Eight games into the 2013 regular season, the Rockies have amassed a 5-3 record. What have we seen from the Rockies thus far? Let’s break down how the Mile High club has gotten off to a surprisingly good start to the season.
Let it be said that is much too early to look to break down any team in Major League Baseball, especially since R.A. Dickey is 0-2 and the Astros scored 16 runs last night. But where’s the fun in shying away from trying to do so?
About a week into the season in which many major news outlets predicted the Rockies to finish with at least 100 losses or close to it, they are on pace to finish 101-61. We all know they won’t finish with that kind of record, so let’s break down how the Rockies look so far.
We all knew the Rockies were going to hit. Having only played three of their first eight at Coors Field, the Rockies haven’t done that badly away from home, unlike last season where they struggled heavily. Ironically enough, the line-up has fared much better on the road. Through eight games, the Rockies have hit ten home runs on the road to only five at home. Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez have yet to hit one out of the park in the hitter-friendly altitude of Coors, but have combined to hit six home runs on the road.
Behind the likes of Tulo and CarGo, the Rockies have scored 47 runs overall, which is good for third in the majors. And to no surprise, the guys in purple have out-scored opponents in Coors Field (only San Diego thus far) 20-6 in three games. A huge reason for why the offense has been clicking, has been the play of Dexter Fowler. Leading the team in home runs with four, which is way ahead of pace of his 13 he had all of last season, Dex is finally showing his athletic prowess at the plate and providing the spark in the lead-off role. Dex and the rest of the offense has been great all-around, but the real success however, as I mentioned before, has come on the road. Up until the two-game losing streak at the hands of the World Champion-Giants coming into Wednesday, the Rockies won their first series on the road, taking two of three from Milwaukee and scoring 19 runs in doing so.
But the Rockies bats weren’t the question coming into this season. As we all know, the real question lied with the starting rotation. And to much surprise, it’s done incredibly well so far. With the currently healthy starting rotation that boasts Chacin and De La Rosa as the top two arms, the Rockies starters have produced eight quality starts in the first eight games. The starters have gone 4-1 with a collective 3.37 ERA which isn’t incredibly impressive, but not as bad as it was predicted to be. Oddly enough, the real issue with the pitching has been the bullpen. The bullpen has combined for a 4.50 ERA, and much blame has been pointed at Wilton Lopez and Adam Ottavino. On Tuesday, Ottavino only lasted 1/3 in the 6th in his third appearance, allowing what would be the game-winning run(s) for the second time this season. He allowed the game-winning sacrifice fly in the season-opener in Milwaukee, and then allowed a 3-run home run to Brandon Crawford on Tuesday that broke open what was a 6-6 tie in San Francisco.
Not only Ottavino, but also new acquisitions Lopez and Volstad have struggled as well. Walt Weiss will likely have to heavily rely on Matt Belisle in the 2013 season, just as Jim Tracy had to do last season. The bullpen has been the weak spot this season, and needs to improve to sustain the quality starts from the starters, as they likely won’t come as often as they have thus far.
You can call it luck or whatever you wish regarding the pitching, but a huge part of this year’s success has to do with how terrible it was last season. If last season never happened, the 2013 starting pitching wouldn’t seem as impressive, but last season was THAT terrible for the Rockies on the mound to make this year’s success look bloated. With that said, the Rockies starting pitching has in fact been great. The offense is going to be there, but this year’s success will be decided based on the success of the arms. So far, so good.
After starting 5-1, the Rockies have dropped two straight to the Giants. They will complete the series this afternoon, and then head to San Diego for the first time this season for a three-game series, and then come home to take on the Mets for a four-game series.
Anthony Rodriguez
Anthony is the Founder, Administrator, Editor and Publisher of Lightning Rod Sports. Originally from California, Anthony has been raised in the Rocky Mountains and Denver area for most of his life. Anthony works with the Emmy-winning student-run T.V. newscast at MSU Denver, The Met Report, as the Assistant General Manager, formerly the Sports Producer, as well as Lead Anchor and Production Assistant. He is currently the Play-by-Play Announcer, Color Commentator, and Production Assistant for the Metro State Broadcast Network, and calls games for Metro State soccer, basketball, volleyball, baseball, and softball as a “Voice of the Roadrunners.” In addition to that work with the Metro State Broadcast Network, Anthony also hosts the monthly 30-minute magazine show called "The Roadrunner Review" which airs on Altitude Sports and Entertainment. He hosts the bi-weekly "KMet Sports Show" on KMET Radio at MyMetMedia.com/KMETSportsShow. He is also the Founder, Administrator, Editor, and Columnist for his own Denver Sports website, LightningRodSports.com. Anthony is also part of the Social Media team at Examiner.com, and has worked with the Altitude Radio Network for the Avalanche and Nuggets. Anthony is a former Producer for Mile High Sports Radio, as well as a former Sports-Talk show host on the LightningRod Radio Network.
