Eric Young Jr. will lead-off the ever hopeful offensive explosion in today’s rubber match with the Cincinnati Reds. The team wanted to give Fowler one more day to rest his ankle. Tyler Colvin will partially start, in that he will be replacing Giambi late in the game, presumably to spell him for tomorrows double-header at Coors.
ROCKIES LINEUP
Young [CF]
Scutaro [2B]
Gonzalez [LF]
Tulowitzki [SS]
Giambi [1B]
Cuddyer [RF]
Pacheco [3B]
Rosario [C]
Moyer [P]
IN GAME CHAT
. LOADING...
I’m probably going to be too busy to watch the game today but may be able to listen on the radio or catch an inning or two. Guess I’m the lucky one.
Cisco Kid asked a question of Ag on another post about what he doesn’t like about Pacheco and I’m guess its his defense. He certainly hits well enough. But he’s learning a new position on the fly. He was a 2nd baseman and a catcher so our great brain trust decides, let’s play him at 3rd base?
But to blame his error for Guthrie’s woes is shifting the blame. Pitchers need to pick up their teammates and Guthrie failed to do so. But what’s new.
And I’ll take one more poke at our manager. Rogers pitched a lights out 6th inning. Two reasons to take him out. 1) Build up his confidence and 2) He looked good, he probably had some trade value. Then he can’t get anybody out in the 7th, his confidence falls and what can we get for him. Maybe trade him for Greg Reynolds.
Just imagine how bad the Rockies would be if they didn’t have the best GM in baseball.
Does anyone else think that winning two games on this trip was the worse thing to happen to this team? Had they not, they would be coming home on a 10 game losing streak, and surely someone’ would have had to have been fired. As it is, I’m sure things will stay status quo.
I agree. Sputtering along losing 2 of 3 in every series on the road is, sadly, meeting our new lowered expectations. So it takes the pressure off the Monforts to do anything.
Cisco, sorry I missed your comment that Bill refers to. Why I’m not high on Pacheco (even though I’m glad to see him playing):
1. Yes, defense. We’ve all heard that he was moved from the middle infield because he was considered a liability at 2B. And that would be fine if the reason they moved him was lack of quickness, etc. But what we’ve seen is more lack of good hands and bad throws. I think we have to assume he’s a Garrett Atkins type at best defensively at 3B. I’ll use Atkins because in some ways they’re similar type hitters and they’ve both been shifted to 3B.
2. Which is fine if he could hit like Garrett Atkins in his prime. But he never has, not in the minors and not since September in the majors. He has really nice contact skills, but he’s never exhibited much power. So again, maybe we’re looking at an Atkins type with 10 HRs a year instead of 25 a year (and we forget, but Atkins had 29, 25, and 21 HRs in his peak years). And that’s the difference between a good third baseman and a marginal one. Or, to be honest, between a starter and a useful bench player.
3. Pacheco is 26. Not a whole lot of guys around MLB who became league average or better starters at age 26 or beyond. Atkins became a starter at 25, and that came after a really excellent AAA season (1.012 OPS). Pacheco is coming off a .721 OPS season at AAA.
So that sounds like I don’t like him, right? Well, not exactly. First, his versatility is a value. Sure, there’s some of the jack of all trades master of none thing, but he’s a really useful guy to have on a roster. Second: not a big enough sample size to say with any certainty, but it looks like he may be a guy who can bolster our lineup against lefties. Last year in AAA: .933 OPS vs. lefties, .729 OPS vs. righties. Major league career (tiny sample): .827 OPS vs. lefties, .681 vs. righties. So that’s a really useful player. Not a full-time starter, but a really useful player. Lord knows we could use a few more of them.
A more creative organization might’ve thought about this: Seth Smith was fine in RF at about 2.5 million bucks a year, but he needed a decent platoon partner. Pacheco is struggling to make it as a catcher (or as an infielder). Hey, why not move him to the easier (instead of the harder) end of the defensive spectrum and stick him in RF? If he can continue to hit lefties at a decent clip, we’ve got our platoon partner. Result: like getting a Michael Cuddyer for a quarter of the cost. Then I’ve got 8 million bucks left over to fix some other problem. Unless your GM doesn’t realize he has another problem — or, in his case, another half dozen problems — in which case he probably think thinks that “clubhouse culture” is a lot more important than actually throwing strikes and not striking out.
But I’m just a fan, and I’m definitely not the Best GM in Baseball.
Ag, can’t really disagree much with what you say about Pacheco. We all know he’s just keeping the bag warm at 3B until Arenado arrives. I’m sure his eventual role on this team is as a super sub filling in at 3B, C, 1B, and hopefully on the corner OF. He’ll be a good guy to gave against LHP.
Call me Demoralized, Distressed, and Despondent.
With the best GM in Baseball, and a Manager for Life, why do I feel so bad?
Gonna be in Denver for two nights later this week.
Going to the ballpark?
No.
Haven’t even watched the last few games. No reason. Nice weather to be outside and enjoying CO. I will go to the games at Coors and am still headed to San Diego and Anaheim (Rays).
What is demoralizing is listening to all the different stats the Rockies are either #1 or top 3 in all of baseball in. I loved how the national talking heads were quick to jump on the 1st team this season to hit 5 hr’s and lose.
I think “Ageless Arthur” Rhodes is sitting at home right now. Let’s scarf him up to pitch a couple of middle innings in Moyer’s starts. We could set the record for the oldest pitching pair.
At least it might be entertaining.
Hey, how about Jesse Orasco?
I think we’re wasting our time talking about Pacheco or Seth Smith or whatever. I’m a fan of Pacheco and think he should play most everyday. Somewhere. Probably most of the time at 1st once we get a 3B. And I think that Seth Smith was the best pinch hitter in baseball. Whether he wanted out of that position or it was Tracy’s idea or Dod, it doesn’t matter. He would be much better there than Giambi. I don’t think he’s an everyday player and when he does play he should play left or 1st. Cargo should be in right, but Jim Tracy knows better.
But none of that matters because we need starting pitching. If we don’t have it then the rest doesn’t matter. And the old guys, Moyer and Guthrie are not getting it done. Didn’t DoD trade for about 100 starting pitchers this past winter?
Hey guys, sorry about the lack of a post game. I’m pretty sick/feverish and can’t bring myself to bang one out. If someone wants to – feel free.
Sorry J. Didn’t see this until Mon am. Although I would probably have been too down w/ clinical depression to write. Need me today?
Jesse Orosco…! Most def, Bill. He makes the Coot Corner, for sure.
Why not get the original “wild thing” Mitch Williams out of the booth and give him a shot.
5 hits, 5 HRs. I didn’t realize that until just now. How can you score only 5 runs when you hit 5 HRs? That’s how.
Renck has a good assessment in today’s DP. Basically calls for an end to the Moyer experiment and agrees with what some of us have been saying: it’s time to go younger, at least in the rotation.
just saw Woody Paige’s column today…probably won’t do any good.
I’m like Robba said above…may be in the area in a couple weeks. I’ve only been to Coors a handful of times (left for college in 1993) and die to go every time I get a chance…this year?? Not even thinking about it.
At least I’ll get some stuff done around the house instead of watching a double header today…
This rotation is aweful. Cant win with this rotation. Get rid of moyer and Guthrie.
Something must be right in Baltimore for some pitchers. Guthrie was struggling until he got there. Hammel has struggled until he got there.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who noticed that Dusty Baker wanted to win yesterday’s game and brought in his closer to get 5 outs. He was able to get both Cargo and Tulo in the 8th. Mr. Manager As Long As He Wants only brings his closer in in the 9th. Which may be why Betancourt is the most rested pitcher in the majors.
When I wake up in the morning, I’m always hoping to see the headline reading “Rockies let Tracy go”. We can always hope. Actually tomorrow would be a good day to fire Tracy. Given that’s it’s an off-day.
There have been some very good managers hired in the last year or so that would have been an improvement over Tracy. Some that come to mind are Buck Showalter, Davey Johnson, Kirk Gibson, Don Mattingly. Probably more. Guys who aren’t managing but could replace Tracy are Terry Francona, Alex Cora (or is it Joey?), Ryne Sandburg, Mike or Greg Maddox. But frankly unless we replace the “best GM in baseball, head and shoulders above everybody else” it probably doesn’t matter.
And on a more important topic, take a moment or two to remember at Vet today.
Bill, good thoughts, particularly the final one.
And good point about Dusty doing what it takes to win. You may know Dusty Baker is always ridiculed by the stats guys, but this is one instance in which everyone should agree he got it right. He brought in his best pitcher to face our best hitters, and that was very likely the difference. Jim Tracy, meanwhile, is “saving” Betancourt for … for what? For trade value?