Arenado leads NL third basemen in ASG voting | Rockies.com
Major League Baseball released an update on National League All-Star voting on Monday, and the results showed Colorado Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado in first place at the position. Arenado leads Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs by 222,621 votes, but we all know there are more Cubs fans out there, so make sure to cast your ballot as well.
Arenado is a deserving choice, as he leads NL third basemen in fWAR, wOBA, OPS, batting average, on-base percentage, and runs scored.
Meanwhile, Charlie Blackmon is fourth in the outfield voting, just (relatively speaking) 42,681 votes behind Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers for a starting spot. Shortstop Trevor Story is the next closest Rockies player, currently ranking fifth. Brandon Crawford of the San Francisco Giants, who has been having a remarkable campaign at the position, leads the way.
There’s a reason Rockies are sliding after another Coors Field sweep. “We have to look at ourselves in the mirror.” | The Athletic ($)
After an 8-3 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday was followed by the Dodgers and Giants winning their respective games, the Rockies fell to 4th place in the National League West for the first time since June 24, 2016. The weekend series was not inspiring, as the D-Backs swept the Rockies, led by Paul Goldschmidt’s 24 total bases, the most ever by an opposing player at Coors Field. Rockies pitching has allowed 10 or more hits in 12 consecutive games, the longest such stretch in franchise history, and the longest such stretch in all of baseball since 2006. Nick Groke features some optimistic quotes from Ian Desmond, some promising quotes from Chris Iannetta, and some pitching-focused quotes from Manager Bud Black in his latest article for The Athletic.
BSN Rockies Podcast: The launch angle revolution and the human side of baseball | BSN Denver
In the latest episode of the BSN Rockies podcast, Drew Creasman is joined by Tracy Ringolsby and Manny Randhawa to discuss the “launch angle revolution,” and whether or not it is tactful for a Major League hitter to adjust their swing based on analytics. There is also a discussion on the volatility of relief pitching (something the Rockies have certainly experienced firsthand in 2018).
The Updated Top 131 Prospect Rankings | FanGraphs
With the draft now over, FanGraphs released their updated top prospect rankings. While there isn’t anything to speak of from the Rockies’ newly-drafted players, there were a couple moves made with regards to the Rox organization. While Ryan McMahon has graduated from “prospect” status, Brendan Rodgers (PuRP No. 1) moved up from #18 to #12 on FanGraphs’ rankings. A lot of this is due to the graduation of others, but Rodgers has done nothing to hurt his own cause, slashing .287/.339/.538 with 13 home runs for the Hartford Yard Goats, the Double-A affiliate of the Rockies. Meanwhile, Riley Pint (PuRP No. 3) has fallen from #75 to #118, having only pitched 1/3 of an inning in 2018 due to a forearm injury.
David Hill, RHP, Colorado Rockies | BaseballCensus
Baseball Census profiled David Hill, right-handed pitcher for the Lancaster JetHawks, the High-A affiliate of the Rockies. Hill missed a lengthy amount of time due to thoracic outlet syndrome, but has shown very well in his return to begin 2018. In 10 innings of work entering Monday, Hill has 14 strikeouts against 2 walks, with a 1.80 ERA.