The biggest obstacle for any team to overcome in order to prove itself as a possible post-season contender would be a winning division record. The Rockies are going to have to prove next season they can win within their division before anyone should talk “playoffs.”
Getting swept, once again, by the Giants and the woeful Padres is an indictment that the Rockies are still not ready to return to the post season.
There are leaders on this team that somehow cannot get the rest of the team to rally in any semblance of unity. Between Todd Helton, Jason Giambi and Troy Tulowitzki, they should be more vocal with their teammates about this consistently lacking effort shown by all.
There have been fans calling for the firing of everyone from manager Jim Tracy, to General Manager Dan O’Dowd. Within all discontent lies some sliver of truth. Jim Tracy has under managed and prefers to take a “There’s lots of baseball to be played. We’ll try again tomorrow,” approach which is quite simply not cutting it.
The Brothers Monfort are more than content with the wheelbarrows of money fans dump into the coffers at Blake Street to really want to spend money trying to make this team into the contender it could be. All season long as the Rockies ebbed and flowed from winning to losing, to more losing, the fans called for trades to be made. What they got in return was more of the same.
Ian Stewart was sent down, then back up, then down, then back up. It was an embarrassment to see one of the organizations top prospects under perform and the club to be quietly content with rotating him in and out. Stewart is guaranteed gone as well as Aaron Cook, who has been with the Rockies since 2002, and has seen his ERA balloon the last two seasons (5.08 and 6.03) and go 9-18 in 40 games.
The other third baseman, Ty Wigginton, was brought here as an “upgrade” at the position and is now going to be looking for a new club also, or at least should be, after putting himself in contention for the team’s Mario Mendoza Award.
The only team he seems to be a good hitter on is the digital Rockies of MLB: The Show 2011.
With no other answers, this club needs to look to its leadership and to stop pretending and talking as if they are contenders. I’ve mentioned before that next season, no one should be high on the Rockies to contend like they have the past couple years.
2007 is in the rear-view mirror, and the City of Boston is still grateful for that silver platter of a World Series.
The leadership needs to bring about a winning culture. Something that is lacking in all Denver professional sports teams nowadays. This franchise has yet to win a division title and their lack of achievement in that pursuit is a testament to why they toil in the middle of the NL West.
