Chris Iannnetta: A Tragic Poem

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Now that his time here has ended, I would be remiss

If I never told you about that catcher we had named Chris

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He came from Rhode Island, a wonderful place indeed

Even before his call up in 06, many thought he would succeed

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Adored by most for his quiet work ethic and smile

But truly loved by some for those walks he could compile

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Iannetta was mostly a backup during Colorado's golden age

You know, that one time when the Rockies reached baseball's biggest stage.

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He sharpened his skill set in preparation for 08

And thus a seed was planted for a truly epic debate

A double, a walk, a home run, a LINE DRIVE!!!

Does that OPS really say .895?

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A catcher who can get on base AND hit for power - OH WOW!!!

The Rockies have never had a guy like that before, have they now?

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Yes Iannetta's 25th year was a breakout season to behold

But nothing could prepare us for what was about to unfold

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The Rox got off to a very slow start in 09 you see

So out went Clint Hurdle and in came Jim Tracy

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And then there was of course that single polarizing trait

That annoyed so many about this man behind home plate

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"HE CAN'T HIT FOR AVERAGE" screamed the traditional folk

They were convinced all this saber metric stuff was a joke

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"THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT" others fired back.

"He gets on base just fine - Halt your ignorant attack"

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But the play on the field that summer only fanned the flames

Yorvit Torrealba got hot, and began to catch most games

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"WHAT YORVIT IS DOING IS UNSUSTAINABLE" Chris's defenders would shout.

"A BABIP of .440 the last month? - Talent will win out."

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But it was already September and time was growing short

Tracy rode the red hot Yorvit, and his performance didn't thwart

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However in the season's final week Iannetta did get one very meaningful at bat

And he hit a 10th inning walk off home run against the Brewers - How about that?

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Now the argument of who should start in the postseason was reaching a boil

"IT SHOULD BE CHRIS!" - "NO IT SHOULD BE YORVIT!" It felt like fire and oil.

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As Game 1 neared and it came time for Jim Tracy to decide

The "Catcher War" only witnessed an even more spacious divide

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A new conflict of who was "clutch", or if it even existed was waged

On and on and on and on - this titanic battle raged

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But when the LDS began, the job was given to Yorvit

Chris Iannetta and his OBP would have to take a backseat

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So from the bench, season on the line, our hero watched Game 4

Hoping dearly that somehow a trip back to Philadelphia was in store

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And it looked so - when in the 8th - to the wonderment of all

Yorvit Torrealba tore the cover off the ball

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His double in the right field gap made the score a euphoric 4-2

But after a 9th inning I'd rather not talk about, "Torre" bid adieu

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And so the job was Iannetta's at last, nothing could stop him right?

Olivo would be that backup next season while Chris flew high as a kite

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But Chris got off to a dreadful start and was sent down to AAA

While Miguel Olivo hit a dinger, every single day

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So even after Iannetta returned, and Olivo couldn't buy a hit

Jim Tracy still didn't give Chris back - his starting catcher's mitt

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"Latin catchers must catch Latin pitchers" - or at least that seemed to be the message conveyed.

No matter how awful Olivo looked in the lineup, Tracy just couldn't be swayed

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Colorado lost 13 of their final 14 games that season / Sigh

The 2010 season was over, and for Olivo, that meant goodbye

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First off to Toronto, and then over to Seattle he went

I'd have to imagine this all happened without Jim Tracy's consent

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Yes, the starting catching job was now truly Chris's at last,

He's the best option we had, and the margin was quite vast

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Now even though Tracy's hand was forced, and he had to give Chris his shot

He refused to bat him anywhere in the lineup - except for the 8th slot

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Perhaps this trend, would have been - a tad easier to ignore

If against the Reds Tracy didn't bat - THE BACKUP NUMBER FOUR!!!

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And since I'm not going deeper into 2011 than this

That brings us near the end, of our story about Chris

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His tenure with the Rockies, it really couldn't persist

At least not as long as he and Jim Tracy were forced to coexist

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So as the wicked November wind ushered in the coming winter

A report of a trade involving Chris was hot - and just off the printer

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He was off to California's southern coast - and at least from what I understood

He'd been dealt for a 21 year old pitcher - by the name of Tyler Chatwood

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And just like that, the Iannetta era came abruptly came to an end

There would be no game to bid farewell to our longtime noble friend

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So I'll conclude by thanking him, for everything he gave us Rockie fans

But sadly now we must move on - without Iannetta in our plans.