Colorado Rockies: An important decision looms in the dugout | Rox Pile
As the final year of his contract approaches, this major piece to the Rockies’ recent success will have to wonder if it is his last season wearing the purple pinstripes—and maybe Nolan Arenado can keep him company. Yes, I’m talking about Bud Black, and in this article Aaron Hurt discusses what Bud means to the Rockies moving forward and how he has helped them get to where they are today as an NL West title contender.
#Rockies Bud Black entering final year of 3-year deal (with a mutal option after 2019). Here's what GM Jeff Bridich said:
— Patrick Saunders (@psaundersdp) November 3, 2018
"There's a great appreciation for who Buddy is and what he's done with us here ... There are a lot of positive vibes all the way around."
This quote specifically stands out from Jeff Bridich’s conference call with the media on Friday, and quite frankly it sounds like an extension is a pretty sure thing. Black has had some head scratchers over the years—particularly concerning his lineup construction and veteran-vs-rookie playing time philosophy—but results matter, and he has led this club to the Postseason each year at the helm thus far.
How many more years would you be willing to extend Bud Black, Rockies fans?
Colorado Rockies Rumors: Jon Heyman’s Free Agent Predictions | Rox Pile
The Hot Stove season boils on, and on Thursday Jon Heyman dropped some predictions for how much moolah the top 131 free agents are looking to make this offseason. His biggest winner this winter is expected to be Bryce Harper, who Jon predicts will land an eleven year contract in the $30-34M per year range. That’s no clown contract, bro.
As far as the former Rockies are concerned, DJ LeMahieu is ranked the highest at number fourteen and Heyman predicts he will be offered a 3-4 year deal worth $39-50M. As Luke Mullins points out in this article, that all but guarantees DJ won’t return next year for the Rockies, as they have a wealth of young talent who can play 2B for much cheaper. Other names Luke takes a look at include Adam Ottavino, Carlos González, and Gerardo Parra.
Free agent Patrick Corbin could make the Rockies rotation even better | Purple Row
Instead of focusing on who will be leaving the Rockies, let’s take a look at who might be joining this team via free agency this offseason. Our own Ben Kouchnerkavich sets his targets on starting pitcher Patrick Corbin and discusses how—despite an up-and-down career—this All-Star lefty can make our already great pitching staff even better next season.
Dodgers, Clayton Kershaw reach agreement on new three-year deal | True Blue LA
Our friend Ryan Walton at True Blue LA has the low-down on the Clayton Kershaw extension and what it means for the Dodgers and NL West moving forward. Kershaw—a three-time Cy Young winner and former NL MVP—had a “down year” last season in some areas of his game, such as his highest FIP and lowest strikeout totals since 2008, but still was critical in helping to lead the Dodgers to their second World Series appearance in two years.
Narratives aside, there is no good spin to this for the Rockies, who will have to deal with this future Hall of Famer on a regular basis for three more years. At the very least, Kershaw’s worst career ERA (minimum two games played) outside of Dodger Stadium is against the Rockies (4.57 in 126.0 IP) at COOOOORS Field, so we got that going for us...