A look in on the Rockies offseason adds

Coming into 2022, there was perhaps some cautious optimism around the Colorado Rockies.

The 2021 team finished with 74 wins, well out of contention, but had some solid pieces - C.J. Cron, Ryan McMahon, Germán Márquez, and Kyle Freeland. The front office surprised everyone by bringing on Kris Bryant to replace Trevor Story, and while the signing was met with mixed reviews, GM Bill Schmidt was making his mark on the organization. To bolster the offense, the team also signed José Iglesias and traded for Randal Grichuk. Sure, this team wouldn’t contend with the Dodgers, but maybe with the new blood they could surprise some people.

So far, the team is on a similar trajectory to last year. Currently 10 games under .500, the Rockies are entering an important stretch that will define them as competitors or not. So, with the team performing roughly in line with expected, how are the new additions doing?

In short, not well. Here’s the Rockies projected WAR leaders (by ZIPS) going into the season, and how they’re faring thus far.

Iglesias is outperforming expectations, but Bryant and Grichuk are on pace to miss their projections by more than most everyone else on the team. (Note that Elehuris Montero was projected by ZIPS to be one of the Rockies main contributors this season, but the logjam in the infield has prevented him from playing a significant amount.)

Bryant has had injury troubles, and the season WAR pace above assumes that each player plays in the rest of the Rockies games this season, so there’s potential for him to miss his projection by even more if he misses additional time. On the plus side, all it could take is a good stretch of games for him to match his WAR total thus far.

Former GM Jeff Bridich did not have the best track record with free agency. From Ian Desmond to Daniel Murphy, most big name signings did not live up to their pedigree nor their contracts. During now GM Bill Schmidt’s first offseason, he made a splash and tried to define a new direction for the Rockies as a contender. However, the results seem to be the same. Big money, but no results to back it up.

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Rockies lack an identity, need to shake things up at the trade deadline | The Denver Post ($)

The trade deadline is next week. The Rockies are ten games under .500, with the challenge of having three respectable (to say the least) teams in front of them in the division race. Smart money would say that this isn’t the Rockies year. So will the Rockies be sellers at the deadline? Patrick Saunders gives his take, centered around owner Dick Monfort’s assertion that this team should begin a rebuild. With the signing of Kris Bryant this offseason, the Rockies looked to be giving it an honest effort, but the results just have not been there. Nothing indicates that the front office’s philosophy will change - the Rockies have been seemingly stuck in the almost contending limbo for years, never bad enough to rebuild but never good enough to have sustained success. And for better or worse, it doesn’t seem like that will be changing any time soon.

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On the Farm

Triple-A: Albuquerque Isotopes 12, Sugar Land Space Cowboys 3

The Isotopes salvaged a game of their series Sunday, knocking 12 runs on 15 hits to outslug the Space Cowboys. Alan Trejo had two homers as part of a 3-5, 4 RBI day. Wynton Bernard had a grand slam and a stolen base. Ryan Feltner earned the win on the mound by pitching five innings of two run ball. Next up, the Isotopes will start a series with the Las Vegas Aviators.

Double-A: Hartford Yard Goats 10, Binghamton Rumble Ponies 6

Hartford picked up the second half right where they left off, taking two games from Binghamton to extend their win streak to seven. Brenton Doyle was 4-4 with a double and two runs scored. Grant Lavigne was 3-6 and scored two runs, including a solo home run. Hartford didn’t get much help from their starter (Noah Davis walked four and allowed four on just two innings of work), but the bullpen was able to pick him up and shut it down. Now, Hartford will welcome the Portland Sea Dogs for their first full series of the second half.

High-A: Vancouver Canadians 5, Spokane Indians 4

Mateo Gil had a two-run homer and a solo homer, but that was the extent of the clutch run-scoring hitting for Spokane on Sunday. The Indians had 15 baserunners, but left twelve on base and were just 3-11 with runners in scoring position. Spokane starter Mason Green allowed two runs in the first and two in the before being pulled. The Indians were able to come back and tie the game in the eighth but they were unable to close it out, giving up the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth. Next, they’ll take on the Tri-City Dust Devils for a week.

Single-A: Fresno Grizzlies 8, Stockton Ports 1

The Grizzlies wrapped up a three-game sweep of the Ports Sunday to open the second half. Fresno got out to a hot start, plating three runs in the first two frames thanks to Adael Amador (1-3, RBI, 2 R, BB) and Benny Montgomery (2-4, 2 RBI, BB). That was plenty of support for Grizzlies starter Jarrod Cande, who threw six innings of one run baseball to earn his fourth win. The Grizzlies revert to their traditional schedule this week, with an off-day today before traveling to Modesto for a six-game set against the Nuts starting tomorrow.

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