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Game #79: Maxwell M. Scherzer vs. Jorge Alberto (Gonzalez) de la Rosa
by Rox Girl
on Jul 3, 2009 4:57 PM MDT
in Game Thread
193 comments
M.M..S.
vs.
J.A.(G.)d.l.R.
I think we win the battle of best looking starting pitcher initials....
I think we win the battle of best record...
I think we win the battle of the best starting lineup...
Let's win the battle on the field tonight!
Go Rockies!
193 comments | 0 recs
Jorge Arangure Tweets: Rosmel Herrera to Rockies for $550,000
Herrera's pretty much been tied to the Rockies all along. Most scouting reports indicate he'll move to the outfield eventually, but he's got a bat that can play there.
about 4 hours ago
Rox Girl
3 comments
0 recs
Might these sorry looking snakes sport hidden venom?
by Poseidon's Fist
on Jul 3, 2009 11:00 AM MDT
in Know Your Foe
11 comments
Coors Field has hosted the least number of games in MLB this year. Finally, the boys are coming home. After having a winning road trip on a treacherous 9-game run through California, Colorado now has a soft 10-game homestand against Arizona, Washington and Atlanta. A strong 7-3 mark at Coors should be the goal at least, and that could set the Rox atop the wild card standings heading into the All-Star Break.
The Rockies opened 2009 with a satisfying series win on the road against the Arizona Diamondbacks, picked by many to be the NL West Champions this season. That series seems a little bit less impressive now, as the Diamondbacks sit just a game up on Cleveland for the second worst record in the league. As I briefed Monday, their season has gone nowhere near expected. I'm personally blaming the inhumane negative karma AZSnakePit hastily bought early in the season. Again. And again. And again. (Warning: Disturbing images precede).
Because quite frankly, Arizona can't be this bad. True, they have the fifth worst run differential in the league, so they are pretty bad. But like the Rockies, a managerial change has helped. Seriously. The only difference is the shift is mless dramatic and more importantly has not translated to the W column for Arizona as it has for our Rox.
The Diamondbacks just came off of a miserable 9-17 June, winning only one series. They have lost 10 of 12. It looks really bad. However, a closer inspection brings pause. As Jim McLennan at the Pit points out, Arizona was outscored by only four runs in June under AJ Hinch, and nearly every team statistic improved from Bob Melvin's 9-13 April. They were 2-6 in one-run June games, then went out and lost consecutive one-run affairs to Cincinnati to open July. In fact, six of their last eight losses have been by one run, pushing their season record to 10-15 in onesies, the 15 losses being an MLB most.
Other than their one-run woes slightly skewing their record, also beware of their strange home/road splits. The D-Backs are 13 games below .500 at Chase Field, but are nearly a .500 team (4 games below) on the road. Perhaps their young hitters falter in front of their dissatisfied fans. Also note we draw Max Scherzer and Dan Haren in the series, easily their top two starters.
To be clear, Arizona is a legitimately bad team, and the Rockies are clearly head and shoulders above them. Just recognize this team has a lot more talent than its record, and this could be a trap series.
This will be the first time Arizona visits Coors Field. The series April 20-22 originally scheduled for Coors Field was swapped out with Chase, so this will be the first of three consecutive series at Coors between the two clubs.
As already noted, AZ Snakepit is the Diamondbacks' SBNation blog. Go haze the hibernating DBacksSkins. And don't worry, they've retired the act of threatening cute animals.
Arizona Diamondbacks (31-48, L2, 5th)
Friday-Sunday: 3-game series at Coors Field
The Bats: D-
Diamondbacks have struck out 623 times in 2009, good for 2nd MLB, which is probably not surprising on a team that features Khris Young and Special K. That contributes to a .245 average, worse than every MLB club other than Oakland or San Diego. League -verage slugging brings thweir wOBA to 22nd at .317 (think Ian Stewart) - this despite playing in possibly the best offensive parks in MLB. Chase Field has a one year 108 park factor, just higher than its 107 multi-year rating. Bad offensive numbers in a launching pad. Yeah, that's bad.
They have scratched out 341 runs, 19th in the majors, though they've managed only two runs and six hits in their last two games. Their Fangraphs hitting value puts them at -41.9 runs, fifth worst in the majors.
| LINEUP | Avg | HR | RBI | OBP | SLG | wOBA |
| Felipe Lopez -2B | .304 | 4 | 16 | .358 | .413 | .341 |
| Stephen Drew- SS | .248 | 5 | 31 | .309 | .399 | .303 |
| Justin Upton -RF | .315 | 14 | 45 | .394 | .568 | .416 |
| Mark Reynolds - 3B | .270 | 21 | 56 | .357 | .554 | .392 |
| Gerardo Parra - LF | .261 | 3 | 24 | .302 | .400 | .295 |
| Chris Young - CF | .195 | 6 | 18 | .278 | .364 | .291 |
| Miguel Montero - C | .252 | 4 | 16 | .339 | .381 | .318 |
| Chad Tracy -1B | .202 | 4 | 17 | .265 | .370 | .270 |
By wOBA metrics, the lineup features one strong super stud star (Upton), one strong All-Star (Reynolds), one above average hitter (Lopez), two below average (Montero and Drew), and three flat out terrible hitters (Parra, Young, and Tracy). Tracy has done nothing since the opening series, and Lopez used all his power Opening Day. Parra is new in LF, filling in for Eric Byrnes who broke his hand but was terrible anyway in replacing the ill Conor Jackson, who was also ridiculously bad.
Luke Carlin (0-5) is the backup catcher with Chris Snyder on the shelf. He may start tonight against lefty Jorge de la Rosa. Alex Romero (.273, 0, 0) is the lone backup OF, while IF's Tony Clark (.200, 4, 10), Ryan Roberts (.255, 0, 5) and Augie Ojeda (.234, 1, 10) fill out the bench.
Hop after the jump for the scouting report on the arms, the D, the pitching matchups and the hot/cold players.
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Friday Pebble Report: Franklin Morales solid, maybe, Chaz Roe and Drillers pen spectacular, and other teams and players did stuff
by Rox Girl
on Jul 3, 2009 10:20 AM MDT
in Pebble Report
1 comment
One big note on the PCL this season to remember: Offenses are mostly terrible. When John Bowker is the leading vote getter for the All-Star game, you have to figure something's up. Basically it's a lower class of AAAA player that seems to be roaming about. You don't have Terry Tiffee or Micah Hoffpauir or several of the other big threats that pitchers had to face last season. As a result, scoring's off almost half a run a game and it's likely that the Sky Sox themselves have the best collection of AAAA hitters this season with Murton and Ortmeier and McCoy and what have you. So basically what I'm saying is that we get reports of pitchers doing relatively well there, and I just don't know how far to trust them. This goes for Sky Sox pitchers as well as those of opponents.
Enter Franklin Morales, who pitched 5.1 innings last night allowing two runs, both off solo home runs, on six hits while striking out five and walking two. Howie Kendrick didn't hit either of those HR's and he's the big legitimate threat on the Salt Lake roster. So Morales gave up the big knocks to light hitting infield scrubs. He allowed other traffic but worked through it. He did limit Kendrick to relatively weak contact, three GB's, one which found a hole for a single, but I just don't know if I'm signing off on this being a good start for Frankie. Really, I know some people are eager to replace JDLR with him, but look carefully please before making that decision.
A pretty decent hitting infield scrub, and part of that premium AAAA collection we have down there, Mark Bellhorn, hit two home runs himself for the Sky Sox.
Chaz Roe was limited to 75 pitches, and got through five innings with them, allowing just two hits, two walks and he struck out six. In three starts since returning from the disabled list on June 19, Roe has pitched 15 scoreless innings allowing 14 hits with an 11/2 K/BB ratio. While lucky to some degree in that stretch, he's definitely looking like the pitcher we've long been waiting for. Let's stay cautiously optimistic and see where he goes from here.
Cole Garner's solo HR (7th on the season) in the second provided all the scoring that was needed, but Anthony Jackson, who went three for three with a walk, added one more in the sixth. Four Drillers relievers added an inning apiece in the shutout, as Edgmer Escalona picked up his first save by pitching a scoreless ninth. His five scoreless innings since his call-up from Modesto isn't quite as impressive as Roe, but nice to see nonetheless.
Hector Gomez would be one of those other players that did stuff, some serious stuff, and if I was picky about my SEO, I'd have been wise to try and figure out a way to get his name in the title, but sometimes I just get rebellious. A little, I mean I did put Morales and Roe's name there after all.
At any rate, Gomez had another great game going four for five and leading the Nuts to a comeback victory over Bakersfield. Down seven to five in the seventh, he doubled home Rhadames Nazario and later scored the tying run on a double steal breaking for home from third after the Blaze catcher committed to trying to stop Lars Davis from nabbing second. He doubled again to lead off the ninth and scored the winning run on a two out Davis walk-off single. I believe that's the second walk-off hit this year for Davis, he's becoming quite the master of clutch out there. You'll also note from the ModBee recap that he's great with fans.
Parker Frazier picked up the loss to drop to 4-6 on the season, but it was a deep, somewhat encouraging start from him. He went six and two thirds, allowing seven hits and a pair of walks as well as the four runs. Jordan Pacheco, Kiel Roling and Ryan Peisel each had two hits, but most of the other Tourists were cold at the plate.
Sometimes lately it seems like the Dust-Devils are just toying with their opponents, allowing them to get ahead just far enough to feel good about themselves before smacking them back down to reality. Or maybe they're looking for a challenge, like "let's be trailing by three runs in the bottom of the ninth and see if we can score four off this team's closer..."
A Bo Bowman two run single in the bottom of the ninth capped off the four run rally for the D-Devils that saw them also score on an HBP and have a batter reach via error, so just so you know I'm kidding about thinking they actually might have planned this.., I think. Orlando Sandoval hit a two run home run early to put them in the position to rally, and the relief efforts Josh Hungerman, Eric Federico and Rod Scurry kept them in the game after a rough start by Brad McAtee. Ooh, I just remembered that there was a Josh Hungerman article I was meaning to link last month when he signed. I can't remember if I did or not.
Other D-Devils news:
The recap of Wednesday's game at the Tri-City Herald talks to Mashin' Mike Zuanich, as well as mentioning that Scott Beerer's still out with a hip flexor issue.
There's also an article about pitcher Dan Perkins at Delaware Online, who among other things noted apparently pitched against current Dust Devils roommate Rhett Ballard while attending Delaware State.
Casper: Postponed
1 comment | 0 recs
Friday Rockpile: Rockies return to Denver for much needed 10-game homestand
by Russ
on Jul 3, 2009 7:58 AM MDT
in Rockpile
15 comments
Rox have comfortable schedule coming | ColoradoRockies.com: News
The Rockies return to Coors Field for some extended playing time.
Tracy's demeanor key to Rockies' turnaround - The Denver Post
Look at the photo for this article. It's funny.
Rockies bullish on new bullpen - The Denver Post
The turnaround for this bullpen has help stabilized the team, especially with how Jim Tracy has handled his use of it.
Barmes, Tulowitzki making harmony in middle of defense - The Denver Post
Now that Clint Barmes and Tulo are receiving regular playing time together, the up-the-middle defense is clicking well.
Inside the Colorado Rockies " Morales or De La Rosa? Who’s No. 5?
Get out your pencils and be prepared to mark your answer for this one question Scantron test Tracy Ringolsby wants you to take on the De La Rosa-Morales quandary.
Ken Rosenthal's ASG Rosters - - FOX Sports on MSN
In his latest All-Star game projections, Ken Rosenthal has Chris Iannetta as the second catcher on the NL team and Brad Hawpe as part of the starting outfield. Jason Marquis and Huston Street miss out, as well as Troy Tulowitzki because a Cub needs to be on the roster.
Baseball America Prospects Blog " Chapman Reportedly Leaves Cuban Team
Probably won't hear about the Rockies being involved with this guy.
15 comments
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BtB - Jason Hammel finds control with Rockies
Tommy Rancel writes that Jason Hammel's success with the Rockies looks legit right now.
1 day ago
Rox Girl
10 comments
0 recs
WAR Lords of the Diamond (First Basemen)
by Jabberwocky
on Jul 2, 2009 11:00 AM MDT
in Purple Row Academy
18 comments
After a relatively depressing look at the "best" catchers in Rockies history, my next focus is the Rockies' first base position. First base is a position that is near and dear to my heart, having played it during high school, and it is one from which a MLB club expects to receive a large chunk of its offense. On that account, the Rockies have done quite well for themselves--what they lack in quality, they more than make up for in quality.
Indeed, the Rockies have only a pair of first basemen in their history that have started over 100 games at the position--that would be Todd Helton (1690) and Andres Galarraga (677). But what a pair! I'll discuss just how good each was after the jump.
Once again, here's my methodology in ranking players by WAR:
1. I only used stats accumulated in seasons in which they mostly played for the Rockies.
2. The categories used were: career with Rockies, best three consecutive years with Rockies (establishes average production), and best single year with the Rockies (establishes peak production).
3. If the players spent less than five (or three) years with the Rockies, their career total was used in the other metrics as well. If the player was at different positions for different years, the player would be considered for the position in which he had the most starts (or greatest impact, at my discretion) for the Rockies.
4. The players were ranked in each category. Those ranks were added and averaged out--the lowest average rank was the most valuable Rockie.
5. The data used was only for seasons that were completed (e.g. not 2009).
Once again, I used Sean Smith's career WAR database to gather data for this article. Here's my primer on what WAR is and how it is calculated.
18 comments
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Rockies trade Jeff Baker to Cubs for minor league pitcher Alberto Alburquerque
by Rox Girl
on Jul 2, 2009 10:25 AM MDT
in Miscellaneous
45 comments
According to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago, the Rockies have sent infielder Jeff Baker to the Chicago Cubs for 23 year old RHP Alberto Alburquerque. Baker's been a stalwart on the bench for the Rockies the last few seasons, but had his playing time cut with the emergence of Ian Stewart. The Cubs have been searching for some offensive pop to revive a moribund offense until Aramis Ramirez returns from the disabled list and Baker fits the bill. The Rockies had to make a move with Baker with him set to come off the DL himself.
Not a lot is known about Alburquerque at this point, but he does generate high groundball rates (56% this season at high A Daytona) and some strikeouts, both of which will serve him well at Coors Field, should he make it to the Rockies.
Alburquerque's First Inning Page
I really hate spelling that name. Why couldn't we have traded for Lance Las Cruces, or Trudy Truth (and Consequences)?
Patrick Saunders confirms with Baker, who says he's looking forward to the opportunity.
UPDATE:
Cubs fan toonsterwu from BleedCubbieBlue provides a bit of scouting info on Alburquerque in the comments:
has a good live low-mid 90’s fastball, a solid slider I believe, and a decent change. His stuff has gotten better, and he’s improved his control a bit. While I think he’s a pen arm, I hope he gets a shot to try the rotation a bit, as I’m curious how it plays.
It looks like the fastball's a two seamer from the GB rates, so a low to mid 90's FB with a slider is a prototypical bullpen arm, and the kind of pitcher the Rockies have been targeting for some time now.
And Jack Etkin gives us more information:
Alburquerque, who is 6 feet and 180 pounds, has a plus, plus fastball. He'll sit at 95 mph with the pitch, which ranges from 92-97 mph and has good sinking action, runs in on right-handed hitters and has enough of a downhill plane.
And has an even more detailed scouting report at the link. This dispels the two seam notion I had before, because there's more than a semantic difference between "FB with sinking action and downhill plane" and "sinker".
45 comments
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NL West Standings
| W | L | PCT | GB | STRK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Los Angeles
|
50 | 29 | .632 | 0 | Won 1 |
|
San Francisco
|
42 | 36 | .538 | 7.5 | Lost 2 |
|
Colorado
|
41 | 37 | .525 | 8.5 | Lost 1 |
|
San Diego
|
34 | 44 | .435 | 15.5 | Lost 2 |
|
Arizona
|
31 | 48 | .392 | 19 | Lost 2 |
(updated 7.3.2009 at 3:56 PM MDT)
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