(Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports)
The Rockies suffered their 15th loss in 17 games after a 3-2 loss to the Dodgers last night to start their nine-game homestand. They have won just four times in their past 17 games at Coors Field. The Rockies are on pace to lose 100 games. Despite all that, there was a sellout crowd last night at Coors Field. That’s a win for Rockies owner Dick Monfort.
As long as the money is rolling in the ticket office, that’s the be all end all for the Rockies.
The Rockies could have the worst season in franchise history, and this will not bother Monfort. He knows people will go to Coors Field to enjoy a nice night out at the park. There are other team’s fanbases that travel to root for the visitors than the home team. The profits coming in make losing easy to take for the out-of-touch Rockies owner.
It’s interesting Monfort, Dan O’Dowd and Bill Geivett have not spoken to the Denver media about the team’s bad performance that has gone on since last month. One would think an executive or an owner would say something by now. That’s what professional teams do in times like this. Not these guys. This is beneath them.
Who knows where O’Dowd is? He hasn’t talked to the media in awhile. Last time he spoke to the media, he ripped Dexter Fowler as he was finding trade suitors for his outfielder’s service. For all we know, he is not even around the team anymore. He is so aloof that he does not feel the need to answer questions about his horrible team.
As for Geivett, he is not at the ballpark these days. Who can blame him? Why be embarrassed in being associated with these misfits? His bosses enable him to avoid accountability.
Monfort is too busy counting up how much cash he made in every homestand to talk to the media.
What these guys should know is by not talking to the media, they are basically giving the fans the one-finger salute by not letting fans know what they think of this team’s performance.
All Monfort ever does is talk about how great Coors Field is to watch the game along with talking about the PartyDeck. He rarely talks much about his baseball team in his sessions with the media. Fans don’t want to hear about the ballpark anymore.
Sooner or later, they are going to have to stop hiding. The losses are not going away. The bad baseball will continue to happen with three months to go. Not even Broncos training camp can mask how bad this team is.
100 losses or more is so much to be ashamed of. It speaks badly of how an organization runs from top to bottom. This is something management can’t hide. The fans are going to want answers sooner than later.
Monfort is fortunate Denver is such a good sports town that fans will tolerate bad product. He is fortunate the park is so beautiful that it attracts people to come. So he will continue to make money. It’s all that matters to him. He never came off as an owner that is about winning or putting a good product on the field. He wants fans to have a good time just being at the park.
This is exactly why fans were not receptive about the Party Deck. They don’t want to hear about money invested in building a sports bar inside the park. They don’t want to hear about the ballpark. They want to hear about a team taking steps to improve.
When Monfort talks about his ballpark often, he gives people the impression that he is more into finding a way to make more profits. Basically, this is why Monfort decided to be involved in the baseball business. He knows pro sports make him money. Baseball is a cash cow along with Coors Field.
As long as Monfort thinks money over winning, nothing is going to change. He does not feel the need to improve the baseball product when fans are coming to the park. He does not need to hold his baseball administration team accountable for the bad baseball that has been displayed for years. So don’t expect anything to change. He and his baseball people not talking to the media should tell Rockies fans that the losses are not important in the big picture.
Not when Monfort hears Ca-Ching in the registry at every Rockies home game.
Contact or follow Leslie Monteiro at @LightRodWriter
Leslie Monteiro
Leslie is a contributor for Lightning Rod Sports. He covered high school sports in Bergen County out in North Jersey, and has written op-ed columns on sports such as Bleacher Report and NY Sports Digest.
