Michael Cuddyer says goodbye and trade rumors continue to swirl

It was a pretty slow Saturday around baseball, with the biggest news being Michael Cuddyer's retirement. Still, there was plenty of speculation for us to gobble up and discuss. Here are you Sunday links!

Play Hard and Dream Big | The Players' Tribune

Former Rockies player Michael Cuddyer announced his retirement yesterday, calling it a career after 15 Major League seasons. Cuddyer played in Colorado for three seasons, winning the batting title in 2013, after hitting .331/ .389/.530 in 130 games. His announcement came in the form of this lovely piece in The Players Tribune. It's well worth your time, and we wish Cuddy all the best in retirement.

Report: Nationals interested in Carlos Gonzalez and Charlie Blackmon | HardballTalk

Carlos Gonzalez rumors continue to put off smoke, and have expanded to include Charlie Blackmon and Corey Dickerson as well. D.J. Short of Hardball Talk expands on a report by MASN Sports reporter Pete Kerzel that the Washington Nationals are interested in both Blackmon and Gonzalez to fill the outfield gap left by the departure of Denard Span. I'm not sure if the Nationals could meet the Rockies asking price on CarGo, so Blackmon may be a more realistic target for them. Yesterday, we ran down some of the possible returns from the Nationals, as well as another possible suitor, the Royals.

Kansas City's blueprint to winning World Series now envied, copied by MLB teams - The Denver Post

Patrick Saunders of the Post looks at the strategy Kansas City took on their way to a World Series Championship and how it's changing the way some teams do business. He also addresses  how relief pitchers are seen on the free agent market, with 11 bullpen arms getting multi-year deals. There are also some interesting quotes about the Royals aggressive approach at the plate, often swinging at the first pitch instead of hanging back and letting a pitcher find his rhythm.

Rockies taking a different sort of gamble | Mile High Sports

Mark Knudson of Mile High Sports looks at the Rockies, their organizational philosophy, and the reasons that many of the moves the team makes are frustrating for the fans. He argues that the Rockies will never make a big splash in free agency again after the Mike Hampton and Denny Neagle debacles of the 2000s. He does a nice job comparing and contrasting the front office under Jeff Bridich from the front office under Dan O' Dowd, pointing to the Tulo trade as evidence that they are willing to make moves they wouldn't have made before.