In case you missed it, the Rockies had a major shakeup in the front office this week. In a stunning move, General Manager Jeff Bridich stepped down from his role with the team and Greg Feasel was named the Club President, with an interim GM planned to be named for the rest of the season.
Many took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the latest revelation in the Rockies’ soap opera season, and while I can’t share all of the fantastic reactions, I will be sharing several that got a quality chortle out of me.
Celebrate good times, come on!
Many fans were understandably elated to hear the news, and couldn’t help but share GIFs depicting celebrations and dances that really set the tone for how Rockies fans are feeling:
NO MORE JEFF BRIDICH!!! pic.twitter.com/kE7OfX7YEE
— depressed r̶o̶c̶k̶i̶e̶s̶ ̶f̶a̶n̶ (@ArenadoFans28) April 26, 2021
*GM Jeff Bridich has resigned*
— Charlie Blackmon is *coughs* NASTY (@CoorsEffect21) April 26, 2021
Rockies Fans: pic.twitter.com/BZjWgrkPAB
— Eddie Bishop (@Mr_Eddie_B) April 26, 2021
— Bridich Drove Me to the Padres (@SFLTwitfeed) April 26, 2021
Never forget Nolan
The trade of Nolan Arenado was the straw that broke the camel’s back for many Rockies fans. The feud between Arenado and Bridich was well documented, and the fateful night of February 1, 2021 was it all boiled over. Fans made sure to reference the Arenado trade in their reactions to the Bridich news:
It's only fair that Jeff Bridich now must pay Rockies fans a stimulus package of $50 million to be shared with all.
— Mark Springer: Radio Machine (@MarkAMark) April 26, 2021
Jeff Bridich made it 21 games after trading Nolan Arenado to the #stlcards, which is 30 less than the number of millions of dollars the Rockies gifted the Cardinals to take Arenado off their hands.
— Jeff Jones (@jmjones) April 26, 2021
Jeff Bridich after starting beef with Arenado, sending him and $50 million to St. Louis, and then resigning 2 months later. pic.twitter.com/YCwvPezr2n
— Brandon Dill (@_brandondill_) April 26, 2021
Jeff Bridich resigning from the Rockies after using a fire-sale to end the feud he created with Nolan Arenado: pic.twitter.com/8dEkssmzKa
— Shawn Brody (@ShawnBrody) April 26, 2021
While there were plenty of jokes to be made, some folks didn’t pull any punches expressing their thoughts on how Jeff Bridich should have left long before Arenado was traded:
The #Rockies signed Nolan Arenado long-term, got into a public feud with him, traded him, & included $51 million in the deal under Jeff Bridich's watch. Then he resigned 21 games later with his team owning the NL's worst record. That's a first-ballot Hall of Infamy resume.
— Gary Phillips (@GaryHPhillips) April 26, 2021
If Jeff Bridich stepped down last year Nolan Arenado is still here, it’s all on Bridich, we need a baseball person to run this team, enough of the sabermetrics bs, guarantee I could have picked a better roster the past 7 years
— Jason Stone (@jstonefitness) April 26, 2021
My job here is done
Running a baseball team is hard. I think we can all agree on that. However, Jeff Bridich leaving just 21 days into the 2021 season while the team is facing a myriad of struggles was a head-scratcher for fans after no indications that he would be leaving the Rockies any time soon. Luckily, Rockies fans picked up on the nuance and ran with it:
Jeff Bridich leaving the Rockies pic.twitter.com/I0uTEb9Eax
— alex (@aruss_97) April 26, 2021
[Rockies barreling towards an inflection point where they’ll need to trade stars and rebuild]
— rich (@rich_roberts) April 26, 2021
JEFF BRIDICH: pic.twitter.com/i1fifOQeoC
Jeff Bridich be like: pic.twitter.com/SmAcN3SbDM
— Bill (@Linnuhmonsta) April 26, 2021
Thanks for the meme-mories
Forget an endless stream of knowledge and information, the internet’s greatest contribution to society is the meme. As soon as anything happens in the news cycle, quick-handed Twitter users whip up memes that best encapsulate any given situation and they did not disappoint. Here are a couple of gems that summarize the whole ordeal:
— joce (@JoceMed8) April 27, 2021
— #BROKEN Trenton Bless (@TrentonBless) April 26, 2021
Hope Floats
A common theme among the fan reactions was a sense of hope and relief. The Colorado Rockies have left a bad taste in people’s mouths the last few years, and with the Bridich era at an end, the team can hopefully start working to repair their relationship with the fans.
For more fan reactions, check out our Twitter thread that was posted shortly after the news broke. What was your reaction when you first heard Bridich was stepping down? Sound off in the comments below!
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Is Oliver Perez a fit for the bullpen?| Rox Pile
The bullpen remains a prominent weak spot for the Rockies. One of the problems is the lack of left-handed options for Bud Black to deploy in different situations. There is an intriguing option available as veteran reliever Oliver Perez was designated for assignment by Cleveland earlier this week. At the age of 40, Perez could be another veteran presence the Rockies bring in to help guide the younger players. Since 2012, Perez has an ERA of 3.42 with a 3.26 FIP and a 122 ERA+ in 490 games.
Saunders: For Rockies’ pitcher Justin Lawrence, call-up elicits tears of joy | The Denver Post ($)
Speaking of relievers, the Rockies added a new arm in the bullpen this week in the form of Justin Lawrence. The flamethrowing side-armed pitcher was brought to tears after Bud Black informed him that he was being promoted from the taxi squad to the Rockies roster, and he did not disappoint in his first outing by hitting 101.2 mph on just his third pitch.
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