the Rockies this year.

Latroy Hawkins
By: ESPN

Boone Logan
By:ESPN

Brett Anderson
By: ESPN       

    The Rockies also added depth to their already talented outfield. The Rockies made a move to acquire Brandon Barnes from the Houston Astros and then acquired Drew Stubbs from the Cleveland Indians. Brandon Barnes is a high energy player who gives everything that he has every time that he takes the field. He may not be the most talented of players, but he makes up for it with the way that he plays the game. So often in the game today you will see players who could care less about the game and would much rather pull up and let a ball drop in the outfield as opposed to laying out and making the effort. Barnes, who came over i in the Dexter Fowler trade, hit .240 last year for the Astros with eight homeruns and 41 RBI. He will not be a player that will produce much offensively, but he will be the spark plug that the Rockies have desperately needed that will provide a boost to the players around him whenever he is inserted into the lineup. Barnes may struggle to find playing time this year because as of right now he is the fifth or sixth outfielder on the team. If he struggles during Spring Training then he may be headed back the minor leagues for more development. Drew Stubbs is an interesting player that the Rockies have taken a chance on. When he was a prospect with the Reds, there was a lot of hype surrounding his game. He has a power and speed combination was something that is rare to find, but he has struggled to make contact at the plate and that has made him expendable by his former teams. His struggles at the plate have kept him off the base paths and eliminated his speed from the game. His power is still evident, but his batting average has seen a steady decline since he hit .255 in his first full season at the Major League level, and that has cost him playing time throughout the last couple of years. He looked good in the spring and has earned the nod heading into Opening Day to be the center fielder for the Rockies.

Drew Stubbs
By: ESPN

Brandon Barnes
By: ESPN

  


 







     
     The Rockies Opening Day roster was announced yesterday and to the surprise of many people the Rockies have decided to stick with six outfielders on the roster and only have five infielders. Josh Rutledge was the biggest name to be sent down with the announcement but will surely be up at some point throughout the year to provide depth at second and short. The depth on the mound will be tested early on in the year as Jhoulys Chacin will begin the year on the DL, and Franklin Morales will take a role as the fifth starter for the Rockies. Tyler Chatwood will also be in question for the start of the year after he pulled up with a tight hamstring in his final outing of the Spring. Fortunately for the Rockies they are the deepest they have ever been and will be able to weather the storm of some of the injuries that have cost them seasons in the past.

     The Rockies are about 24 hours from beginning a season that could turn out to be one of the most successful seasons in their history. Can the Rockies defeat the demons that have plagued them in the past and ultimately take their game to the next level? Only time will tell. The quest for the west begins in Miami tomorrow night!

Rockies Look to Bounce Back Against Dodgers

     The Rockies lost in a good old fashioned shootout at Coors Field yesterday afternoon by the final score of 10-8. Jeff Manship took the loss for the Rockies, while Clayton Kershaw collected his 14th victory of the season despite giving up a season high in runs. The Rockies offense had a great start tot he series as they finished the game with 8 runs on 18 hits. Wilin Rosario hit his 21st home run of the season and seven of the eight starting position players had multiple hits in the game.

     Tonight the Rockies are handing the ball off to the capable hands of Jhoulys Chacin as he takes on the talented Dodgers lineup looking for his 14th victory of the season. On the year Chacin has a 13-7 record with a very good 3.08 ERA in 26 starts on the season. He was outstanding during his last start against the Giants as he took a no hitter into the seventh inning. He finished the game going seven innings allowing jst one hit, one run (no earned runs), issued two walks and struck out nine in the game. The nine strikeouts tied a season high which he also did in a game against the Astros at the end of May. Chacin is 8-3 at home this year with a 3.71 ERA in 15 games started. This will be his fourth start this year against the Dodgers and he will be trying to remain perfect against them. He has not pitched great against them but is 2-0 this year with a 5.09 ERA in his three previous starts against them. Current Dodgers have hit Chacin fairly well in their career matchups as they have a .323 average with six home runs and 24 RBI in 164 combined at bats. Chacin will catch a break today as Yasiel Puig will be out of the lineup after he strained his right knee in the game yesterday. Chacin will need to be careful with the Dodgers lineup even with Puig out of the lineup. They are clearly a determined team and that scares pitchers.

     The Dodgers will give the ball to Ricky Nolasco who will be trying to tame the streaky Rockies offense. Nolasco was traded to the Dodgers from the Marlins on July 6th, and he has been a contributing factor to the recent success of the team. On the year he is 11-9 with a 3.26 ERA in 28 games started. He is starting to find his groove and in his last two starts he has gone a combined 16 innings allowing only 5 hits and no runs. He has won his last five decisions and has only one loss since joining the Dodgers in July. That one loss came at the hands of the Rockies who beat him on his first start at Dodger Stadium. In that game he lasted only five innings giving up eight hits, three runs, three walks and only struck out four. Other than that he has been perfect for the Dodgers staff. Current Rockies have done well against Nolasco in their career matchups as they have a .328 average with four home runs and 17 RBI in 116 combined at bats. He is not excited to face Michael Cuddyer, Todd Helton or Troy Tulowitzki tonight. Cuddyer is 6 for 10 with two home runs and six RBI, Todd Helton is 8 for 18 against him, and Tulowitzki is 6 for 15 with one home run, and three RBI. Hopefully those three will be able to cause some havoc in the game tonight as well.

     The Dodgers lineup for the game tonight is as follows:
1. Carl Crawford, LF
2. Nick Punto, SS
3. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
4. Michael Young, 3B
5. Andre Ethier, CF
6. Mark Ellis, 2B
7. Skip Schumaker, RF
8. Tim Federowicz, C
9. Ricky Nolasco, P

     The Rockies lineup for the game tonight is as follows:
1. Dexter Fowler, CF
2. DJ LeMahieu, 2B
3. Troy Tulowitzki, SS
4. Michael Cuddyer, RF
5. Wilin Rosario, C
6. Todd Helton, 1B
7. Nolan Arenado, 3B
8. Charlie Blackmon, LF
9. Jhoulys Chacin, P  

     First pitch for the game tonight is scheduled for 6:40 PM Mountain time. The Rockies look to get back on track tonight and continue to break out offensively. The Dodgers will be trying to get above .500 against divisional opponents as they currently have a 27-27 record against the NL West teams. They are the only division leader to not have a winning record against teams in their division. Carlos Gonzalez was scratched from his rehab start last night with a flare up of his finger. Gonzalez said he was still going to try and come back this year, but he will need some more rest before attempting a comeback.

Rockies Lose in Shootout at Coors Field

     It was a rough start for the potential Cy Young winner in the National League but he finally got some much needed run support from his offense and was able to sneak away with the victory by a score of 10-8. The Rockies were able to get to Kershaw early on in the game as they put up three runs in the first inning to take the lead away from the Dodgers who had put up one run in the top of the inning. The Dodgers got one run back in the third inning on an AJ Ellis RBI single which scored Andre Ethier and made the score 3-2 in favor of the Rockies. The Dodgers took the lead in the fifth inning when they scored three which was highlighted by a two RBI single from Clayton Kershaw. The Rockies immediately answered back in the bottom of the fifth with two runs and tied the game at five. The Dodgers scored three more times in the sixth inning which came in part from a Andre Ethier two run home run deep to right field off of Jeff Manship which pushed their lead to 8-5. The score remained that way until the bottom of the eighth inning when the Rockies scored twice to make it an 8-7 game. Matt Belisle was not able to keep the score a one run game when he came on in the ninth inning. Belisle gave up two more runs to the Dodgers in the ninth and the lead was back up to three heading to the bottom of the ninth. Wilin Rosario led off the ninth inning with a solo home run to right field but that was all the Rockies could muster and lost the game by a final score of 10-8. Clayton Kershaw picked up his 14th victory of the season despite giving up a season high in earned runs with five over five innings of work. Jeff Manship took the loss and is now 0-5 on the year. Kenley Jansen came in and locked down his 25th save of the season.

     It was a rough start for Bettis again as he struggled to get outs in the first inning and faced seven batters. He was able to dance out of danger a bit and only allow one run in the inning however. He finished the game going 4 2/3rd innings allowing eight hits, five runs, four walks, and struck out four in the game. It took him 104 pitches and he didnt even make it the full five innings. He was dancing around the zone too much and the Dodgers hitters were waiting him out. He saw a lot of deep counts which also caused the elevated pitch count. Jeff Manship relieved Bettis and did not fair much better as he went 1 1/3rd innings allowing three hits and three runs (two earned). That does not count the two runs that he allowed which he inherited from Bettis when he relieved him in the fifth. A bright spot for the pitching staff today was Jeff Francis. Francis came in and worked the seventh and eighth innings and was fantastic as he did not allow any hitters to reach base and struck out four. Matt Belisle pitched the ninth inning and failed to hold the Rockies within one run as he gave up four hits and two runs.

     Offensively the Rockies did very well as they scored eight runs on 18 hits. Every Rockies position player had at least one hit and seven of the eight had multiple hits. The top five in the lineup, Rutledge, LeMahieu, Cuddyer, Rosario, Arenado, all had two hits and scored at least one run, and LeMahieu was the only one that did not have an RBI out of the five. Charlie Blackmon had three hits on the day but grounded out to end the day for the Rockies. It was a questionable move by Walt Weiss when Jordan Pacheco walked to bring the tying run to the plate and he left Charlie Blackmon in to hit and kept Todd Helton and Troy Tulowitzki on the bench. Blackmon has been swinging the bat well but he does not have the experience that Tulowitzki or Helton have at the end of games. It was a tough call for Weiss to make and he chose to stay with Blackmon and it did not pay off for him.

     The Rockies and Dodgers will be back in action tomorrow night for game two of their three game series. Jhoulys Chacin will be tkaing on Ricky Nolasco. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 PM Mountain time.

Rockies Begin Series With Dodgers

     The Rockies are flying high after their win yesterday afternoon in which they secured the series victory over the Reds and also watched Todd Helton secure his 2,500th hit with a double down the left field line. The offense exploded in the series as they scored 19 runs on 36 hits in the three game series with the Reds. They will need to get their heads on right and be prepared for the upcoming series with the Dodgers as they have had a historic second half run and are coming off of a three game sweep against the cellar dwelling Padres. Yasiel Puig sparked the Dodgers and they turned a close race for the National League West division into a runaway. They now lead the division by 11.5 games over the Diamondbacks and are 17 games ahead of the Rockies. At one point in the second half, the Dodgers rolled off one of the best 50 game records anyone has ever seen as they went 42-8 during the stretch. They finally have it clicking and will be one of the favorites to win the World Series when the playoffs come around.

     The Rockies will be sending Chad Bettis to the mound this afternoon and he will be looking to end his long winless stretch and finally get his first Major League victory. On the year Bettis is 0-3 with a 4.80 ERA in his six starts on the year. He took the loss in his last start against the Giants when he lasted six innings allowing, nine hits, four runs, issued one walks and struck out two. He has been rather unimpressive during his time with the Rockies and has failed to make a good impression which would make him a factor for the Rockies rotation in 2014. He has made two starts at home this year and is 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA. In both of those starts he was able to last six innings but gave up six runs combined and has walked five in those 12 innings of work. Bettis will need to be sure that he gets ahead of the hitters in the game this afternoon and does not leave anything over the middle half of the plate especially against the middle half of the lineup. The Dodgers are a strong offensive team that got stronger at the end of the waiver trade deadline as they acquired Michael Young from the Phillies. He is not a strikeout pitcher so he needs to have better control than he has shown so far this season.

     The Dodgers will be sending one of the most dominant pitchers in all of baseball to the mound this afternoon in Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw has had a fantastic year for the Dodgers even though his win/loss record would say something different. On the year he is 13-8 with a stellar 1.72 ERA over 28 games started on the year. He took the loss in his last start against the Cubs when he went 5 2/3rd innings, allowing seven hits, two runs (one earned run), issued one walk, and struck out nine batters. Once again he pitched decent in the game but did not receive any run support in the game from his offense and was saddled with the loss. That has happened more this year for him which is why he has a high loss total of eight. On the road this year he owns a 6-3 record with a 1.91 ERA in 13 games started. He has faced off against the Rockies three times this year and has a 1-1 record with a 2.35 ERA. In those games he has gone for 23 innings allowing only 18 hits and six earned runs, while walking just three batters and striking out 23. On July 2nd, Kershaw threw a complete game, four hit shutout against the Rockies at Coors Field. Current Rockies hitters are hitting .250 against Kershaw with five home runs and 20 RBI in 244 combined at bats. Dexter Fowler has had the most success against him as he owns a .421 average with two doubles and a triple. Kershaw should be the National League recipient of the Cy Young Award as he currently leads the league in innings pitched (204), strike outs (197), ERA (1.72), and WHIP (0.88). There is no question that this will be a tough matchup for the Rockies today, but they have beaten him in the past and they will look to do it again.

     The Dodgers lineup for the game today is as follows:
1. Carl Crawford, LF
2. Yasiel Puig, RF
3. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
4. Hanley Ramirez, SS
5. Andre Ethier, CF
6. Mark Ellis, 2B
7. AJ Ellis, C
8. Juan Uribe, 3B
9. Clayton Kershaw, P

     The Rockies lineup for the game this afternoon is as follows:
1. Josh Rutledge, SS
2. DJ LeMahieu, 2B
3. Michael Cuddyer, RF
4. Wilin Rosario, C
5. Nolan Arenado, 3B
6. Charlie Culberson, LF
7. Jordan Pacheco, 1B
8. Charlie Blackmon, CF
9. Chad Bettis, P

     First pitch for the game today is scheduled for 2:10 PM Mountain time. The Rockies will be looking to continue their good season against NL West opponents and get a good start to this series in hopes of getting their fourth consecutive series victory. The Rockies will be trying to draw up a blueprint of how to beat the Dodgers that other teams will copy going down the stretch and into the playoffs. Josh Rutledge makes his return to the team today as he starts at shortstop to give Troy Tulowitzki a breather. The Rockies went with a right handed heavy lineup in hopes of giving them a better shot at getting to Kershaw early on in the game.  

Todd Helton: The Face of Rockies Baseball

 

(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

   
     It was a vintage Todd Helton at bat in the seventh inning of the game today against the Reds. He battled to work the count full against Reds pitcher Curtis Partch, and then on the full count pitch Todd Helton became just the 96th player in Major League baseball to reach  2,500 career hits. He laced the full count offering down the left field line and raced around first and headed for second base just like he had done 583 times before. He made it into second safely on a close play, and recorded his 584th double in his career. It was very fitting that his 2,500th hit was a double as he has made a career of doing just that. The crowd at Coors Field embraced the moment and gave Todd Helton a very deserving standing ovation. They all recognize that it is a rare accomplishment to reach the milestone. Todd Helton acknowledged the fans around by tipping his cap to the crowd and then looked up and waved to his family in the stands. Todd Helton is a stand up guy and has been the face of the Rockies franchise for 17 years and counting. He has left his mark on this franchise, Major League Baseball, and the entire state of Colorado.

(Photo by David Zalubowski/AP Photo)

     The Rockies used their first round pick (8th overall) in the 1995 draft to select the two sport star from the the University of Tennessee. He wasted no time making a good impression in his first full year in the minor leagues in 1996. Combined over AA and AAA, Helton hit .336 with nine home runs, 28 doubles, and 64 RBI in just 114 games. Helton also impressed with his plate discipline as he walked 62 times and struck out only 49 times. He worked hard in the off season and that work payed off in 1997. He began the season at AAA and was magnificent during the year. He hit .352 with 31 doubles, 16 home runs, and 88 RBI in just 99 games. His work in AAA earned him a late season call-up for the Rockies and he began what has turned out to be one of the all-time best careers for a first baseman in Major League Baseball history.

(Photo from utsports.com)

     Helton Made his debut for the Rockies on August 2nd, 1997 against the Pirates. He started the game in left field and wasted no time in getting his first Major League hit and RBI. He finished the game 2 for 4 with his first Major League home run. In limited duties in 1997 he finished the season with a .280 batting average with five home runs and 11 RBI. He did not get enough at bats to lose his rookie status so he was officially a rookie in 1998 and had a fantastic rookie campaign. Andres Galarraga moved on from the Rockies so Todd Helton began the year as the starting first baseman. On the year he hit .315 with 37 doubles, 25 home runs, and 97 RBI. He finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting behind Cubs phenom Kerry Wood. There was no sophomore slump in 1999 for Helton as he hit .320 with 39 doubles, 35 home runs and 113 RBI. In 2000 Helton broke out in a big way which sparked a five year run that would be hard to put up in a video game. In 2000 he hit .372 with 59 doubles, 42 home runs, and 147 RBI. He led the league in hits, doubles, RBI, batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS and total bases. Despite all of that, he was discredited for playing most of his games at altitude and finished 5th in MVP voting, behind players who had much less impressive offensive seasons. He was selected to his first of five straight All Star Games and earned his first of four straight Silver Slugger awards. He has struggled with injuries in the last five years of his career, but when all is said and done he will own just about every Rockies offensive record.

                                           (2001)                                   (Getty Images)                                      (2013)

     Todd Helton has had an amazing career for the Rockies and even though his time may be coming to a close, he still is able to impact the team as an emotional leader on and off of the field. Through today, Helton has played in 2,226 games. He has had 9,362 plate appearances, 7.879 official at bats, scored 1,389 runs, has 2,500 hits, 584 doubles, 37 triples, 365 home runs, 1,393 RBI, has 37 stolen bases and has a career average of .317. His career on base percentage is .415, and a slugging percentage of .540. For those of you into Saber Metrics, here are some stats for you. His walk percentage is 14.2% compared to his strikeout percentage which is just 12.3%. His wRC (runs created) is 1,753, His wRAA (runs above average) throughout his career is 610.8, his wOBA (weighted on base average) is .406, and his wRC+ (runs per plate appearance, 100 is average) is 132. Helton has a .331 career BABIP (batting average for balls in play) and his career OPS is .955. Some more stats on Todd is that he has hit 1,687 ground balls, 1,854 fly balls, 1,188 line drives, 119 infield fly balls, 62 infield hits, and two bunt base hits. He has taken 11,456 balls, and seen 16,024 strikes for a total of 27,480 pitches seen in his career. If this is truly his last season playing baseball professionally then he can say that he was one of the best.

(Photo by ESPN)

     Todd Helton has been relatively underrated outside of the state of Colorado and has not received much of the attention that any other player would have got with similar numbers simply because he plays the majority of his games at Coors Field. Either way you look at it, Helton has put up Hall of Fame numbers and should be strongly considered for the Hall of Fame when he is eligible five years after he retires. He is a five time all star, four time Silver Slugger winner, and has three Gold Gloves sitting on his mantle as well. Right now he is 17th on the all time doubles list and is 38th in the all time extra base hits list. His offensive numbers should be worthy of his entry into the Hall but he also is one of the best defenders at first base in Major League history. He currently has the sixth best fielding percentage (.996) for any first baseman that has ever played the game. Todd Helton deserves the recognition for being one of the best there has ever been. He played the game the right way and more importantly to this generation, he did it clean. Pure talent and hard work led to his great career. Todd Helton truly is the face of Colorado Rockies baseball.

(Photo by Jack Dempsey/AP Photo)

       

Helton Notches 2,500 Career Hits, As Rockies Beat Reds

     Todd Helton belted a double down the left field line in the seventh inning of the game today to secure his 2,500th hit in his glorious career, and helped the Rockies secure a 7-4 victory over the Reds to finish out the series. It was fitting that Helton's 2,500th hit was a double as he has made a career of smacking doubles all over the park. The Rockies finished the series with a victory and secured their third straight series win. Tyler Chatwood started the game but had to leave in the third inning when he tried to handle a line drive back up the middle with his bare hand. Word from the Rockies staff was that he left the game with a bruised thumb on his throwing hand. The Rockies are happy to be playing at home as they have found their winning ways again and can perhaps play spoiler for some teams down the stretch.

     Tyler Chatwood cruised through the first two innings of the game but ran into trouble in the third. He gave up a single up the middle to the opposing pitcher Mike Leake. Chatwood tried to grab the ball with his bare hand and it glanced off of his thumb and into center field. The training staff came out to look at him but he convinced them that he was okay and stayed in the game. He gave up a two run home run to the next batter in Shin-Soo Choo and then walked the next two hitters which forced Walt Weiss to go to the bullpen early. Adam Ottavino came on in relief and pitched well in the game as he went three innings allowing just three hits and one walk. He got the victory in the game and is now 1-2 on the year with a 2.79 ERA on the season. Four other pitchers worked the last four innings for the Rockies to secure the win for the team.

     Offensively the Rockies had another great game as they scored seven runs on 12 hits and were able to get to the Reds starting pitcher Mike Leake early and often. The Rockies took the lead in the first inning when Michael Cuddyer doubled down the left field line to score Corey Dickerson. They added onto their lead in the second inning when Nolan Arenado took Leake deep to left to give the Rockies a 3-0 advantage. After the Reds tied the game in the third inning, the Rockies responded by scoring four runs in the fifth inning, which gave them the lead for good. The inning was highlighted by a DJ LeMahieu double that scored two runs and a Michael Cuddyer double to score LeMahieu. Arenado added a sacrifice fly to give the Rockies a 6-2 lead. Michael Cuddyer led off the seventh inning with a solo home run which set the mood for Todd Helton to follow that with his double to get into the history books with 2,500 career hits. Cuddyer finished the day 4 for 4 and was a triple shy of the cycle. Corey Dickerson added three hits in the game and DJ LeMahieu had two hits on the day.

      Yasiel Puig and the rest of the Dodgers are coming into town next and will begin a three game series against the Rockies tomorrow afternoon with first pitch scheduled for 2:10 PM Mountain time. The Rockies have a tough matchup to start the series as Chad Bettis will be facing off against Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw is having a marvelous year for the Dodgers and should be a shoe in for the National League Cy Young Award. Bettis is 0-3 on the year with a 4.80 ERA and Kershaw is 13-8 with a stellar 1.72 ERA. The Rockies are looking to prove that they still have some fight in them this year and will not roll over for anyone.