Are these Rockies for real?
By George Kay
Ever since their incredible September surge last season, baseball observers have wondered whether the Colorado Rockies are the real thing.
Certainly last year's sensational run in which Colorado won 21 of 22 games cannot be overlooked, but that was last time around, and the Rockies have to prove themselves all over again in 2008.
Now that the new season is underway, there will be ample opportunity for the Rockies to prove they belong among the elite in major league baseball.
The Sports Illustrated pre-season edition ranks Colorado as the number one team in the tough National League West, a division that includes the likes of the Dodgers, Padres and Diamondbacks.
Remember, the Rockies won the National League pennant last season, despite the fact that the D-Backs won the division title. So a division championship would be quite an accomplishment for Colorado.
After watching these Rockies in spring training in Arizona, I am convinced this team has a much more confident approach this time around. Success can do that for a team, and with a cast of proven players on hand, Colorado can make a good case for the respect that the club is getting.
This is basically the same outfit that rolled to the league championship last time around, with the exception of second base, where Kaz Matsui took his game to Houston. Jayson Nix has played well enough this spring to earn the second base job and other than some changes in the pitching staff, the Rockies have basically the same lineup that played so well down the stretch in 2007. Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki is getting some well-deserved recognition as a multi-talented infielder and a team leader. He is credited with leading the charge for Colorado in the second half of the '07 season, and he appears to be a huge part of this ball club for years to come.
In trimming the roster down to the 25-player limit last week, Colorado elected to send several former Casper Rockies players down to the minors. Seth Smith and Ian Stewart were sent down to Triple A Colorado Springs, as was shortstop Jonathan Herrera. So with those demotions, Colorado's roster contains just only four Casper grads.
Nix played here back in 2001, Casper's first year as a minor league club. Three Colorado pitchers started in Casper: Ubaldo Jimenez, Franklin Morales and Manny Corpas all started their professional careers here.
Like a great many big league teams, the Rockies will begin the season with 13 pitchers on the roster and as the spring turns into summer, I would expect players like Smith and Stewart to be called up from Colorado Springs as Colorado sees a chance to reduce the number of pitchers on the roster.
Allow me one prediction going into the season, and I expect Josh Newman to be one of the former Casper players to be called up. Newman is a tough left-handed relief pitcher who shows a lot of potential.
And Ryan Speier already has proven his ability to perform out of the Rockies' bullpen, and I wouldn't be surprised to see either or both of those relief specialists to be back at Coors Field before too long.
There is no telling at this point what kind of team Casper will have this summer. Tony Diaz returns as manager, but he won't know what players he will get here until after extended spring training in Arizona.
Casper will have a new name, and there is a need for an improved ball club when the Pioneer League season begins in June. The Casper Ghosts need to be competitive and entertaining, and that would make the 2008 season truly memorable.
Local fans are hungry for success, and they will respond to a team that delivers a solid brand of baseball.