Nick Groke really hits the nail on the head in this article regarding the Rockies rough start to the year, their subsequent battle to claw back into relevancy, and what has gone wrong for them. Above all else, he uses one word in particular to describe this team: underachieving. Yes, it’s still kind of early, and the Rockies still have time to right the ship, but like Nick says, “one bad month can quickly turn into a summer of angst,” and we’re almost there.
May is going to be a supremely key month for the Rockies. They need to keep pace or make up ground with the three NL West teams above them (Dodgers, D-backs, and Padres) before the dog days of summer hit, and Bud Black is ready to make adjustments. Tyler Anderson has been bad and was demoted to Triple-A, Ian Desmond has been Ian Desmond and is now losing time to Raimel Tapia, and Tony Wolters has slashed .292/.354/.389 on his way to becoming the team’s primary catcher.
Bud Black still sees a team that has not yet reached it’s potential, a team that can achieve more. I lean towards agreeing with him, and it appears he is doing his part to help them be as successful as possible. Now, they just have to start executing and winning games.
Colorado Rockies: 3 necessities to win the series against the Giants | Rox Pile
Before yesterday’s game against the Giants got underway, Noah Yingling put forth “3 necessities” the Rockies should strive for in order to win the series. They won’t blow your mind in complexity—they are quite simple—but they are still three keys to getting back on track: score a lot, score early, and pitch well in the rotation.
Unfortunately, at the time of writing this, it’s 14-4 with the Giants beating the Rockies in the 9th inning of Tuesday’s game. The Rockies have done none of those “3 necessities,” so maybe Noah is on to something here. We can only hope they don’t dog themselves too big of a hole in game 2 or 3 of the series against the NL West’s last place team.
In his latest power rankings, Jonah Keri of the Athletic takes on Ian Desmond and his role with the Rockies. Jonah mentions the positive adjustments Desmond has made this year to reduce ground balls and increase his hard hit rate (referencing Nick Groke’s recent article), but it appears to be for naught, as the aging outfielder’s numbers are still getting worse.
So what do the Rockies do, he asks. Fortunately, we’re seeing it, as Raimel Tapia continues to see increased playing time at Desi’s expense—and he’s making the most of it. Tapia is slashing .292/.337/.584 on the year with more than half of his hits going for extra bases. He’s seeing the ball well, and he’s hitting it con much swagger...
Raimel Tapia ‘Con Mucho Swagger’ shirt has...swagger | Purple Row
Speaking of which, now is your chance to rep the Rockies young, energetic outfielder from the Dominican Republic in style—con mucho swagger, you might say. The latest BreakingT masterpiece perfectly captures Raimel’s swagger and confidence in what looks to be his breakout season. Get it while it’s hot!
Colorado Rockies: Mock the Rox, or Rock the Mock? It’s turtleneck time | Rox Pile
And to continue with the clothing topic, Jake Shapiro has all the details on the Rockies latest fashion trend sweeping the team—the turtleneck. It’s the finest slump-buster in the clubhouse right now, according to Ryan McMahon, and it keeps you warm on chilly spring nights, too. Plus, I mean, it just looks good. Gotta dress hot to stay hot!
On the farm
On a fairly quiet night on the farm, two Isotopes continued to tear the cover off the ball down in El Paso. That’s right, Pat Valaika and Yonathan Daza both had multi-hit games for the ‘Topes and just keep coming up big for Albuquerque. Daza had two hits, two RBI, a double, and a stolen base, and raised his Triple-A line to .398/.435/.663 in 22 games.
Triple-A: El Paso Chihuahuas 6, Albuquerque Isotopes 3 | MiLB.com
Double-A: Hartford Yard Goats 3, Reading Fightin Phils 2 | MiLB.com