Guthrie entered yesterdays game feeling under the weather. Perhaps he should have stayed in bed as the Padres, the very same team that coming into Monday nights game carrying with them the second-lowest team batting average in the National League, filled up the box score with extra base hits. You wouldn’t know they had been struggling at the plate as they had 14 hits at game-end and handed the Rockies the 7-1 loss.
The problems on offense can be seen against left-handed pitching so far this season, having only two runs in almost 30 innings. Who can forget Zito and Bumgarner pretty much getting outs at will.
While last nights game held little in the way of bright spots, one that came courtesy of CarGo being sidelined with strep throat was the excellent night at the plate for Tyler Colvin. Colvin, who went 2-4, was the only person able to “crack” the Luebke puzzle with the lone RBI of the game. All of that success and he was getting it left-on-left, something Jim Tracy wouldn’t normally setup.
After the game Colvin talk to Troy Renck about Luebke’s pitching:
He was hitting his spots, mixing that cutter-slider he has, the hard one…He kept coming after us that way and kept us off-balance and getting outs. We’ve had some good comebacks. We feel good about it. We know it’s there.
Jaredean, good observation about the Rox ineptitude against lefties … I’m going to look at some stats when I have the time to see whether they are particularly lame against lefties. I know that was the feeling last year, and a big reason they wanted Cuddyer to balance out the lineup.
For all the Herrera fans out there this is exactly the reason that it remains critical that the Rockies get a power bat that can play a decent thirdbase. Lefty pitchers have basically had their way with the Rockies now forever, and with Blake not panning out – it looks like that will continue – especially when Tulo is in a cool streak.
Not sure why hitting has to be all power…when Johnny had 3 hits the other day i’m sure it didn’t matter that they weren’t “power” hits…i would take someone that hits for average at 3rd, hitting .280+, over a “power hitter” that may get a lot of HR’s but very little in the way of on base…we don’t have the luxury of having power at 3rd right now, so having the Sparkplug there to make plays and hit for average to me seems like a fine alternative…
I agree with Jardean. Why would the Rocks need a 8 hole hitter to hit for power. They need someone to get on base in that spot. Tulo and Cargo need to step up and hit for power. Like Billy Bean says in Money Ball, “WE NEED PEOPLE WHO GET ON BASE.”
Sunday was another one of those games I mentioned where Herrera does well but the team loses. Maybe its a result of Herrera playing in a lot of those games where the team takes the Sabbath off, but the Rockies just don’t win games with Herrera in there.
Looked it up. Rockies are 58-72 in games Herrera has started in his career.
oh man, please don’t pull a stat like that out – to make the point that we are a losing team because Herrera is in makes no sense…i agree that it is most likely that he was part of the “Sunday Special Line-Up Losing Streak” that went towards those stats, plus you gotta look at who he replaces a lot of time…he was in there when Tulo was injured for several starts, etc…
I know many will see me defending Johnny as blind allegiance, and i admit much of it is based on just liking him as a person and what he has done over certain streaks in the past, but I honestly believe that if you look at him as a whole he is a better option to start multiple games (not spot start) because he gives us consistency with the glove, can switch hit and can get key hits when needed…
Baseball players have to have short memories to survive, but we need to make sure we, as fans, have longer memories and don’t jump into huge directions one way or another based on a few games here and there…last season he was hitting close to .300 through the middle of May and that was when Tracy started sitting him…he went cold and i thought it was because of being benched, but now we know he was having major issues with his mom…
Remember in 2010 he had a big stint coming in when Tulo was injured and he ended 2010 batting .284, so i’m pretty sure he isn’t the person we can point out as being the reason we are losing games…
All players go cold at times…the thing is when a power hitter goes hot he get HR’s and everyone remembers those…someone like Johnny goes hot, 3 for 4, 4 for 5 and it is forgotten the next time he strikes out twice in a row.
and yes, i did give myself a thumbs-up on my own comment
Herrera is a major leaguer + he is here to stay. Get over it. He’s yer prototypical utility guy, good field good hit. Good guy.
I wish Colvin could play third base!
Carefully what you wish for !!!!! After all, according to Drew Goodman, the Rockies are trying to get Rosario up to speed at 1st base.
Strictly my opinion but there are no position players within the Rockies except for Tulo and Helton. Who the hec knows what we might see everyplace else.
I really do think this team can be the best Rockies team in history but not until the starting pitching and Tulo/ Cargo heat up. With those things struggling there is way too much pressure on the Fowler’s and Nelson’s in this lineup and a young bullpen which has actually done well. The Rockies are going to figure out who their true ace of the staff is very soon, one of these guys is going to step up and end this HORRIBLE starting pitching trend. I’m guessing it’s going to be old man river tonight followed by a strong performance by Nicasio!!!!
ok Jaredeem – no reply available for your response, so I will reply here. Johnny is a .259 (not .280) hitter with absolutely no power, and trending in the wrong direction. If the Rockies are serious about 2012, they will either bring up Arenado or trade for some right handed power that can play thirdbase – but that’s just me! Herrara is not the answere at third.
I guess I’m one of the rare Chris Nelson supporters. I’m liking him at 3B now that Pacheco is out of the picture. Threw out two hits last night; he’s more relaxed knowing he will play everyday without having to platoon. With regular playing time, I’m sure Nelson will settle into a groove and hit .280 with a little bit of power. Bottom line is that he’s hitting 8th which takes a little bit of an adjustment being in front of the pitcher.
I suggest the tactic Tony LaRussa had employed so often – flip flop pitcher and Nelson. That way Nelson won’t have to worry about trying to turn the lineup over. Plus I certainly like the idea of Nelson leading off the inning instead of a pitcher.
you flip-flop then you have your #7 hitter having to worry about “flipping the line-up”…it is all arbitrary when you get through the line-up the first time anyway…your pitcher might be 2nd up in an inning or 4th…
hey JD did you get my emails? just curious, no rush. doubt you check that addy often.
sorry! yes, i did but i’ve been fighting horrible jet lag and haven’t had time to really work on things…i have a great idea in my mind, but most likely it will have to wait until the weekend…thanks for getting that together – it will be money to have!
Well the last two games seems like a repeat of last year. After a big win Saturday night the team goes into the tank. No hitting, especially in the clutch, and poor starting pitching. I know it’s very early in the season but I don’t see much to be excited about. Once they sent Pacheco down they’ve lost any flexibility they had. The back up 3rd baseman is either a catcher, a rightfielder or a middle infielder. Same with the backup 1st baseman plus a left-hander power hitter who can’t field or run but will walk. But if he walks late in the game and is the tying or winning run you probably need to pinch run for him.
Last night Frazier started talking about what a great job Apodoca has done. Huh! Which starting pitcher has shown growth over the past few years? Nicosio, maybe? Chacin, no. Pomeranz, not yet. DLR, yes but he hasn’t pitched in 11 months. Ubaldo had 3 good months and then went downhill. Look up inconsistency in your dictionary and you could see a picture of Jason Hammel. Yes, the bullpen has been good for the most part but unless the starters start to pitch deeper into games there is little doubt that some of them will start to fade.
Tonight’s starting pitcher for the Padres is Anthony Bass. From what I heard last night he owns two major league wins. And guess who they came over?
I’m usually a glass half full guy, but I’m certainly depressed at the start of the season.
The problem with this team is only partially with the players. The real problem is management. They got rid of Don Baylor as the hitting coach, yet while he was here, at least they scored runs.
Did anyone notice that since Baylor became the hitting coach for Arizona that their players have become extremely patient at the plate seeing far more pitches than the Rockies did in the last series and they no longer lead the MLB in strikeouts.
As far as JT goes, a blogger for the Pirates rated him at 0 on a scale of 1 – 5 for his ability to analyze talent. I tend to agree with that assessment. You have a manager who two teams not only fired but would not even consider bringing him back into their organizations.
You having a hitting coach who was fired by the San Francisco Giants and blamed it on the players for being free swingers who wouldn’t pay attention to him.
I like Bob Apodaca. but who has he really helped other than Jorge De La Rosa?
As long as current management remains in place under the leadership of DOD and JT it really doesn’t matter who the players are.
For those of you who advocate a call up for Arenado, I really hope it doesn’t happen as long as JT is in charge. I truly believe that JT could find some way to seriously hurt Arenado’s development.
I haven’t been posting much – for two reasons. First of all, the baseball knowledge on this site is immense (and I wonder what can I say that really adds) but secondly, I’m depressed about this year and also…..bored. I couldn’t wait for the season to start and it’s already feeling like a slog. This is how I felt at the end of last year. Then they cleaned house and brought in a bunch of new talent yet it doesn’t seem the team is energized AT ALL (especially Tulo – what gives?) and we’re barely into it. The decisions O’Dowd made to get in a whole stable full of wannabe pitchers hasn’t really worked out that well. The AAAA group of Nelson, Herrera and EY2 made the 25 man roster. The Sunday charade continues (although it’s great to see both Jenny C and Dave Krieger finally ask some hard ball questions about it to JT in post game) and Jim Tracy continues his unchecked “little league/everybody plays” philosophy! When he comes on TV now I actually mute the sound. He drones on and on and says nothing. These early games mean as much as the later ones. We are losing to horrible teams! I am hanging in there, though. I love the Rockies and look at this mainly as a bridge year but I didn’t think it would be THIS awful! I love the guys coming up soon, and I love the Cuddyer signing. I love Scutaro’s fire (and his bat is catching up). I think Nicasio and Pom will be great, just maybe not this year. JDLR will be up in June. Can you tell I’m talking myself off the ledge? Thanks to all of you guys for listening to me and teaching me so much.
Batgirl, you should never apologize for posting – every one of your posts have excellent insight and your opinion is as important as anyone here…what makes this site amazing is thoughtful analysis by the fans, not the paid talking heads that have to worry about blow-back…you are calling it like you see it and it is obvious you love the game and the team and are as frustrated as the rest of us…I know I’m not alone in saying, “keep your comments a comin’”
Batgirl you are the RWO replica of RoxGirl over on Purple Row, and she usually ROCKS except when she got all excited about the signing (might have been a trade actually) of Jose Lopez.
Jaredean is right keep those comments coming and we will find some Rockies hope for you to hang on to.
“little league/everybody plays”
LOL
“it’s great to see both Jenny C and Dave Krieger finally ask some hard ball questions about it to JT in post game”
Amen
What an awesome post. You may have talked me off the ledge too.
My prediction for tonight:::::
Rockies 7 Padres 1
Moyer 7 IP 4K ER
This will be the beginning to much better Rockies baseball.
Yep and EY2 steals two bags on those Padres, too!
He would have to have another pinch hit inning were he bats twice like earlier this year to accomplish that. I don’t see him starting this one. I wish Jr. was still at second base, he does not have an outfield arm.
I would agree with you but if there is a Lefty pitching I bet the Rocks only have 3 or 4 hits and one run. They can’t hit lefties just like last season.
Short sample (10 games) but I can see the tendencies developing. There are some positives(not enough) and some negatives (too many).
The positives: Except for white flag Sunday lineups, JT hasn’t tinkered with the lineup at all unlike last year which should give us more of a flow in the game as we get deeper into the season. I have noticed the Rox have been striking out at a far lesser pace than last year. We are getting quality ABs especially with runners in scoring position which has been scarce. Another improvement by JT is using Giambi earlier in the game if the situation calls for it like he did last night with two on and the score 6-1 in the 7th inning. Our rotation depth is much better than last year. Looks like Christian Freidrich can give us a boost in an emergency. Not to mention that we have Alex White and DLR in the pipeline.
The negatives: The rotation has performed way below expectations (with the exception of Moyer). We’ve given up runs in the first inning in what seems like every game (actually seven of 10 games). When we start the game behind, it puts more pressure on both the pitchers and hitters which are not conductive to Rockie baseball. Another negative that is really annoying to me is the lack of killer instinct in rubber games. We are 0-3 in rubber games. Win those three and we would have won every series so far. Problem is half of the rubber games fall on Sundays. JIM TRRRRRAAACCCYYY, take note!!! Put the best lineup in rubber games, man. Even a second grader can figure that out. Defense has also been way below expectations which are causing SPs to throw 10-15 extra pitches which in turn shorten their outings. I expect that this is just a hiccup and we should clean this up in due time which is good news.
In summary, given our history of slow starts out of the gate if we can finish April right at .500 give or take a couple we should be in good shape. I do not foresee extended slumps by the Rox May and onward. Whether the bullpen has been gassed or not after April goes a long way in playing consistent winning baseball after we flip the April page of the calender.
On a side note, I have to give JT a lot of credit in handling his bullpen. Look at what happened to Brian Wilson, Jon Broxton, and Heath Bell. They are injured or are ineffective because they have been overused at all costs in several one or two run games in the NL West competition.
Excellent analysis. This should be a main post!
RMH,
Sunday’s game was not the rubber game of the series, they had already won the first two games. Therefore, they did win that series 2-1.
Yes it was a rubber game in my opinion – broom them. They failed.
If you’re right, Pooter, then Moyer gets his “oldest pitcher to win a game” award! Here’s hoping. Thanks for the kind words, guys. I am officially off the ledge.
Batgirl:
I second the kudos for your post and share your major observations, especially about being down on the year so far and finding the Rox play boring baseball.
I’m resisting the temptation, though. Last year they went 17-8 in April and looked like the demons were gone. How’d that turn out?
So we can’t extrapolate 10 games into a lost season, but there are too many times it’s a rerun of last year:
* giving up runs early, always having to dig out of a hole
* never adjusting to what the other guys’ pitcher does; this would be evident in more offensive pressure the 2nd or 3rd time through the order
* some new things to worry about, like what’s with all the errors all of a sudden?
* with Scutaro’s remarkable exception, where’s the fire? They look listless too much of the time.
My biggest nagging question is – does anyone really believe Jim Tracy is the guy to manage this team to the World Series, even assuming the talent was there (it’s not)?
In addition to Scutaro, Cuddyer plays hard all the time. But otherwise you’re right about the lack of intensity that seems so evident.
I was at the game last night and it sure looked like too many players were just going through the motions…a totally listless bunch.
As I asked the other night, when is O’Dowd’s “Culture of Accountability” going to kick in? I know it’s only ten games, but the early signs for this team are not promising.
The good news: Bass is a RHP.
The bad news: he beat the Rockies twice last year while he was still in diapers.
Mr Peabody, I would have to say NO. Jim Tracy is not the person to lead us….into next month, let alone the World Series. I often feel like only when he’s out of the picture can we turn things around. Before I rile up any JT defenders, here are my reasons for saying this:
* His overtinkering with batters/pitchers. One of my favorite lines in Moneyball was when Billy Beane said “I don’t believe in righty-lefty” !! This tendency annoys me both ways….bringing in one of our bullpen guys for one batter (like recently when Reynolds came in for one guy – when our bullpen was already taxed – he didn’t leave him in) AND when he won’t let a left-handed batter (like Seth Smith all those years) get a lot of time against a lefty pitcher. Baseball is not chess. These are professional baseball players – let them play and perfect their game!
*His refusal to stabilize the lineup. One of the things I LOVED about him when Hurdle got fired was that he stabilized the lineup. No more sitting a starter after he struck out, etc. He treated the players like grownups. He stopped doing that after he got Manager of the Year. ?????
*On a minor note, his defensiveness when anyone questions his decisions (it’s obnoxious)
*My main issue with him is trust….or lack of it. I simply don’t believe he consistently puts the best team out there everyday to win. He’s too concerned with rest, age, coddling. I call this handling of big leaguers the “chickification” of baseball. They are healthy and in their prime – they make a lot of money to play the game. Put out your best lineup to win. Period.
You guys really got me going today.
Batgirl, you rock!
I would agree with all your points, especially the contrast between the Tracy who took over in ’09 and the Tracy who constantly disrupts the lineup.
I too was surprised by his defensiveness in answering a few questions from the assembled media on Saturday night. It’s about time someone started asking some
legitimate questions, rather than the softball lobs we so often see. The fact is, Tracy probably has it easier in this regard than almost any manager in MLBB.
And let’s not forget that he was fired by two other teams. I’d have to imagine there were many similarities in all three situations, as he’s still basically the same manager he was with those other teams (Dodgers, Pirates).
He is undoubtedly a nice man and the players (apparently) like him, but he doesn’t seem to be a particularly effective leader.
There was, though, one positive note last night—he actually used Giambi in the seventh, instead of saving him for later in the game. That was a welcome change, even though it didn’t pay off.
Oh boy now you’ve got me riled up. LOL. I feel like it’s the battle of the glass half full and glass half empty.
*Over tinkering hitters/pitchers* – He’s not doing it this year. The lineup has been stable except for the Sunday lineups. Last year he was forced to tinker because he had no depth (you wanted Wiggy to be a starter???) to plug the sinkholes at 2B, 3B, and various injuries (Tulo, Helton, CarGo, DLR) along with a player (Ubaldo) that tried to undermine the team single handedly subconciously. As for the lefty-righty matchups, all managers do that. Plus I’m sure Agbayani will have the stats to show why (ex. Seth Smith) some players can’t do left vs left. If you show you hit both then you are in the lineup against both righties and lefties (see CarGo, Helton, Giambi). You can’t say you are tinkering with the lineup if CarGo caught the strep throat and Tyler Colvin was put into the lineup. As for the “tinkering with the pitchers part”, it might sound maddening during in-game action, but over the long term he handles the pitching staff very well. Brian Wilson & Jon Broxton lasted only a couple of years and lost their velocity because they were overused. JT needs pitchers over the entire season, not just April. It’s a fact as JT says that the starters has to go deeper into the game so he doesn’t have to “tinker” with the bullpen.
*his refusal to stabilize the lineup – see comments above; i think we have a stable lineup. The “stable” lineup has always been Scoot, Dex, CarGo, Tulo, Helton, Cuddy, Hernandez/Rosario, Nelson. But I’ll give the credit for the Sunday lineups which doesn’t even resemble a stable lineup.
*trust – I think he does trust the team now that we have veterans to mix with the youngsters. So you think Helton must play 155 games and expect him to swat 35 HRs and drive in 120? No! I prefer 100% Helton in September/October. Same concept applies to other older players. Another evidence – remember Miggy Olivo? Boy he could hit at Coors, but catching everyday caused him to go ice cold with his bat after the all star break. He now trust Dex and EY to do some bunting and they have laid down some beautiful bunts this year in just 10 games.
P.S. I’m not trying to go all out defending JT; just pointing out the reasons for all the moves that annoyed most of us but he’s definitely less annoying this year than last year at least for me with the exception of Sunday lineups. And I won’t be crushed if JT unexpectedly get fired. Nor will I be crushed if he continues on an indefinite handshake contract.
Great points RMH. We always try and pin everything on managers and coaches but at some point players have to play and the FO has to scout and aquire quality players. Tracy doesn’t drop easy fly balls, boot simple grounders, or make awful throws. He doesn’t swing at ball 4 in the dirt or fail to move a runner over. He also has to play the guys that the FO decides to pay. There is blame to go around for everyone. From management, coaches, and players. I’ve been critical of decisions he’s made but I really don’t have a problem with his managerial style this year…except for Surrender Sunday’s of course.
There’s the exact same lineup tonight that is a “stable” lineup as I pointed out in my earlier post. Going to the ball game tonight (I’m a Guys Night Out Tuesday nights fan) and I hope to see Moyer make history! All I ask for tonight is for the Rox to strike first and play airtight defense. Then Moyer has a nice chance at history.
I think that the absolute bottom line is this – Tracy is giving up on 26 games out of the year…26! That is how many Sundays there are in the season (if my count is right) and this team has proven that they will loose each and every one of them if Tracy continues to put the same terrible team on the field each and every Sunday. That is 26 games we for sure have little chance of winning that we know of. Then you can point to those games where we have a runner on first and they aren’t bunted over – how many games will we see lost by one run where there were several things like that that could have made the difference? Why not use the hit-n-run offense when you have someone struggling at the plate (Tulo?) that tends to hit into DP’s?
The thing a manager brings to the game is the little differences. You can take our same exact players and put them in with a completely different set of coaches (batting, pitching, bench, etc.) and they would play differently because they would be asked to do something in a different situation. I would KILL to have Davey Lopes as our first base coach. He is, in my mind, the best FBC in the business. If he was there I think that Tulo and others that struggle on the base paths would have more success. Go down the line: pitching coach, hitting coach, etc…if you brought in the best in each of their positions and then got a manager that was the best at what he does you would see a completely different team out there and it would reflect in how they play. Same guys, same talent, different people behind them.
All you have to do is look at this team 1/2 the way through 2009 – exactly like what Batgirl pointed out…same guys, new manager…completely different outcome.
SURRENDER SUNDAYS! I love it! One of those 10 game ticket packages! Hot dogs. Beer. Two Cokes. A program. I can hear George pitching it btwn innings now! Go to Colorado Rockies DOT com!
I am kind of interested to watch this experiment. Normal teams(sensible?) fire the manager after performances like the Rockies these last two years. Dan O’Dowd set out to disprove the axiom “you can’t fire the players”. He fired the players. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen this before. If the trends remain the same as last year, I think it will be pretty conclusive that the problem lies with non-player leadership despite all of the DOD assertions otherwise.
It’s early. It frustrates me just typing that, but it is. To be clear, when they are still flailing going into Memorial day, it will no longer be early. But right now it is early. According to Dan O’Dowd, it is the players jobs to correct themselves and last years group was incapable. He talked me back onto the fence this off season and while remains early, I’m going to stay there and give it some time to see if his new group indeed has this auto-correct capability.
I do still kind of wonder what DOD thinks a manager is for, but again I’m not going there. Yet. I sure was comfortable in the fire Tracy yard, though.