OOTP 19 save: Colorado Rockies (post 2) - notsobabybombers's Blog

notsobabybombers's Blog

OOTP 19 save: Colorado Rockies (post 2)

Posted on July 18, 2018 at 08:17 AM.

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Rockies Round Into Shape With Strong May

A disappointing April left fans wondering if last year�s playoff berth was an anomaly rather than a sign of things to come. With a strong May, Colorado proved that it�s a talented ball club.

After May, the Rockies stand 30-26, third in the NL East behind the 35-21 Dodgers and the 32-22 Diamondbacks.

The offense seems to be getting into gear but a rough April still has them ranked 8th in the NL in RS. They�re up to 4th in BA and HR yet still 6th in OBP.

The pitching hasn�t gotten much better but there are bright spots. Jon Gray leads the staff at 6-2 with a 3.44 ERA. Reliever turned starter Chris Rusin (2-0, 2.35 ERA) is having a career year. He only has 4 starts, though, so it�s early to fairly evaluate him.

The team signed Anibal Sanchez to a minor league deal, and after playing well at AAA, he�s part of our rotation. Jeff Hoffman (3.80 ERA) and Tyler Anderson (4.31) have not been great.

Wade Davis has taken over the closer spot, even though Bryan Shaw is back from a DL trip and outperforming him (1.59 ERA compared to 3.33.) Jake McGee (4.55) Adam Ottavino (6.61) and Mike Dunn (7.62) have not lived up to their contracts. Scott Oberg�s ERA has steadily decreased but�s still 3.99.

Jairo Diaz joined the club after performing well at AAA and he�s got a 2.57 ERA.

Health wise, the club is rounding into shape, but struggling starter Chad Bettis (6.94 ERA) and outfielder Charlie Blackmon are hurt. Blackmon can�t stay healthy this year, he�s struggling on the field and he got a concussion earlier in the season before this latest injury.

Offensively, Mike Tauchmann (.333 BA in 19 games) continues to start and hit leadoff in Blackmon�s stead. Ryan McMahon won his second Rookie of the Month award in a row, and he recorded five hit game in May. (A feat duplicated by Trevor Story later in the month.) Dahl (.228) and Ianetta (.248) continue their mediocrity. Story�s BA is up to .240, Parra is still producing (.371) LeMahieu is up to .344, and Arenado is down to .297.

Desmond has been solid off the bench, Car-Go had a rough month, as his BA dropped by about 15 percentage points and the bench, overall, is a little thin.

Standings:

Spoiler

Mediocre June Shows Rockies Are Who We Thought They Were

After a strong May, it seemed that the Rockies were back to their 2017 selves. In other words, they looked like a playoff team again. A bad June, though, has the team reconsidering its plans for the rest of the season.

On July 1, the team stands at 39-44. They have dropped to fourth place in the NL West ( 11.5 games behind the Diamondbacks and Dodgers atop the division.) The Rockies are also 7 games out of a WC spot. That deficit isn�t insurmountable, but the team�s hopes for contention are on thin ice.

The offense has fallen to 11th in RS (but they�re still 4th in BA and HR.) They still can�t get on base (7th in NL.) The pitching stands 10th in RA with the 10th best starter�s ERA. The BP ERA has fallen to 14th, though.

The team signed Zach Putnam and Jason Motte in an attempt to fix the BP. Putnam recovering from a UCL tear, was sent to AAA but he just got hurt, again. His diagnosis is pending. Motte, having pitched in the independent leagues throughout the 2018 season, will join the big league club right away.

Chris Ianetta wasn�t having a good season as our starting catcher but, when he went down with a broken hand in June, the offense suffered. Tony Wolters and Tom Murphy have been mediocre.

Though Charlie Blackmon has returned, Mike Tauchman continues to produce, which is why he�s kept his starting spot as the leadoff hitter. (.318 average n 33 games.) Blackmon is rounding into shape (.247 average) after a horribly slow start.

David Dahl has been on fire; his average dropped to .203 in early May but he�s gotten it all the way up to .280. Arenado is still solid (.295, 15 HR) and Ryan McMahon is a fixture at 1B (.256, 13 HR.)

LeMahieu�s average has dropped to .329 but he�s still playing like a great 2B in his contract year. If the team decides to sell, which seems likely, he could get Colorado a good haul.

Story�s average is down to .218 but he�s still got some pop. Nunez and Desmond have still been solid off the bench but Desmond has struggled after a hot April?May.

Jon Gray had a hot start but his ERA has steadily climbed in recent weeks. Tyler Anderson remains inconsistent. (4.29 ERA.)

Wade Davis has settled in as the closer, which is especially good because Bryan Shaw�s ERA has climbed to 3.58. McGee, Dunn and Ottavino continue to disappoint. Ottavino could be on his way out if he doesn�t improve. Rusin has been solid, both as a starter and reliever, with a 3.07 ERA.)

The Rockies might have started their sale on the first day of the new month. Carlos Gonzalez, who had fallen out of favor with Bud Black, was confined to the bench. He was growing increasingly unhappy. Given his morale and his contract (FA after this year,) the Rockies shopped him. A few contenders wanted him, and the Nationals made the best offer. So, Car-Go�s days as a member of the Rockies are done; he was traded to Washington for Drew Ward, Taylor Gushue and Phillips Valdez. Just a year or two ago, Car-Go would have fetched a huge haul. But Colorado held onto him, and his value plummeted. Fans were upset to see the longtime Rocky go, and they were also upset for the mediocre return.