Resurrecting The Rockies: 2001 Onward

[rockiesfan4ever]

The 2001 Colorado Rockies head into Spring Training with the confidence that comes with a season ended above .500. They look to build off of an 82-80 record last year that netted them 4th place in the NL West. Newly hired Buddy Bell led the team to their 2nd best record of all-time in a full 162 game season. With young players like Todd Helton and Mike Hampton making an impact on the team already and hot prospects like Justin Hampson and Juan Uribe waiting in the wings this team could make a run in the future with the addition of a few pieces.

Spring Training Lineup:
1). Jeff Cirillo- 3B
2). Todd Walker- 2B
3). Todd Helton- 1B
4). Larry Walker- RF
5). Ron Gant- LF
6). Todd Hollandsworth- CF
7). Brent Mayne- C
8). Neifi Perez- SS
9). *Pitcher*

Bench:
1). Greg Norton- 3B/1B
2). Terry Shumpert- UTL
3). Kevin Sefcik- OF/2B
4). Bend Petrick- C

Spring Training Rotation:
1). Pedro Astacio
2). Mike Hampton (L)
3). Denny Neagle (L)
4). John Thomson
5). Brian Bohanon (L)

Bullpen:
CL- Ron Villone (L)
SU- Jose Jimenez
SR- Mike Myers (L)
SR- Juan Acevedo
MR- Gabe White (L)
MR- Ramon Ramirez
LR- John Wasdin
LR- Kent Mercker (L)

All in all, my outlook on the season isn't the most positive one I could have. Looking around I see a lot of holes and a lot of question marks, from the lineup to the back end of the bullpen. In order to make a push against any teams in the NL West some guys will need to have career years and we will need a lot of luck. We are being predicted back into 4th place in the West with a record of 85-77.

[rockiesfan4ever]

Spring Training Preview: Batters

Catcher:
Starter:
Brent Mayne (L/R, 32, 73/73, $1.0M thru 2002)- Mayne and Petrick are pretty close in their abilities as a Catcher, but what this team desperately needs is someone who can handle a pitching staff. Mayne provides, not only experience, but also a better defensive catcher then Petrick does at this point in his career. He hit .301 in the last 2 seasons in about 100 games so if we could get that production from him normally that would be amazing.

Bench:
Ben Petrick (R/R, 23, 73/78)- Petrick is just 23 years old and is definitely lacking experience (he only has 208 career AB). He will provide a very good offset for Mayne when Mayne isn't catching and can help fill in at 1B whenever, God forbid, Todd Helton needs a day off.

Minors:
None- Looking at the age of our players and the lackluster potential they hold this is a definite need for the future in the upcoming draft. Targeting Joe Mauer (17, 72/85) or Chris Iannetta (17, 62/83) to fill our need.

First Base:
Starter:
Todd Helton (L/L, 27, 88/88, $6.1M thru 'Arb 2001)- Is there really anything that needs to be said about this kid. Helton is one of the best defensive first basemen in the game today, add on one of the best bats in the game, and you have an elite player.

Bench:
None- Greg Norton will be used as our 1B off the bench

Minors:
Ryan Shealy (R/R, 21, 69/88)- Shealy is in a very sticky situation because we plan on keeping Helton around for at least the next five years so Shealy may be moved over to 3B or the outfield, depending on how his bat develops. He is already a very good defensive prospect and could become a better fielder then Helton is.

Second Base:
Starter:
Todd Walker (L/R, 27, 84/84)- Walker came over last year and hit over .300 in his limited duty with the Rockies. His role is defined this year as he needs to be able to set the table for Helton and Walker. In a contract year it will be very interesting on how he performs and whether or not he will be back next year.

Bench:
None- Terry Shumpert or Ken Sefcik will be used as our 2B off the bench

Minors:
Luis A. Gonzalez (R/R, 21, 69/82)- Gonzalez is a slick fielding 2B that definitely has the ability to play second base in the Bigs right now, but he has hit under .280 in both of his years in Rookie ball. In order for Gonzalez to get more consideration for the future his bat needs to heat up but the pace he is at has him destined for a bust.

Third Base:
Starter:
Jeff Cirillo (R/R, 31, 81/81, $4M thru 2003)- Cirillo did everything the Rockies asked him for last year in batting over .300 and knocking in over 100 runs for the first time in his career. This year cirillo will be asked to do the exact same thing; to be the broom and sweep up any remnants of what Walker leaves over.

Bench:
Greg Norton (S/R, 28, 78/78)- Norton is a decent baseball player who is on my bench because he can play both 1B and 3B if he is needed to. Hopefully limiting Norton's at bats can help maximize his potential and get us the best value possible.

Minors:
None- Cirillo and Norton aren't long-term potential options at 3B and the only viable option in the draft would be David Freese (17, 58/86).

Short Stop:
Starter:
Neifi Perez (S/R, 27, 76, $1.15M thru 'Arb 01)- As bad as it sounds, Perez is here to hold this spot until Uribe can fulfill his potential and become a viable big league option. In that time Perez is a solid defensive Shortstop and will hit for a decent average.

Bench:
None- Terry Shumpert will be used as our SS off the bench

Minors:
Juan Uribe (R/R, 21, 71/87)- It was a tough battle to pick between Uribe and Quintanilla as the Shortstop of the future. Uribe seems to have the better bat but needs some help with his defense. Let's hope he can live up to his potential and become the star player he could potentially be.

Left Field:
Starter:
Ron Gant (R/R, 35, 83, $1.4M thru 2001)- Gant is a definite power bat and this is seen with his .256 career batting average. Gant is nearing the end of his career but if he could put up another season with a .260-.270 average and 15-20 HR then I would be more than pleased.

Bench:
Terry Shumpert (R/R, 34, 70/70)- Shump is a player who is on my bench because he can play, literally, every position and he can pinch-run if we really need it.

Minors:
Matt Holliday (R/R, 21, 69/83)- Matt seems like he is on track to be a decent player with an above-average bat. If he develops into something more than that then he could become the cornerstone in a lineup for years to come.

Center Field:
Starter:
Todd Hollandsworth (L/L, 27, 80/80, $1.4M thru 2001)- Hollandsworth is a very interesting player. He isn't the fastest, or the strongest, or the best defensively, yet he is a good MLB player who has managed to stick around. This contract year will be very telling for him, along with the development of Choo Freeman and Cory Sullivan.

Bench:
Ken Sefcik (R/R, 30, 77/77)- Sefcik could be the type of player who comes in as a pinch hitter when we need a hit or he could be a good #2 hole hitter. Sefcik isn't the best bench player we could have but he will do.

Minors:
Cory Sullivan (L/L, 21, 65/86)- Cory looks like he will develop into the prototypical leadoff hitter/CF. He has the speed and defense, we are just looking for his contact to improve. It will be a dogfight between him and Choo Freeman (R/R, 21, 67/85) for who will be the Centerfielder of the future. Both need to develop their bat a little bit more but one of them will be my leadoff hitter for years to come.

Right Field:
Starter:
Larry Walker (L/R, 34, 87/87, $2.3M thru 2004)- Even nearing the end of his career Larry Walker is still one of the better RF in the game. Walker may have lost the speed tool from his 5-tool prime but he still is one of the best hitters and best defensive right fielders in the league.

Bench:
None- Ken Sefcik or Terry Shumpert will be used as our RF off the bench

Minors:
Brad Hawpe (L/L, 21, 63/84)- Hawpe won't develop into the next Larry Walker but he could definitely become a serviceable RF with a good bat; thankfully defense doesn't matter too much for a RF.

[rockiesfan4ever]

Spring Training Preview: Pitchers

Rotiation:
1). Pedro Astacio (31, RHP, 87/87,$2.0M thru 2001)- Astacio is the ace of the Rockies staff. Despite his sub-par ERA and questionable stats these last couple of years he has all the stuff to put together and have a good year. Let's hope he can build upon his "successes" of the last couple of years and continues to make strides to be better.

2). Mike Hampton (28, LHP, 83/83, $5.3M thru 2001)- Hampton is going to have a career year in order to justify the contract that was given to him. Nothing stands out to make Hampton a top of the line starter but he has had success in the past and if he does then that is something we would be very happy to have.

3). Denny Neagle (32, LHP, 82/82, $2.85M thru 2002)- Neagle doesn't really have anything that stands out except for the fact he knows 6 different pitches. He has posted decent years in the past and if we could get another year or two like that out of him then he will be worth the investment.

4). John Thomson (27, RHP, 79/82)- Thomson has decent endurance and control to make him an ok option for out 4th starter. He really hasn't had a full season under his wing to make a case for what he has done in the past and we will take the growing pains as he goes through them.

5). Brian Bohanon (32, LHP, 72/72, $1.5M thru 2002)- Bohanon isn't really rotation material, even 5th starter, but he is the best option we have at this point and time. He is going to be a filler until we can find someone, via trade or FA, who can fill his spot.

Other Serviceable Starters:
None- If we have any issues then we will need to add somebody because our depth is limited without dipping into our farm system and pulling up some raw prospects.

Top Prospects:
Unfortunately all of our Starting Pitching prospects are ways away from the Majors and are the likes of Shawn Chacon (RHP), Jeff Francis (LHP), Jason Jennings (RHP) who all need at least 2 if not 3 years of maturation before they are ready for the show.

Bullpen:

Closer:
Ron Villone (31, LHP, 81/81, $1.05m thru 2001)- This is a very fluid situation and, if we didn't have 3 other lefties in the bullpen, Villone could easily have found himself in the setup role. Villone has experience and the endurance to pitch in the backend of the bullpen and even though he has the title of closer doesn't mean I won't use someone else in the situation.

Setup:
Jose Jimenez (27, RHP, 82/82)- Jimenez had a very good year last year for the Rockies and I could definitely see him being used in high leverage situations. With just a little bit more development he could become a very good, back of the bullpen, reliever.

Short Relief:
Mike Myers (31, LHP, 76/76, $1.4M thru 2001)- Mike is a very weird pitcher. The last 4 years he has traded good and bad years (which is bad because he posted a 1.99 ERA last year). Let's hope he can repeat his success last year, especially his success against LHB.

Short Relief:
Juan Acevedo (30, RHP, 71/71)- Acevedo posted a very solid year last year and we are looking for him to repeat that performance. He probably won't stay around after his contract expires, so he will need to prove his worth this year.

Middle Relief:
Gabe White (29, LHP, 79/79, $3.1M thru 2001)- Gabe is the token control guy out of the bullpen. He has had success in the past in high leverage situations and in specialist situations. We're looking for him to do the same as he posted a 2.17 ERA last year with 11 victories.

Middle Relief:
Ramon Ramirez (19, RHP, 71/86)- Ramon is very, very raw. If anyone from the bullpen is on a short leash it would be him. Just 19 years old Ramon has no experience but we believe he has the vitals to contribute to the bullpen at the start of this year.

Long Relief:
John Wasdin (28, RHP, 66/66)- If Wasdin can hold down the opponents' batting average like he did the past couple of years then he will be a serviceable long man who can eat up innings.

Long Relief:
Kent Mercker (33, LHP, 72/72)- Another pitcher who has had some good years and some bad years, last year was the latter. We're hoping her can return to the form he had in the late '90s and be a fill in during games that we don't want to blow the bullpen.

Other Options:
Right now we are carrying 8 pitchers in our bullpen so we wouldn't be expanding anyone and, if we needed to, we could go down to 7 and take down Ramon Ramirez. There's not many people we could call up if injuries were to occur but Matt Miller (29, RHP, 71/79) would be that man.

Bullpen Prospects:
Along with Ramirez we have Justin Hampson (20, LHP, 68/88), Manuel Corpas (18, RHP, 64/85), and Matt Daley (18, RHP, 61/82) as up and comers to watch to fill in our "bullpen of the future". With 3 or 4 of those guys in the back of our bullpen we could have a very solid one for years to come.

[rockiesfan4ever]

Spring Training

Coming into Spring Training we had a couple of questions/battles to be resolved:
1). Who will bat leadoff?
2). Who will be the starting Catcher, Petrick or Mayne?
3). Who will claim the official "Closer" title?

Going into the Spring we has Jeff Cirillo and his good contact in the #1 slot for our lineup and after Spring Training Cirillio (.296/.412/.451/.863) will officially be named the #1 hole hitter with the other competitor, Todd Hollandsworth, hitting in the 6th hole due to his extra power he showed during the Spring (.318/.375/.636/1.011).

Penciled in very lightly as the Catcher before Spring was Brent Mayne and his lackluster Spring (.262/.313/.357/.670) would have cost him his job if Ben Petrick hadn't had produced an equally disappointing Spring (.245/.362/.306/.668).

Last but definitely not least was who would be named the official closer and, while neither of them had very spectacular Springs, Ron Villone will be our official closer. He posted a 4.29 ERA with an opponents' batting average of .302 in 9 games. Jose Jimenez couldn't capitalize on the situation by posting a 4.24 ERA with an OBA of .261 in 10 games. However, the closer situation will probably be handled via committee for the optimal results.

Let's Play Ball!

April Schedule:

3 @ SFG, 3 @ CIN
OFF DAY
3 v. STL, 3 v. CHC
OFF DAY
3 v. ARI
OFF DAY
3 @ STL, 3 @ PHI
3 v. NYM, 3 v. CIN

[rockiesfan4ever]

April 1-3, 2001

(0-0) @ (0-0)

April 1, 2001-

Opening day is finally here and the first Rockies run of the year was scored on a solo HR by Ron Gant (1). After some guy named Barry Bonds followed up with a solo HR (1) or his own the game went into the 3rd inning tied. The Rockies went back-to-back on solo HRs to lead-off the inning; that's not really surprising but one of these was Starting Pitcher Pedro Astacio (1), who hit his first career HR. Astacio and 6 other relievers combined to hold the Giants to 3 runs as the Rockies record their first victory.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 0 1 2 0 1 0 2 0 0    6 12  0
        Giants (SFG) 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0    3  8  0

Starters: Pedro Astacio vs. Livan Hernandez
WP: Pedro Astacio (1-0, 4.26) - 6.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 97 pitches
LP: Livan Hernandez (0-1, 7.20) - 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 84 pitches
SV: John Wasdin (1) - 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 4 pitches
HR: Jeff Cirillo 2 (2), Ron Gant (1), Pedro Astacio (1), Jeff Kent (1), Barry Bonds (1)

April 2, 2001-

Bonds drove in an unearned run in the 1st inning, after an error by Todd Walker. Todd Hollandsworth got the rally started in the 4th inning with an infield single, with 2 outs, and then Brent Mayne doubled him home with a ball into the RF corner. From there on the starters and their gang of 6 relievers held both teams scoreless and forced the Rockies' first extra inning game of the year. It didn't last very long though because a Neifi Perez single was followed by a 2-run HR from Jeff Cirillo (3). A run was added later in the inning but it didn't matter as Ron Villone set the Giants' heart of the order down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 10th.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3  4 12  2
        Giants (SFG) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  1  4  0

Starters: Mike Hampton (6.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 103 pitches) vs. Shawn Estes (7.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 112 pitches)
WP: Jose Jimenez (1-0, 0.00) - 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 8 pitches
LP: Robb Nen (0-1, 13.50) - 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, 20 pitches
SV: Ron Villone (1) - 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 8 pitches
HR: Jeff Cirillo (3)

April 3, 2001

The game was pretty mundane until the top of the 5th inning when Todd Hollandsworth drove in 2 runs with a double to the CF wall and then scored on 2 consecutive Wild Pitches from Felix Rodriguez. The Rockies added 3 more runs in the next 2 innings with a couple of clutch singles from Larry Walker and pinch-hitter Kevin Sefcik and a run-scoring balk from Joe Nathan. Things got interesting in the 9th when, with 2 outs, Jeff Kent hit a 2-run HR that brought the Giants within 3 and then Mike Myers proceeded to give up a hit and 2 walks to load the bases for Bobby Estalella. Ron Villone came in for the Rockies and got Estalella to ground out to Helton to secure the opening week sweep.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 0 1 0 0 3 1 2 0 0    7 15  0
        Giants (SFG) 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 2    4  9  0

Starters: Denny Neagle vs. Russ Ortiz
WP: Denny Neagle (1-0, 3.60) - 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, 92 pitches
LP: Russ Ortiz (0-1, 7.71) - 4.2 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 96 pitches
SV: Ron Villone (2) - 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 4 pitches
HR: Jeff Kent 2 (3)


Inside the GM's Mind: Oh how sweep it is. We lost Jose Jimenez after the 1st game due to Shoulder Bursitis for 5 days. We called up C Walt McKeel (65/69) to take his roster spot. He will be back for the start of the Cardinals series on the 8th.

NL West Standings:

Place	Team			Record	GB
1). Colorado Rockies		3-0	--
2). San Diego Padres		2-1	1.0
t3). Arizona Diamondbacks	1-2	2.0
t3). Los Angeles Dodgers	1-2	2.0
5). San Francisco Giants	0-3	3.0

Around the MLB:
- The Kansas City Royals traded 1B Mike Sweeney (R/R, 27, 88/88, $7.8M thru 2004) to the New York Yankees for 2B prospect Robinson Cano (L/R, 18, 67/86). Sweeney goes right into the lineup at the 1B position and hitting 4th for the Yankees.

*This is a preview of the upcoming series*

April 4-6, 2001

(3-0) @ (1-2)

Probable Pitchers
April 4th:
John Thomson (RHP, 0-0, 0.00) @ Rob Bell (RHP, 0-0, 0.00)

April 5th:
Brian Bohanon (LHP, 0-0, 0.00) @ Seth Etherton (RHP, 0-0, 0.00)

April 6th:
Pedro Astacio (RHP, 1-0, 4.26) @ Pete Harnisch (RHP, 0-1, 14.73)

[jshaw]

nice to see you back, good luck

[rockiesfan4ever]

Thanks man, I need all the luck I can get as you will see below

[rockiesfan4ever]

April 4-7, 2001

(3-0) @ (1-2)

April 4, 2001-

Ahh man to be so close but yet to fall so far away stings. John Thomson and Rob Bell both pitched very well, along with both teams' bullpens. We finally got the game tied when Dennys Reyes threw a wild pitch with the bases loaded. However, Mike Myers allowed a lead-off single which, eventually, turned into a run-scoring double which allowed the Reds to hand the Rockies their first lost of the year.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0    2  5  0
          Reds (CIN) 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 x    3  7  0

Starters: John Thomson (5.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 90 pitches) vs. Rob Bell (7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K, 97 pitches)
WP: Scott Sullivan (1-0, 0.00) - 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 2 pitches
LP: Mike Myers (0-1, 5.40) - 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 17 pitches
SV: Danny Graves (1) - 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 10 pitches
HR: Aaron Boone (2)

April 5, 2001-

This game was not as close as it turned out to be. A 3-run first along with 5 runs scored in the last 4 innings turned out to be just enough to hold the Reds off. It took 2 relievers and a lot of antacid to get through the 9th inning. The Reds sent all 9 batters to the plate and were able to get 5 runs, including getting the winning run to the plate, but Juan Acevedo got Dmitri Young to ground into your routine 4-6-1 DP to end the game and secure the victory for the Rockies.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 3 1 0 0 0 1 2 1 1    9 15  0
          Reds (CIN) 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 5    7 10  0

Starters: Brian Bohanon vs. Pete Harnisch
WP: Brian Bohanon (1-0, 3.00) - 6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 85 pitches
LP: Pete Harnisch (0-2, 10.38) - 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 92 pitches
HR: Todd Helton (1), Ron Gant (2), Dmitri Young (1), Ken Griffey (1)

April 6, 2001-

Pedro Astacio and Jose Rijo both turned in spectacular pitching performances but an error and a clutch 2 out hit was enough to sink the Reds. An error on Shortstop Barry Larkin allowed Todd Helton to reach in the 6th and eventually score on a double play. The winning runs came when Todd Walker lined a 2-run double down the 1B line.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0    4  9  0
          Reds (CIN) 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0    2  6  2

Starters: Pedro Astacio vs. Jose Rijo
WP: Pedro Astacio (2-0, 3.65) - 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 104 pitches
LP: Jose Rijo (0-2, 4.61) - 6.2 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 108 pitches
SV: Ramon Ramirez (1) - 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, 15 pitches
HR: Michael Tucker (1)

April 7, 2001
OFF DAY

Inside the GM's Mind: It's not a sweep and I'll take the results of the series but not with the injuries. On the 4th Todd Hollandsworth twisted his ankle and will miss 9 days; he'll be back for the end of the Cubs' series. The biggest injury was finding out that Brent Mayne will miss 3 months (91 days) due to a Broken Elbow; Ben Petrick will take his starting spot and Mayne will return about the All-Star Break.

NL West Standings:

Place	Team			Record	GB
1). Colorado Rockies		5-1	--
2). Los Angeles Dodgers	        3-2	1.5
3). San Diego Padres	        3-3	2.0
4). Arizona Diamondbacks	2-4	3.0
5). San Francisco Giants	1-5	4.0

Around the MLB:
- Nothing exciting

*This is a preview of the upcoming series*

April 8-10, 2001

(6-0) @ (5-1)

Probable Pitchers
April 8th:
Darryl Kile (RHP, 0-0, 1.13) @ Mike Hampton (LHP, 0-0, 0.00)

April 9th:
Garrett Stephenson (RHP, 1-0, 1.35) @ Denny Neagle (LHP, 1-0, 3.60)

April 10th:
Matt Morris (RHP, 1-0, 2.57) @ John Thomson (RHP, 0-0, 3.18)

[rockiesfan4ever]

April 8-10, 2001

(6-0) @ (5-1)

April 8, 2001-

This game was such a disappointment. The Cards scored a couple of solo runs in the first 2 innings (one unearned) and that held up for most of the game. Darryl Kile held us scoreless until the bottom of the 8th inning when Jeff Cirillo hit a 2-run, 2 out double that tied the game. It looked like we were destined for extras after that but Ramon Ramirez gave up a 2-run, 2 out HR to Mike Matheny that gave the Cards a 4-2 lead. Dave Veres came in and worked around a 2 out single to close the game out for the Cards.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
     Cardinals (STL) 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2    4  7  0
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0    2  4  1

Starters: Darryl Kile (7.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 109 pitches) vs. Mike Hampton (7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 104 pitches)
WP: Steve Kline (1-0, 0.00) - 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 5 pitches
LP: Ramon Ramirez (0-1, 4.91) - 1.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 23 pitches
SV: Dave Veres (2) - 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 12 pitches
HR: Mike Matheny (1), Edgar Renteria (1)

April 9, 2001-

This game was about Denny Neagle and the 5 relievers that accompanied him to hold the Cardinals to 3 hits, but allowed 9 walks in the game. After Ron Gant singled home 2 runs in the bottom of the 3rd allowed us to take the lead, for good. Kent Mercker and Jose Jimenez made it interesting in the 9th though, allowing the Cardinals to load the bases with 1 out before Jimenez got Ray Lankford to strike out and Placido Polanco to ground out to secure the win.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
     Cardinals (STL) 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0    2  3  2
       Rockies (COL) 1 1 2 0 0 1 1 0 x    6  9  0

Starters: Garrett Stephenson vs. Denny Neagle
WP: Denny Neagle (2-0, 3.60) - 5.0 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 6 BB, 5 K, 90 pitches
LP: Garrett Stephenson (1-1, 5.00) - 2.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, 49 pitches
SV: Jose Jimenez (1) - 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 16 pitches
HR: Placido Polanco (1), Kevin Sefcik (1), Ben Petrick (1)

April 10, 2001-

Heading into the 9th I felt secure with bringing in Ron Villone to face 2 lefties and a righty; boy was that wrong. He gave up solo HRs to both lefties (Edmonds and Drew) but was able to wiggle around it and hold the Cards to a tie game. The Cardinals threatened in the 10th and the Rockies in the 11th but neither team was able to score. The Cardinals loaded the bases with 2 outs in the 12th (after an intentional walk to Jim Edmonds) but Juan Acevedo was able to get Mark McGwire to pop out to left to end the rally. After a single from Kevin Sefcik, Neifi Perez blasted a 465 foot HR to dead center for the first walk-off victory of the year for the Rockies.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
     Cardinals (STL) 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0  4 12  4
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 2  6 13  1

Starters: Matt Morris (6.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 5 K, 111 pitches) vs. John Thomson (7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 102 pitches)
WP: Juan Acevedo (1-0, 3.18) - 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 10 pitches
LP: Dustin Hermanson (0-1, 13.50) - 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 9 pitches
HR: Jim Edmonds 2 (3), J.D. Drew (2), Fernando Vina (1), Todd Helton (2), Neifi Perez 2 (2)

Inside the GM's Mind: It was really good to get a series win versus, what has been, the best team in the Bigs so far.

NL West Standings:

Place	Team			Record	GB
1). Colorado Rockies		7-2	--
2). Los Angeles Dodgers		6-2	0.5
3). Arizona Diamondbacks	4-5	3.0
t4). San Diego Padres		3-6	4.0
t4). San Francisco Giants	3-6	4.0

Around the MLB:
- Nothing exciting

[rockiesfan4ever]

April 11-13, 2001

(3-6) @ (7-2)

April 11, 2001-

The big moment in this game was the bottom of the 3rd inning when we hit around the lineup and scored 5 runs in the inning. We used 3 singles, 2 walks, and a double (along with some help from Carlos Zambrano) to score those runs. On a side note, it's really funny when you have a reliever go as long as their starter did (2.2 IP by John Wasdin).

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
          Cubs (CHC) 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0    3  7  0
       Rockies (COL) 1 0 5 0 0 0 2 0 x    8  9  0

Starters: Carlos Zambrano vs. Brian Bohanon
WP: Brian Bohanon (2-0, 3.97) - 5.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 84 pitches
LP: Carlos Zambrano (0-1, 6.52) - 2.2 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, 69 pitches
HR: Ben Petrick (2)

April 12, 2001-

Jon Lieber had this game on lock down for most of his 6.1 IP, but a sloppy 7th and 8th innings cost the Cubs the game. We got back-to-back HRs to start the inning from Ron Gant and Ben Petrick and then back-to-back run scoring singles by Jeff Cirillo and Todd Walker. Walker doubled home 2 runs in the 8th inning to pad the lead, but that was not needed as the bullpen handled the rest of the game easily.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
          Cubs (CHC) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0    2 11  1
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 0 0 1 0 4 3 x    8 15  1

Starters: Jon Lieber vs. Pedro Astacio
WP: Pedro Astacio (3-0, 2.79) - 7.0 IP, 8 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 96 pitches
LP: Jon Lieber (1-2, 3.60) - 6.1 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 104 pitches
SV: Ramon Ramirez (2) - 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 12 pitches
HR: Sammy Sosa (1), Ron Gant (3), Ben Petrick (3)

April 13, 2001-

Mike Hampton just can't get any good luck this year. After starting the year with only 1 ER in 13.1 IP he gets support from the offense today but the bullpen blows it for him. The big blow was in the 8th inning when the Cubs followed up a 2 run 7th inning with a 5 run 8th inning. We rebounded in the bottom half of the inning with 4 runs of our own to give ourselves a shot in the 9th, or so I thought. However, John Wasdin gave up 3 more runs and the Cubs blew us out by scoring 10 runs in the last 3 innings.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
          Cubs (CHC) 0 0 2 0 1 1 2 5 3   14 19  0
       Rockies (COL) 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 4 1    8 13  1

Starters: Kevin Tapani vs. Mike Hampton
WP: Kevin Tapani (1-2, 4.74) - 7.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 120 pitches
LP: Mike Hampton (0-1, 3.15) - 6.2 IP, 11 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 112 pitches
HR: Ron Coomer (4), Rondell White (1), Todd Walker (1), Ben Petrick (4), Mike Hampton (1)

Inside the GM's Mind: At least our offense is consistent. We got Todd Hollandsworth back from his injury.

NL West Standings:

Place	Team			Record	GB
1). Colorado Rockies		9-3	--
2). Los Angeles Dodgers		7-5	2.0
3). Arizona Diamondbacks	5-7	4.0
t4). San Diego Padres		5-8	4.5
t4). San Francisco Giants	5-8	4.5

Around the MLB:
- The Atlanta Braves scored 20 runs and beat the Marlins 20-13.
- The Arizona Diamondbacks will be without SP Curt Schilling for 4 months after he was placed on the DL with "Sever Elbow Tendonitis".

[rockiesfan4ever]

April 15-17, 2001

(5-7) @ (9-3)

April 15, 2001-

It's always a good thing when you are able to chase their starter after 1/3 of an inning, but you need to be able to hold that lead. We gave up our early 3-0 lead after the 4th and, after momentarily regaining it, we lost it again. We headed into the bottom of the 7th down 5-4, but Todd Hollandsworth changed that with a 3-run HR to left-center which allowed us to take a 7-5 lead. The D-Backs cut the lead to 7-6 with a triple and a single in the 8th but Ron Villone shut them down in the 9th for the victory.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
  Diamondbacks (ARI) 0 2 0 1 0 0 2 1 0    6 16  0
       Rockies (COL) 3 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 x    7 10  1

Starters: Armando Reynoso (0.1 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 0 K, 31 pitches) vs. Denny Neagle (5.2 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 96 pitches)
WP: Juan Acevedo (2-0, 2.57) - 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 12 pitches
LP: Byung-Hyun Kim (0-1, 12.79) - 1.0 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 26 pitches
SV: Ramon Ramirez (3) - 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 7 pitches
HR: Steve Finley (5), Todd Hollandsworth (1)

April 16, 2001-

It's good to see a pitcher who has been pitching all year get the victory he deserves. John Thomson pitched another stellar outing, 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, lowering his ERA to 2.29 and getting him his first victory. The offense provided everything he needed in the bottom of the 4th inning. Ron Gant took advantage of a double, error, and walk to blast a Grand Slam to LF and, after a Ben Petrick strikeout, Todd Hollandsworth blasted a solo HR. That was all Thomson and the rest of the Rockies pitchers needed as we cruised to a 6-2 victory.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
  Diamondbacks (ARI) 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1    2  6  1
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 0 5 0 0 1 0 x    6  8  0

Starters: Todd Stottlemyre vs. John Thomson
WP: John Thomson (1-0, 2.29) - 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, 96 pitches
LP: Todd Stottlemyre (0-1, 10.57) - 5.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 8 K, 81 pitches
HR: Mark Grace (4), Matt Williams (3), Ron Gant (4), Todd Hollandsworth (2)

April 17, 2001-

We concluded the series sweep with a very thorough offensive performance. We knocked 11 hits, including 3 HR, in support of Brian Bohanon. The big hit in the 3-run 1st inning was a 2-run single from Jeff Cirillo (who was hitting in the 4-hole due to a minor injury to Larry Walker). The HR barrage started in the bottom of the 7th with a solo HR from Ron Gant and then continued in the 8th with a 2-run HR from Todd Helton followed by a solo shot from Cirillo. Lost in this was the spectacular pitching performance from Bohanon who allowed 5 hits in 6 innings and an unearned run.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
  Diamondbacks (ARI) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0    2  9  1
       Rockies (COL) 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 x    8 11  2

Starters: Brian Anderson vs. Brian Bohanon
WP: Brian Bohanon (3-0, 2.60) - 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 80 pitches
LP: Brian Anderson (0-3, 6.23) - 6.1 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 100 pitches
HR: Todd Helton (3), Jeff Cirillo (4), Ron Gant (5)


Inside the GM's Mind: This is going to be a key stretch for our young season. We have 13 straight games without a day off after opening the season with never more than 6 consecutive games.

NL West Standings:

Place	Team			Record	GB
1). Colorado Rockies		12-3	--
2). Los Angeles Dodgers		10-6	2.5
3). San Francisco Giants	7-10	6.0
4). Arizona Diamondbacks	6-10	6.5
5). San Diego Padres		6-11	7.0

Around the MLB:
- Nothing too exciting

[rockiesfan4ever]

Rockies Acquire Reliever; Shealy's Ship Has Sailed

Neshek will have to change numbers in Colorado

Denver, April 20, 2001--

The Colorado Rockies announced that they have traded 1B prospect Ryan Shealy (21, 67/84) to the Minnesota Twins for RP Pat Neshek (20, 74/85). This move will allow the Rockies to designate Ramon Ramirez to AAA Colorado Springs and have Neshek take his spot in the bullpen; this will be Neshek's first time in the Bigs. Also, this shows the Rockies' commitment to current 1B Todd Helton, who is up for Arbitration after this season, as Shealy was the only 1B prospect behind Helton who had a shot at a solid MLB career.

[OregonDuck1989]

You be killin em

[rockiesfan4ever]

I know man, I hope we can keep it up. We have had a lot of off days tho

[rockiesfan4ever]

April 19-21, 2001

(12-3) @ (12-4)

April 19, 2001-

Dang, stupid bullpen again. Pedro Astacio goes 5.2 IP while only allowing 1 run but every other reliever (sans Mike Hampton) gave up a run. Acevedo went 1 IP and 1 ER, Myers went 0 IP and 2 ER, Jose Jimenez went 0.2 IP and gave up 1 ER, and finally Ramon Ramirez gave up the lead with 1.1 IP and 1 ER. After this game we DFA'd Ramirez and traded for Neshek.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 1 0    5  8  0
     Cardinals (STL) 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 1 1    6 15  0

Starters: Pedro Astacio (5.2 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, 105 pitches) vs. Darryl Kile (7.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 106 pitches)
WP: Dave Veres (2-0, 1.69) - 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 10 pitches
LP: Ramon Ramirez (0-2, 6.10) - 1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 32 pitches
HR: Jeff Cirillo (5), Ron Gant (6), Mark McGwire (3), John Mabry (1)

April 20, 2001-

Mike Hampton held the Cards to 3 runs over 7.1 IP and that was just enough for our offense. The big blow came when we took a 4-3 after a Neifi Perez triple scored one and then he scored on a sac fly from Todd Walker. Newly acquired Pat Neshek got the only batter out he faced, in his debut.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0    4  6  0
     Cardinals (STL) 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0    3  8  1

Starters: Mike Hampton vs. Andy Benes
WP: Mike Hampton (1-1, 3.29) - 7.1 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 107 pitches
LP: Andy Benes (1-1, 4.22) - 5.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 102 pitches
SV: Juan Acevedo (1) - 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 12 pitches
HR: Mark McGwire (4)

April 21, 2001-

Rick Ankiel totally dominated our offense today as he allowed only 2 hits, one of which was a HR to Jeff Cirillo. Denny Neagle, Pat Neshek, and Ron Villone combined to allow the Cards 3 runs on 5 hits, but it wasn't quite enough to seal the victory.

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rockies (COL) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1    1  2  1
     Cardinals (STL) 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 x    3  5  0

Starters: Denny Neagle vs. Rick Ankiel
WP: Rick Ankiel (3-0, 2.88) - 9.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 5 BB, 6 K, 131 pitches
LP: Denny Neagle (2-1, 3.48) - 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 92 pitches
HR: Jeff Cirillo (6), J.D. Drew (5), Ray Lankford (3), Rick Ankiel (1)

Inside the GM's Mind: That was the first series loss of the season for us.

NL West Standings:

Place	Team			Record	GB
1). Colorado Rockies		13-5	--
2). Los Angeles Dodgers		12-7	1.5
3). San Francisco Giants	9-10	4.5
4). San Diego Padres		8-12	6.0
5). Arizona Diamondbacks	6-12	7.0

Around the MLB:
- The Giants had to place Livan Hernandez (SP, 83/90) on the DL for the rest of the season after he suffered a Broken Vertebra, luckily he shouldn't have any permanent harms from the injury.