Dodgers 7, Rockies 1: Rox done in with a rough inning...again.
by Bryan Kilpatrick on May 26, 2009 10:11 PM MDT
in Rockies Game Wraps
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PrintNo matter the game or the opponent, the Colorado Rockies just cannot seem to get away from big innings or allowing massive amounts of runs with two outs. Tonight was no different, as a three-run double by Casey Blake in the top of the fifth inning off of Aaron Cook gave the Dodgers a 4-0 lead, and they never looked back.
Cook (3-2) was in quite a rhythm after a rough first inning, crafting his way through the Dodger lineup and inducing ground out after ground out. However, a mixture of poor control and poor umpiring got him into trouble in the fifth, and Blake made him pay for it by ripping a double into deep left-center field, over the head of Matt Murton. Cook ended up pitching into the seventh, where he allowed another run after allowing consecutive hits by Juan Pierre and Orlando Hudson before departing in favor of Josh Fogg, who ended the inning with a strikeout and couple of ground balls. The next inning, Jason Grilli threw his second consecutive stinker, allowing two runs on three hits.
There was not a whole lot to be pumped about on the offensive side of things. Clint Barmes led off the bottom of the fifth with a leadoff home run (5) to cut the lead to three, but the Rox were unable to scratch across any runs after that, despite having a few opportunities. Seven different Rockies had one hit in the game (including Cook), but nobody had more than that. Granted, Eric Milton (1-0) pitched fairly well and the umpires possibly had blue-colored glasses (though as always, that's up for debate).
Defensively, well...Omar Quintanilla had a fantastic barehanded catch in the 9th!
Colorado (18-27...insert 2007 comparison here) will try to avoid the sweep tomorrow afternoon with Ubaldo Jimenez taking the mound against Clayton Kershaw. It should be a good matchup (I hope).
Roll Call: fantasyfencing, walkoff59, djmbluemoon, Brendan Scolari, WolfMarauder, NYCskibum, jrockies (leader with 147 posts), theoldgrizzlybear, holly96, Poseidon's Fist, Jabberwocky, ALrockies, MohrPlease, Charlie77, Chrysicat, Russ, Redhawk, Sandlotkid8, soulSD, Jester76, ejskater, wolf213, GoRoxGo, TuLoRocks2008, PinchHitLancePainter.
Thanks to everyone for stopping by and hanging out with us. Don't let the poor play on the field scare you away from the Row!
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Eh, it was a nice enough night for a game
We got some of those Monster Nachos and oh man
Made fun of Atkins and suggested that Captain Earthman is cryogenically frozen during road trips and defrosted for home stands.
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 26, 2009 11:16 PM MDT up reply actions
I was there and after the Dodgers got 3, I never felt we had a chance after that.
Some other observations as this was my first trip to Coors this year:
Sure were a lot of Dodger gear in evidence…
Announced crowd >25,000. If there were more than 15,000, I’m a lion tamer
Sat in left field stands during BP. Coors is starting to show her age. The seats in LF are in need of a big time painting.
Still not sure what was up when Hurdle made the pitching change and brought Q in to play 2nd. Thought it was a double switch but that was not the case.
This club is in serious need of a change and fast.
Baseball players are smarter than football players. How often do you see a baseball team penalized for too many men on the field?
Author: Jim Bouton
by pedalpusher on May 27, 2009 12:20 PM MDT up reply actions
So....
…at this point, the question really is:
Is this a good team that’s woefully underachieving, or just a bad team that’s playing the way bad teams typically play?
Or, to phrase it a another way, have fans (myself included) utterly overvalued the talent level on this team for the past 2 years?
I don't think "good team" can apply.
This Rockies team has talent. They have enough talent to be woefully underachieving. But is a team that is woefully underachieving a good team in any way? Not really.
Make no mistake; we’re a bad team with enough talent to be a good team. All the more sour it makes me.
by Greg Stanwood on May 26, 2009 10:23 PM MDT up reply actions
Make no mistake; we’re a bad team with enough talent to be a good team
As well put as I’ve heard
"I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein
by Andrew T. Fisher on May 26, 2009 11:02 PM MDT up reply actions
couldnt agree more
at first we couldnt win 1-run games.
now, we can’t minimize damage and get clutch outs.
good teams don’t have these problems. thats the difference.
if you're reading this, it means my undying support for your team will result in its failure.
by fantasyfencing on May 27, 2009 12:38 AM MDT up reply actions
I think that's what most people mean
when they buck and gnash about “Rockies are a bad team” – because we really shouldn’t be.
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 27, 2009 8:42 AM MDT up reply actions
It's a mediocre team that's woefully underachieving.
Does that sound fair enough? I mean, you’d have to be on some high-grade drugs to think this team should be contending for a pennant or anything, but there’s absolutely no way they should be this bad. They just sleepwalk through every game.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
by Franchise26 on May 26, 2009 10:24 PM MDT up reply actions
I tend to agree with that...
And it’s the realization that the talent level here isn’t really that special and that some individual players that I’d have sworn were on their way to great stardom may, in fact, just be run of the mill, makes this season so disillusioning.
I think there are special individual talents on this team
The aggregate, however, has been less than those talents for a variety of reasons: slow starts by some of those special players (Jimenez, Iannetta, Tulo, Stewart), the death of Garrett Atkins, the inability of anyone not named Huston Street to get people out consistently out of the bullpen. Most damning however is that lack of fire. I think if this team got a kick in the ass from somewhere it’s not inconcievable for them to play something like .500 ball. That’s about what they are in the long haul, a .500 team, maybe a little better with a break or two, maybe a little worse with a bad break or two.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
Its the old Parcells line
“you are what your record says you are.” Is this team capable of playing better? Sure, but so are most teams. Franchise has it right, though, we aren’t playing well…but we aren’t that special to begin with so this shouldn’t be surprising.
The fact is, we got caught in the spring fever trap everyone gets caught in, falling in love with unproven talent and looking past the chinks in the armor of aging veterans. I hate to again toot my own horn but this is simply not too surprising to me. Two straight years of losing talented guys and replacing them with nobody and why again should we expect to be better?
The fact is, spring fever and “prospects” and stat manipulation can always convince fans that the team is better than it is. But some folks are paid to get this stuff right, and those folks for the Rox are not getting it done (and have never really got it done). I don’t care what they do with Hurdle, but I want O’Dowd gone yesterday.
For the first time this season...
… I can say that watching a game made me feel physically ill.
I have a high tolerance for this. I’m not a gigantic sports fan, and I don’t take baseball as seriously as some of my peers here at PR do. I want thwe team to do well, and I like looking into why or why they are not.
But this made me physically uncomfortable, and for me, that’s a big, big negative. There were just about zero positives to this game. And to top it off, what makes it even moe frustrating than it has to be is that we know we are better than this. This is not a bad team in terms of talent. So why are we a bad team?
Consider me frustrated at the moment.
"I don’t take baseball as seriously as some of my peers here at PR do"
Even though Spring Training would be too intense ;-p
"I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein
by Andrew T. Fisher on May 26, 2009 11:03 PM MDT up reply actions
Spring Training wouldn't be too intense because of basbeall
It would be too intense because even the teensiest amount of travel stresses me the garbanzo beans out.
by Greg Stanwood on May 26, 2009 11:06 PM MDT up reply actions
Two questions:
1. Was anything more predictable than that double by Blake that broke the game open?
2. I don’t know that I’ve ever watched more games in a season where I’ve felt like we we the victims of some rather poor umpiring. Not that it would have made a huge difference, but try telling me with a straight face that Cook was throwing to the same strike zone as Milton tonight.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
Umpiring
I’m all for an electronic strike system. what should be a strike and what should be a ball are not jusgement calls — they’re right there in black and white in the rule book. We have the technology to make certain that every call is accurate and that certain pitchers and certain teams don’t get special treatment, we should use it.
Having said that, even if every possible call went the Rockies way this season, they’d still be in the cellar..
Electronic umpiring
is obvious to me, and I can’t understand the nonsense of purists who will die to maintain the ump’s right to make bad calls. But I suspect I’m in the minority here.
That said, as i sit here in LA, listening to every Lakerfan in the world whine endlessly about officiating, I can’t help but not care to hear Rox fans doing the same. Good players get calls, we don’t have that many. Fortune favors the aggressive, we play defensive. There’s really no reason to expect to get calls.
"Good players get calls"
This isn’t the NBA. The expectation is a consistent strike zone and all I’m noticing is that that hasn’t been the case in more Rockies games than I’m used to seeing. I’m not saying it’s costing the Rockies games, it’s just an observation.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
since when
is there an expectation of a consistent strike zone for all players? Stars always get benefits in baseball, just like other sports. Hell, certain pitchers built careers on getting pitches that others don’t get (Glavine). But I agree that its not costing games. Taking a lot of close strike 3s might be. Spilborgs going bananas over that “low” strike 3 last night was a good example. I’m a big fan, but he looks ridiculous arguing so much over a pitch that was very, very close.
I was in the CF bleachers at that point
but I was wondering about it, it looked at the knees (from all the way across the ballpark) but I’m wondering if the ump had been rewarding low all night and decided to not give it right at that point.
I don’t mind a K zone that isn’t perfect, and I don’t mind a weirdly shaped one. But I can’t stand it when strike for Milton isn’t strike for Cook, and ball for Ethier is strike for Spilborghs.
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 27, 2009 10:09 AM MDT up reply actions
if i may summarize the night in two images
ian stewart K’s on nothing
and cookie can’t get a call leads to huge runs
although i hope Q’s play gets into Web Gems…but I doubt it
if you're reading this, it means my undying support for your team will result in its failure.
by fantasyfencing on May 26, 2009 10:41 PM MDT up reply actions
No, absolutely not
While it is annoying that it seems the umpires are “picking on the Rockies” this year an electronic system for balls and strikes completely harms all that is baseball. These judgement calls need to be consistent within the specific umpires zone but beyond that it is up to the batters and pitchers to adjust. This is what makes the game fun, cause and effect. A pitcher throws the curveball down and away and you swing, your next plate appearance you recognize the pitch earlier and don’t swing. If you hit a slider 450 feet the next time the pitcher adjusts and throws a fastball on the outside corner. The same can be said for the strike zone at the beginning of the game. If it is kept consistent the batters, pitchers, and catchers will adjust their own strike zones a little bit. If the adjustments aren’t made by one side the other has the advantage.
"We made too many wrong mistakes." ~Yogi Berra
"The ballplayer who loses his head, who can't keep his cool, is worse than no ballplayer at all." ~Lou Gehrig
JFK
how about some mlb reviewing of crazy games
and some suspensions to some of the more atrocious umps!?
if you're reading this, it means my undying support for your team will result in its failure.
by fantasyfencing on May 26, 2009 10:42 PM MDT up reply actions
As far as I'm aware
the games are reviewed and the umpires look at the games themselves, what they take from making bad calls I do not know. I would like to see umpires checked a little bit more often, yes, but I also just want a consistent umpire throughout the game regardless of situation and players.
All of this being said the Rockies themselves need to be more consistent in all aspects of the game: hitting, fielding, and of course pitching.
"We made too many wrong mistakes." ~Yogi Berra
"The ballplayer who loses his head, who can't keep his cool, is worse than no ballplayer at all." ~Lou Gehrig
JFK
definitely
i do hope the Home ump learns a bit about himself by reviewing that game, because he looked real confident in the calls he was making, especially the off-the-plate ones.
and agreed, umping can only be blamed so much. One run generated with the amount of opportunities the Rox had = you aren’t going to win. i often defend the players by saying you can’t do well offensively when umps unfairly make you defend a huge zone, or pitchers who issue walks when an ump’s zone has turned into the size of a dime, but when that DOESNT happen, you need to capitalize. and they don’t capitalize, ever- so no excuses
if you're reading this, it means my undying support for your team will result in its failure.
by fantasyfencing on May 27, 2009 12:42 AM MDT up reply actions
Why in the world...
would having consistent, accurate strike zones “completely harm all that is baseball”?
Tennis, the ultimate traditionalist sport, went to electronic line judging and, as far as i can tell, it’s survived just fine.
Football has used lines crews to determine, to the inch, whether a first down has been made for, what, 100 years? Would it be better if someone just “eyeballed” it?
Umpires shouldn’t decide games, one way or another. If the pitch is in the strike zone, it’s should be a strike. period.
(And again, this has nothing to do with the Rockies. Whether they’ve gotten jobbed or not isn’t relevant to the disaster of this season. On my list of what’s wrong at 20th & Blake, bad umpiring doesn’t make it into the top 100)
My favorite Rockie? Why, Ty Van Burkleo, of course!
I'm not sure I could do an electronic strike zone
As a former pitcher, I like the fact that a pitcher can establish and earn a strike zone with consistency
"I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein
by Andrew T. Fisher on May 27, 2009 12:51 AM MDT up reply actions
Taking you back in time
I was a ST Louis Cardinal fan in my younger days. I harken back to the mid to late 70’s when they had the following players:
C Ted Simmons (Fan fave)
1b- Keith Hernandez (Fan Fave)
2b Mike Tyson (No not the boxer, instead the slick fielding no hit guy)
SS- Garry Templeton (promising youngster who had huge years early)
3b- Ken Reitz (Slick fielder, semi occasional power)
Lf Lou Brock- aging HOF
CF A combo of Jerry Mumphery, Tony Scott, Sixto Lezcano
RF More combo guys
They were a great hitting team with little pitching (aka ladder day Texas Rangers, less this year).
In 1981 they made some key decisions. They traded Templeton for Ozzie Smith. They traded Ken Reitz for Bruce Sutter (shrewd huh). They traded Ted Simmons for Dave Lapointe, Pete Vukovich. They traded Keith Hernandez a perennial gold glover (1985). They traded one of their mediocre starters (Bob Sykes) for Wille McGee. They traded for George Hendrick. They developed Andy Van Slyke, Tom Herr, Vince Coleman, Terry Pendleton from within.. Singed two FA catchers Darrell Porter and Tony Pena.
They won a WS and two additional pennants over the next seven years. They were able to add by subtraction. They never felt too in love with “their” guys. The moves worked. The Rocks seem to be in the same place. Maybe they need to look at themselves. The Cards injected hugh speed into the equation. They averaged like 93 wins in the early to mid 80s.
by PinchHitLancePainter on May 26, 2009 10:42 PM MDT reply actions
you're right, and....
….I think what explains much of the Rox unwillingness to part with fan faves is their oversensitivity to fan reaction when they do. But it’s a misreading based on the earlier years of the franchises’s history, when new baseball fans fell in love with “their guys”. I mean, people bitched about moving Joe Girardi for two years after the fact. And only when Helton showed what he was made of did people shut up about letting an aging Andres Gallaraga go.
But, you know what? those days are over, and those original fans have either stopped following the team or are just hungry to win.
Do. What. You. Have. To. Do.
If people don’t like it and complain in the letters to the editor section, so be it. They’ll stop complaining when (and if) this team starts winning.
My favorite Rockie? Why, Ty Van Burkleo, of course!
Not sure who there is to move
Atkins value is down significantly from a year ago
Nobody wants Helton at 17m a year
I’m sure there is value you out there for Ubaldo but that is a piece I would hope to hold on to
Could probably get some pieces for Hawpe.
Cook would make a nice 3rd starter for a contender
Basically...
Barmes, Spillborghs, Murton, Cook, Street, Marquis & Hawpe. I’ll grant you that’s not a group to bring a king’s ransom, but they could each help some team.
I’d love to see Helton moved only because he deserves to play meaningful games.
My favorite Rockie? Why, Ty Van Burkleo, of course!
Going back to my threads in Tuesday's pile
Tulowitzki. Just the mere fact that he is left off yours and everyone else’s “available to be trade” list, shows how fans are too tied to players that are marginal.
Troy Tulowitzki is 24 years old.
Your hard-on for ripping the guy is getting to be unsightly. Yeah, Tulo’s off to a rough start. Just like 2007 and 2008. I seem to recall he got to the finish line pretty strongly. And defensively, there are still few better. Just because he isn’t Cal Ripken Jr. yet and won’t ever be does not make him ‘marginal’. If he’s still doing this in two years, I’ll reverse course.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
their is an analogy
between Tulo, and Gerry Templeton that PHFLP brought up. Young, good years early, fan favorite. and he has VALUE.
ok….everyone here wants the Rockies to trade the bums that are worthless, and get what back? what do worthless bums or over priced veterans get on the trade market?
But they want to keep any player that has a bit of a possible future….why? If I’m the (generic team) what player would I want more and would give more back, the worthless bum, or the still well projected young player?
When the Cards traded Templeton to the Padres for Smith it was a huge bad trade….Templeton had been to the all star game, had a few big years, and Smith…was a nice fielding SS, that couldn’t hit much more then .200. But it was a good trade Smith went on to be a franchise player and made the HOF. Templeton, had a few more years but never the same.
The Rockies have limited money. They have to maximize their other assets. And that is selling HIGH on young players, before it’s too late (like Atkins)
I don't think
Hawpe, Street, and Cook are ‘bums that are worthless’ but that could be just me looking at their career numbers.
And you say ‘wanting to keep any player that has a bit of a possible future’ like it’s the most ludicrous thing possible, which… I mean, of COURSE you keep the players with potential. That’s exactly how you rebuild. You don’t trade the Dexter Fowlers and Troy Tulowitzki’s of the world so that you get even younger. Have you read a single word of what Rox Girl’s written lately? You identify parts that could comprise the next core, keep them, and make moves to supplement it. For the Rox, their players with ‘a possible future’ – Jimenez, Tulo, Stewart, Fowler, Iannetta – those ARE those parts. You supplement that by moving parts like Hawpe and Cook – who I think could fetch real nice hauls if we move them at the deadline when teams get more desperate for guys with labels like ‘innings-eater’ and ‘lefty power bat’.
Maybe we just differ on how far away we think this team is – I certainly don’t think we need to go scorched-earth on this big league roster.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 27, 2009 8:45 AM MDT up reply actions
yeah
but I don’t think I’m wrong on this one, I’m just ahead of the pack.
AND…I do think he could be salvageable. If I were a GM of another team, and I had a good coaching staff, I think a new atmosphere, a new surrounding, and new coaches could turn Tulowitzki around. (not so sure on return of his fielding range)
On the Rockies..not so much.
HE IS 24 FREAKING YEARS OLD.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
I had to look at the URL for the picture
But dear Jesus that’s hilarious.
Staying on the sunny side of Blake Street since 1993.
The Shawn Chacon Experience - Life as a Rockies fan, one day at a time: Because we're all still recovering from those nine blown saves.
i left him off the list
because i don’t think anyone wants him.
As a postscript
they hired Whitey Herzog to be GM/Manager. As visionary who understood the value of speed and consistency. Speed leads to fat pitches, speed causes defensive mistakes, speed changes the decisions in late inning bullpen moves. he also knew defensive supremacy was a premuim and that great defense, speed and timely hitting could overcome pitching issues and make average pitchers good.
by PinchHitLancePainter on May 26, 2009 10:50 PM MDT reply actions
I'm with you on speed
In 2007, I saw this team in Spring Training and had an inkling that we might have something special. It was very simple, it was because I was watching Willy T and Kaz fly around the basepaths and just make life absolutely miserable for the other team. It was beautiful, and even more than that, it was fun to watch.
Take it to this year… it’s just so hard to sit through a game. We don’t scare anyone. We don’t make the opposing pitching have to think about anything besides the man at the plate. Until we see changes, this team will not be anything better than a below average, boring team.
You know you want to check out Matt's Korea blog: http://koreamatt.wordpress.com
by MattTheRock on May 26, 2009 11:57 PM MDT up reply actions
PHLP
my man you were on a roll! I totally agree with you on all your points. I think it’s interesting that you and I are the oldest semi-regular posters on the Row, and we are the to screaming for changes, and massive ones the most.
Pitching, Defense up the middle (C,2nd, SS, CF) and Speed has always been, and always will be the winning formula for baseball.
Which brings me to
Terry Pendleton. A winner many times over sitting on the Atlanta Braves bench waiting for Bobby Cox to retire. He is a perfect candidate for this job. Played against him in 1983 in the Texas League when he was with Arkansas. The guy is a winner, great coach, great leader and a perfect manager candidate. He is also a Herzog protege, who led the Brave resurgence in 1991.
by PinchHitLancePainter on May 26, 2009 10:59 PM MDT reply actions
I really can't see....
the Monforts going out of the organization, at least until the off season. You gotta figure Jim Tracy. Or, if they feel they need a public relations move to create some fan buzz, perhaps Baylor.
Either way, will it really matter?
My favorite Rockie? Why, Ty Van Burkleo, of course!
Can I get you a glass of lemonade Mr P?
It’s a warm day out here on memory lane
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 26, 2009 11:22 PM MDT up reply actions
If it were warmer maybe
my point is they need to start looking outside the organization and they need a fresh set of eyes who have no stake in the game. As a CEO myself, I understand the value of bringing in different perspectives and different ideas for organizations. They often see opportunity outside the status quo. I sense an organization needed a significant culture shift.
by PinchHitLancePainter on May 26, 2009 11:39 PM MDT up reply actions
You hit on something there:
“Culture shift” That’s really the core of this. this entire organization needs to step away from the “woe is us, we are but a humble small market team” mentality. and it must develop some consistency at every level
That every spring training has a new ’theme" is symptomatic of an organization that is simply floundering, reaching wildly for some magic fix.
Your mention of the Cardinals is apt. St Louis is the 18th largest metropolitan area (2.8 million). Denver is 21st (2.5 million). And yet, have you ever heard the Cardinals refer to themselves as a “small market” club?. rather, they make up revenues by creating an atmosphere of excellence. They win. They draw crowds. Their merchandising is profitable. Their TV/radio revenues are good.
There’s no reason at all that the same couldn’t happen here. Denver fans support winners. they buy winners’ gear. They watch winners’ on TV.
So you’re right — a cultural shift is needed. anything short of that is just rearranging the deck chairs.
My favorite Rockie? Why, Ty Van Burkleo, of course!
The problem with that comparison
St. Louis isn’t that big of a metro area, but you wouldn’t believe the numbers of people who drive from several hours away to see Cardinals games. The Cardinals, more than any other team, are a “regional” team, commanding the support of a huge swath of the country. (There’s really no reason the Rockies couldn’t do this, considering there aren’t any other MLB teams nearby.)
a few points
the Cardinals are regional. It goes back to when they were the furthermost west team in baseball. Missouri, Iowa, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska were all Cardinals…even stretched I think to Colorado. (and I think it went south too but not sure how far).
BUT…that doesn’t mean that the Cardinals now get more money off of that due to the way baseball divides up their territory amongst teams. It is a more populous area than the Rockies have, but not by much. I’d say the TV/radio media is about the same. Cardinals do have a bigger ticket/fan base, both locally, and regionally than the Rockies do.
The biggest difference in the culture of the organizations. The Cardinals expect to win. The Rockies worry about losing.
Good points
It extends south at least to west Tennessee. The Cardinals do a great job of maximizing their market. St. Louis may not be a huge market, but that didn’t stop them from being 3rd in the NL in attendance last season (and they’re already over a million this season.)
The Cardinals are able to maximize their market by consistently putting out a winning product, something the Rockies haven’t done. Cardinals fans know that the organization is committed to winning, from the owner down. On the other hand, Rockies fans think the organization is committed to holding down costs and merely avoiding last place. If the Rockies were annual playoff contenders, attendance and local interest would be great.
That’s not to say that the Cardinals don’t ever make mistakes. Trading Haren (and a couple of other guys to boot) for Mulder, in retrospect, may have been one of the worst trades of this decade.
That and in recent years
Walt Jocketty got incredibly lucky with some of his moves (Chris Carpenter, Scott Rolen, Jason Isringhausen) in that they panned out, or became healthy again, or didn’t have veteran dropoffs, etc.
The Cardinals could’ve looked a LOT worse over the past 4-ish years than they have.
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 27, 2009 9:03 AM MDT up reply actions
The early 90s was frought with Cardinal frustration
when the brewery owned them and Torre was the manager they became a “put the best product on the field to maintain revenue streams” team. Torre was furious and eventually left. The brewery sold the team shortly thereafter to a consortium led by Bill DeWitt.
by PinchHitLancePainter on May 27, 2009 9:40 AM MDT up reply actions
Comparable?
Sure, St L and Denver seem to be comparable markets in terms of population.
However, a big, important difference is that the Cardinals have been a successful team through several generations. Also, I suspect they have been the most popular sports team in StL for generations, unlike here, where only the Broncos have the kind of critical mass that allows them to maintain interest and support during losing stretches.
It would be nice to get there, and it would probably help matters if the Rockies were willing to invest more in the team at strategic times to try build a winning tradition. But there are lot of disimilarities between the Cards and Rockies. Compared to the Rockies, the post-Busch ownership was born on 3rd base, or at least on 2nd.
CEO, huh?
so….looking to hire a 25 year old BS who is a semester away from an MS?
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 27, 2009 8:46 AM MDT up reply actions
Uh
never mix business and pleasure.
by PinchHitLancePainter on May 27, 2009 9:41 AM MDT up reply actions
We disagree so much I highly doubt there's much pleasure to it
BUT FINE
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 27, 2009 9:45 AM MDT up reply actions
Totally mentioned this in some earlier post but
The best way to change is to bring in newcomers. Even if everyone in the Rockies organization agrees that change is needed and decides to change, it doesn’t mean that change will actually occur. If they’ve been throwing spaghetti at a wall for a few years, its more likely that the only change that will occur is a change in walls rather than what they’re throwing.
The more I think about this though the more I think firing Hurdle will help but not really improve the team tremendously…
On a positive note....
Troy Renck managed to squeeze in an Eric Milton/“Paradise Lost” reference into his game story. So there’s that.
My favorite Rockie? Why, Ty Van Burkleo, of course!
Brad Corley
Apparently, we acquired this players this week.
http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/C/brad-corley.shtml
Minor league acquisition, obviously means very little, though I thought I’d point it out.
Yeah, he had
an error in his first game. Check one of my Pebble Reports from last week.
"If we never try, we shall never succeed." - Abraham Lincoln
Purple Row - Covering all your Rockies needs!
So I fell asleep during the game today
What’d I miss?
grr....im tough
by xxxpickemgenius on May 27, 2009 12:40 AM MDT reply actions
dang, wish I'd seen it
alas, I was in bed.
Matt Murton status: Freed
Garrett Atkins status: Not Traded
Clint Hurdle status: Still Employed by the Rockies
by Andrew Martin on May 27, 2009 8:48 AM MDT up reply actions
Nice to see Q getting recognized.
- on Sportscenters Top 10 plays of the day.
Grats.
grr....im tough
by xxxpickemgenius on May 27, 2009 1:24 AM MDT reply actions
dammit
got me by a second
grr....im tough
by xxxpickemgenius on May 27, 2009 1:25 AM MDT reply actions
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