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Prior to 2012, Josh Rutledge was tabbed as the Rockies' Opening Day second baseman as early as 2013 on the strength of his breakout season in High-A Modesto. After some bumps early, Rutledge torched the Texas League, then appeared in a Rockies uniform and just kept on hitting. Rutledge's name started to transform from pencil to sharpie with every extra base hit.
It isn't so clear anymore. Rutledge has hit .192 in 84 plate appearances since September 1, striking out 20 times. Meanwhile, Chris Nelson has used that time to hit .361/.387/.569 with three home runs and earn an NL Player of the Week honor. Nelson has quietly pushed his wRC+ to 104 for the season, while Rutledge's struggles have dropped him to 115. That's bordering on a breakout season from Nelson.
The former first rounder may have figured something out, and he will be out of options in 2013. Conversely, the 23-year-old Rutledge has three remaining. It has been assumed that Nelson and/or Jordan Pacheco would lose a starting role next season to Josh Rutledge and Nolan Arenado. Nelson's surge might change the dynamic again. The argument is now open for the next six months.
Baseball Prospectus | Manufactured Runs: The Very Long Night of Melky Cabrera Colin Wyers has a must-read piece about the Melky Cabrera non-batting title.
Rockies' Carlos Gonzalez battles nagging hamstring injury - The Denver Post CarGo has chosen to become a significantly less effective defensive player to prevent injuries. He still has gotten injured.
2012's Rookie Crop Is Excellent, Even Without Trout, Harper - Baseball Nation - Marc Normandin highlights a very impressive MLB rookie class...without even mentioning a single Rockie.
South Stands Denver Fancast | Denver Sports Podcast - Rockies invite Mile High Sports' Peter Burns for a sit down Bryan wrote about the PR kerfluffle Thursday with the Rockies. That magnified a stew about to boil over, and in response, the Rockies called in Peter Burns to apologize and discuss the issue. Except...VP of PR Jay Alves did not attend.