As a fan of small market sports, it sucks when a team who is producing does not get the recognition they deserve. The Rockies fit this bill tremendously as a team who deserves more national hype, even if the team has been slumping lately. The Rockies are back 6.5 games in the wild card race while sitting four games under a .500 winning percentage. Despite the potent offense, the lack of strong pitching, especially in the rotation, has been killing the Rockies’ playoff chances. They are not out of the race yet, as there are still plenty of games to be played, but they are currently trending the wrong way. Even if 2016 isn’t the year, the Colorado Rockies future is certainly bright.
If the 2016 season does not play out in the Rockies’ favor, there is still hope for the future. The Rockies have a good core of young studs on offense that can just flat out hit. Nolan Arenado is the centerpiece, but a healthy Carlos Gonzalez, Charlie Blackmon, and Trevor Story are just a few of the other heads of the hydra that make the team so potent. That is not including the latest hotshot rookie craze David Dahl, who started his career with a rookie record 17-game hit streak.
Of course, that is just the squad in the majors; the Rockies still have plenty of firepower waiting in the wings. Brendan Rodgers is #7 prospect in all of baseball according to MLB Pipeline. Drafted out of high school in 2015, he has been tearing the cover off the ball in Single A, hitting 18 homers with a .288/.353/.491 split this season (splits represent batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage). He still has a couple years before the majors, which will give the Rockies time to figure out where to put him with Trevor Story and DJ LeMahieu manning the middle of the Rockies infield.
Rodgers isn’t alone, as other players higher up in the farm system have been producing as well. Names like Raimel Tapia (outfielder), Tom Murphy (catcher), and Jordan Patterson (outfielder/first basemen) are a few others who have been producing at a pretty strong clip this season. These names could be up sooner, rather than later, depending on injuries or the weakness of the position at the MLB level. Patterson has been taking reps already at first base in anticipation for the potential to take over there once September rolls around.
There is a reason, however, that the Rockies are still struggling this season. The lack of quality starting pitching at the MLB level is not for a lack of trying, as the Rockies have spent numerous first round picks the past few years on pitchers. Developing pitching takes time though, and it will be interesting to see how the experiment goes for the Rockies.
Some of the first rounders are already at the MLB level and actually pitching pretty decently. Jon Gray was drafted in the first round of 2013 MLB draft. Gray has pitched really well for most of the season, before imploding a bit in August. His 9.4 K/9 has been really strong; his 3.1 BB/9 is very good for a rookie pitcher, and all this despite pitching in the hitter’s haven of Coors Field.
Gray is not alone, as Tyler Anderson has made twelve starts as a rookie this season and has held his own as well. His 3.42 ERA supports his great command of his pitches. He does not have superior strike out stuff, but if he can keep the ball on the ground, he can be successful in Coors.
Riley Pint is the latest pitcher to be drafted by the Rockies in the first round. His upside is immense, but high school pitchers are known for being very risky as the player grows and matures. The Rockies Triple-A team is also in the Pacific Coast League, which is notorious for being very difficult for pitchers and tends to inflate hitters’ numbers a little bit. The challenge will be immense for the Rockies to harness Pint and develop him into the front of the rotation pitcher he has the potential to be.
The development of the Rockies’ starters, both in the rotation now and also in the minors, will be the key to the Rockies future. Offense will draw in the fans, but every team needs an elite pitcher in the rotation to take their team all the way. The Rockies have the farm system to potentially trade for one, but the team may want to keep those pieces if the team can believe that the team can turn the prospects into gold. The team has the offensive pieces already in place to succeed in the playoffs, and will have those pieces for the next couple years. Only time will tell whether the front office can find the supplements needed to fill out the rotation and bullpen to help make the Rockies playoff bound in the near future.
