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Rockies rookie pitchers central to team’s success

Rockies news and links for June 18th, 2017

Rockies in the rotation key to Rockies’ rise | ESPN.com

Christina Kahrl writes about the success the Colorado Rockies rookies have had in 2017. I know sometimes we get a bit caught up in the peripheral stats where the walk and strikeout rates for some of them aren’t that exceptional, but she does note that the staff is third in average fastball velocity, which might also be a factor in why all four Rockies rookies in the rotation are among the Top 30 in Major League Baseball in terms of fastball frequency. Pitchers should get better as they get older so even if one or two of them get injured over the next few seasons, the Rockies starting staff is more promising than it’s ever been.

Olney: Packed All-Star field could mean some major snubs

Buster Olney thinks Mark Reynolds is, unfortunately, likely to be a major snub for the All-Star game. Not only is the first base competition strong, but since each team needs a representative and the Rockies most likely will be sending multiple people, his chances dwindle. He also notes that the roster size for the game is reduced by two slots. It also doesn’t help that he’s not on the ballot.

Wolters: ‘I want to be a hard out’ | MLB.com

A good chunk of the reason Charlie Blackmon has so many RBIs so far this season is because of the opportunities Tony Wolters has provided by getting on base at the bottom of the order. Before this year, people were definitely fans of his defense but weren’t sure if he could hit enough to contribute on offense. However, in the latter half of 2016 he showed he might not be a complete zero with the bat and he’s continued to improve this year.

Colorado Rockies: Are the Dodgers really the better team this season? | Rox Pile

Kevin Henry evaluates the Dodgers and questions whether they really are the best team in the NL West. He also sends a shoutout to Dodgers Way, where Anthony Perez urges those folks in Los Angeles to take the Rockies as a serious threat.