Love is in the air, and it smells like...pine tar?

It’s Valentine’s Day, and for those of us that love the game of baseball, that means Spring Training and the MLB season right around the corner. Pitchers and catchers participating in the WBC reported yesterday, while the rest will join tomorrow with the full squad joining in Scottsdale on the 20th.

The long winter is winding down while spring is about to arrive (please ignore the snow in the Denver forecast).

So with baseball right around the corner, here are a few things some of our Purple Row staff love about baseball, the Rockies, and our community this Valentine’s Day.

Able to watch the game at the highest level

Kenneth Weber explains how the Rockies provides a chance to love baseball despite team’s on-field play. Having a professional team close to home has given the surrounding area a chance to watch baseball’s greatest players, which is something Kenneth will never take for granted.

He says, “I love the opportunity to se the best players in the world in my home town. The Rockies franchise can make it tough to root for my home team, but it still provides a fan a chance to see the best game in the world played at the highest level.”

The Rockies have also let fans grow up around a team and grow the love of the game to so many people in the Rocky Mountain region. Most kids don’t care about the final score, but they will remember the times going to the ballpark to see their favorite player.

Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images

Players are good people

Some of our writers have had the luxury of meeting the players while conducting interviews for articles during the season and love that the players are genuinely good people.

Mac Wilcox notes that while “some baseball players are gruff and not exactly the most friendly, but guys like Ryan McMahon, Austin Gomber, Kyle Freeland, Kris Bryant, and Brian Serven are so kind and willing to talk to talk to folks. Having good guys on the team you root for is what most fans want to hear. Sports go beyond wins and loses, and the players are human, too. Most fans want to cheer for players that are good people, and from Mac’s account, the Rockies roster is “full of what seem to be good dudes.”

Coors Field

No list of things we love about the Rockies could be started any other way. Spend one game at the stadium, and you can see why it’s one of the best in baseball. Regardless of the on-field product, the experience at Coors Field is always great, and the view of the sunset can’t be beat. I mean, just look at it:

Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images

Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Evan Lang shares his thoughts on why he loves Coors Field: “I truly think Coors Field is one of the most gorgeous parks in all of MLB and an incredible venue to take in a baseball game. Coors Field truly is one of the best ballparks to watch the game, and it’s no surprise fans continue to show up every year despite the losing records.

The game itself

The game of baseball itself is something worth loving. Skyler Timmins names this as why he loves baseball. “I love baseball because it’s such a pure game of skill, luck, and teamwork. No on person can carry a team by themselves. It takes a group effort to pull together to win from top to bottom. Despite being the simple game it is with a stick and a ball, it has taught me a lot of life and growing up.”

One of the best things about baseball is you have to play all 27 outs. There’s no time wasting or trying to let the clock run out, which as we saw Sunday, can ruin the end of other sports. A team always has a chance to comeback until the final out.

Baseball is also unique in that it’s a team sport that relies on individual performances, which, going back to Skyler’s quote, is why the whole team needs to pull together and be their best to win, and it’s unique to baseball.

Home-grown players

The Rockies are not known for making big splashes in free agency to build their teams. Aside from Kris Bryant, the Rockies have not signed any big free agents since building the “Super Bullpen” back in 2018. The few years the Rockies have had success, the team was built with home-grown players.

Evan Lang explains why this is something he loves about the Rockies, stating, “I love that we have exciting, home-grown players, even if they don’t necessarily get the recognition they deserve.” With young players such as Ezequiel Tovar, Michael Toglia, and Zac Veen making strides towards roster spots on the Big League club, the homegrown players are definitely something to look forward to and love about the Rockies right now.

Best colors in baseball

The Rockies have one of the most unique colors schemes in the league, purple to represent the color reflected by the trees in the Colorado Rocky Mountains and the “purple mountain majesty” Different from the sea of red and blue, the Rockies are the only team to use purple in their colors since the DBacks changed from purple to, yup, you guessed it, red back in 2007.

Our own author, Mario DeGenz describes why he loves the Rockies colors: “I love the color purple because it manages to be cool and warm at the same time, and I really love that the Rockies use it.” Mario also wants the Rockies to implement the color into their jerseys more through solid purple helmets, socks or undershirts, or outline of letters. Evan Lang also inputs that he is “grateful for our looks and use the color purple” in the Rockies color scheme.

You, the reader

We love the Purple Row community and the dedicated readers that give us a platform to discuss our favorite sport and team. We would not have any of this without you all, and we appreciate all the interactions on social media, comments, and the community as a whole. The readers do truly love the Rockies because nothing shows love more than reading about the Colorado Rockies in the middle of the offseason. Thank you all for reading, and we are excited to start a new season with you all soon! Love you guys.

Be sure to tell us in the comments what you love about baseball or the Rockies!

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Vanessa Hudgens announces engagement to Colorado Rockies player Cole Tucker | CBS News

Following today’s theme with the news, one member of the Rockies organization will be getting a ring this year regardless of how the team plays in 2023.

The Rockies signed utility player Cole Tucker to a minor-league contact this winter after he spent time in the Pirates and DBacks organizations. Tucker recently proposed to his now fiancé, Vanessa Hudgens, who many know for her role in the High School Musical franchise, and the couple went public with their news on Instagram last weekend. The two met in a Zoom meditation class and starting dating soon after.

On the baseball diamond, Tucker was in the Pirates’ system since being drafted 24th overall in the 2014 draft and made his MLB debut in 2019. The Pirates waived him in June last year, and he ended up in the DBack system for a month before having the same fate.

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