For Nolan Arenado, it’s about more than just the money | Yahoo! Sports
Nolan Arenado has found his name in the center of many baseball articles this offseason, in particular due to his recent record-setting arbitration-eligible contract settlement and upcoming free agency. It seems like it’s been all business, decimal points, and dollar signs, but as Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports reports, Nolan says his mindset is firmly on baseball.
Tim caught up with Nolan and Josh Fuentes (no. 16 PuRP) in Scottsdale where the two cousins are already busy working out and preparing for the 2019 season. The third basemen talked about Spring Training drills, motivating each other, and the painful decision to stop eating cheese. Most importantly, Nolan emphasized his focus on winning games:
All that money talk and contract talk, that’s something for my agent. He can take care of that. I just worry about going to play, man.
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On a related note, Thomas Harding made his way down to Salt River Fields at Talking Stick and tweeted out some of the first Spring Training footage we’ve had of Nolan, so far:
#Rockies 3B Nolan Arenado, No. 3 on @MLBNetwork Top 100 Right Now: "I do believe I'm in the top category of players. But that's something I won't talk about. It's an honor for people to vote for me or put me up there. But I know I've got a lot of work to do. It's a big year." pic.twitter.com/jAEixg2hU2
— Thomas Harding (@harding_at_mlb) February 15, 2019
That is seven seconds of pure heaven, and I’m so ready for baseball season.
Iannetta prepping for 14th season as a MLB catcher | The Narragansett Times
They are not exactly known for their Colorado Rockies coverage, but Brendan McGair and the Narragansett Times published this succinct, relevant, and entertaining article centered on Chris Iannetta. The Rhode Island publication talked to Chris about the upcoming season, his plans for the future (i.e. Jack Winery), reminiscing about his 14-season career, and Chris’s thoughts on the turbulent offseason as an executive subcommittee member of Major League Baseball’s Players Association.
It’s fun to get fresh coverage on the Rockies and have well-written material from a small, local, out-of-state news source. Purple Row’s Renee Dechert said it perfectly: “they are interested in issues that national media tends to overlook,” and this is a great example of a story that required a unique perspective.
Daniel Murphy: Rockies have “realistic shot at winning the World Series” | BSN Denver ($)
Last year, Daniel Murphy watched from the dugout as the Rockies celebrated their Wild Card victory on his home field. The young team hailing from Colorado left a lasting impression on him, and when it came to picking a new team to play for in 2019—according to Murphy, a team “that has a realistic shot at winning the World Series”—he needn’t look any further.
Patrick Lyons writes for BSN Denver that Murphy has reported to Rockies camp and is getting his feet wet playing first base, where he will primarily be slotted defensively this year. Murphy says he is more comfortable playing a corner again—he came up as a third baseman in the Mets organization—and is ready to start the season fully healthy again. He’s excited to contribute and help the Rockies compete for a World Series.
Dahl, Rox have confidence in 2019 breakout | MLB.com
David Dahl has got the talent. He has “the stuff,” or “what it takes,” and most importantly, the potential to be an All-Star caliber player—he just needs to stay on the field. This is old news, but it might be more important than ever this year as the Rockies will apparently hand the reigns of right field—owned by Carlos González for nearly a decade—to David. In CarGo’s and Gerardo Parra’s absence, Dahl will need to be a fixture, and he says he’s ready.
Thomas Harding talked to Dahl and manager Bud Black about the young outfielder’s mindset, expectations, and sashaying ability entering 2019. Dahl is primed for a breakout—his career slashline in 140 games is .293/.341/.518 (111 wRC+)—and will bring power, speed, and defense to a playoff contending team. He plans on proving he can compete at the highest level every day, and Rockies fans can be very excited about that prospect.
Anderson hopes to build off healthy 2018 | MLB.com
Thomas Harding (busier than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs) also caught up with Tyler Anderson at Salt River Fields following the lefty’s workout on Saturday and discussed Anderson’s 2018 campaign that saw him set personal bests for innings pitched and games started in a season.
Anderson has dealt with injuries throughout his career—much like Dahl—but felt redeemed by being able to compete all season and ultimately start Game 2 of the NLDS for the Rockies. Tyler also led the NL in home runs given up last year, but is now also using that as motivation to improve his game and mechanics. If he can overcome his home run demons like he did his injury demons, the Rockies will have themselves another lefty workhorse in their rotation that may be one of the best in the NL when all is said and done.