So with one big chunk of the Rockies local coverage taking a hit this week, some Rox fans might be left to wonder what they can read to fill that void, that now dark and absent spot that Jack Etkin and Tracy Ringolsby, as well as their editors and support staff, so ably filled for so long. The short answer is that they can't, as bloggers we'll only manage to give amateur knock-offs of a professional product. Nevertheless, here are some suggested alternatives for a few specific rolls these writers fulfilled:

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On the beat:

Inside the Humidor and Rockpile Rant are in Tucson as we speak; we'll see who's able to keep up with the gruelling challenge of daily blogging during the season. Emily from I Live for This has already found the need for a break, which kind of bums me out since I'm just becoming aware of her work. Another pair of Rockies MLBlogs that we'll be watching are View from the Rockpile and Blogging with an Altitude (I believe this is Rowbot rockie4ever's blog). The latter would win my Rockies Blogger of the Week Award for her Hello Spring Training, Goodbye Rocky post. Very well done, madam.

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Jack Etkin's Minor League reports:

Purple Row will continue providing top notch blogging of our minor leaguers, I plan on converting my weekly Rockies Farm Report post from the RMN into a midweek post here starting in March. As usual, we will also have our daily Pebble Reports during the season, and Russ' great in-depth draft analysis. But besides the Row, be sure to check out these other blogs that will keep you updated with what's happening with our minor leaguers. If you know of other blogs specific to Rockies minor leaguers or their teams, be sure to let me know, by the way.

Up in the Rockies - Tom and Drew both sometimes offer their insightful thoughts and analysis on our minor leaguers.

Brian VanderBeek's Inside the Shell - Modesto Bee's beat reporter for the Nuts shares all sorts of interesting stuff you don't find in the game recaps.

On Base with the Asheville Tourists - Ditto Jason McGill of the Asheville Citizen Times

The Road to the Rockies begins in the Blue Ridge

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Tough thugs with sunglasses

One of the biggest troubles with losing the Cowboy is that we're going to need to find somebody that can annoy Diamondbacks fans as much as he could. So maybe some of these Rockies bloggers can help step up into the roll of goading the Snakes. At least they show that they can look mean:

via baseballsnatcher.mlblogs.com

via rockymountainway.mlblogs.com

Yeah, that's what I'm talking about, classic looks. Happy Belated Birthday to Rocky Mountain Way blogger Tom Walsh.

One more, but she may be more of a wannabe:

via cdn2.sbnation.com

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But what about the cowboy hat?

Alright, that's the Rowbot assignment for this week, find me a Rockies blogger with a cowboy hat, because that part of replacing Ringolsby should at least be doable, I would think. Good luck, and go Rockies!