Let’s be completely honest with ourselves, talking about the Colorado Rockies in 2025 can be a drag. Daily losing will do that.
Even this series, which seeks to completely reimagine the franchise from the very top to the very bottom, has been filled with some pipedreams, hard truths, and fantasy wishing that is not likely to line up with any eventual reality.
They aren’t going to sell the team.
There has already been a lot of restructuring in the front office and throughout the staff but reactions to those bits of news show that the average fan won’t care unless the Monforts are gone (which again isn’t happening) or the team starts to win… which isn’t happening anytime soon.
In that case, rebranding would be met with the classic “lipstick on a pig” line. Lobbying for realignment and economic reforms would still be worthwhile endeavors but won’t yield anything close to immediate results. And making the wise decision to cease with the large contracts doesn’t do anything toward improving the roster as currently constructed.
So let’s talk about something a little more immediately tangible and, dare I say, fun.
Speed.
The value of the running game has been a source of constant debate for decades. The game I grew up with in the 90s featured great base-stealers like Otis Nixon, Kenny Lofton, and of course the greatest of all time, Ricky Henderson.
Then the Moneyball revolution provided us with quite a bit of data showing that stolen base attempts have, on average, negative value. The prevailing wisdom was that unless a player could steal at a rate of 75 percent or better, it wasn’t worth trying. That combined with advances in data on when guys tend to run and pitchers learning better pickoff moves, nearly led to the death of the stolen base.
Then MLB stepped in with a series of new rules – limiting pickoff attempts, widening the bases – and we saw an immediate rise, most notably leading to Ronald Acuna Jr. becoming the first 40 (41) HR, 70 (73) SB guy in history.
All of that said, I’m not suggesting that the Colorado Rockies can simply swipe their way to a better ballclub 90 stolen feet at a time. The point is rather that the stolen base being viable once again provides yet another avenue for them to maximize the effectiveness of their speed.
More impactful will be the extra bases they can take on balls in the gap or down the line in the massive outfield at Coors. And even more impactful than that will be having outfielders who can chase those line drives and flyballs down, giving near immeasurable help to the pitching staff who needs it the most.
Like most teams, the Rockies can’t build their entire lineup around speed and especially don’t want to sacrifice too much power to inject some. But history has shown that they can’t just homer their way to victory and that the best way forward is to focus on run prevention.
We tend to think of speed as a skill that helps the offense but the Rockies need to invest in it for the sake of their pitching and defense. Whatever they get on the bases, like continuing to lead the league in triples, will be a bonus.
For far too long, the legacy of the 90s has cast a shadow over this team. The Blake Street Bombers were a lot of fun, but they also only went to the postseason once and did so because that was the one year they had good pitching.
Since then, the end of the steroid era and the implementation of the humidor (and other measures like the “Bridich Barrier”) have changed the dynamic but the team has yet to adapt to the new reality.
If they can start to do that, along with several other new methods discussed in this series, they can start running… in the right direction.
How to Fix the Colorado Rockies: A Focus on Speed Mile High Sports.
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