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Beyond Defeat: The Rockies’ Slide into Non-Competitiveness

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The Colorado Rockies are dead last in Major League Baseball at 6-31. Unlike past years in their rebuild, they have been completely non-competitive. The Rockies in their history have always been porous on the road. But even in their worst seasons, they always win some series they are not supposed to at Coors Field. So far this season, the home advantage has disappeared, and against premier teams in the league, the Rockies do not belong on the same field.

Top Teams Racking Up W’s Against Rockies

It is unfortunate for the Rockies that they are in the National League West. The NL West is off to a historic start, with the Los Angeles Dodgers (25-13), San Diego Padres (23-13), and the San Francisco Giants (24-14) leading the way. Every other division leader besides the Detroit Tigers (25-13) would be either fourth or tied for third with the Giants in the NL West—a recipe for disaster for this year’s Rockies squad. The Rockies are 1-9 this season in road games against the Dodgers, Padres, and Giants.

In those games, they were outscored 57-18. They were shut out the entire series against the Padres and one game against the Giants. 11 of their 18 runs came in two games against the Dodgers and Giants, including their only win, 4-3 against the Giants.

New Low at Coors

The Rockies’ introduction to the American League-leading Tigers did not go any better. They were competitive in the first game against Detroit. However, par for the course this season, they could not get over the hump, despite solid work from the bullpen yet again. They lost 8-6 in ten innings in a Coors Field special. The remainder of the series was more like their NL West play.

Tuesday’s Rockies game against the Tigers was rained out in a cruel turn of events. The game was rescheduled as part of a double-header on Thursday. So, the sparse number of Rockies’ fans attending got two home losses for the price of one. In two of the most embarrassing losses of the season, there is some competition for that marker; the Rockies got outscored 21-3. The Rockies had nine combined hits over the two games, compared to 28 for the Tigers. Numbers that are familiar to the Rockies on the road. This is happening at home shows that the “Coors Field Effect” does not exist this year.

No Coors Boost For Rockies This Season

Despite finishing with at least 87 losses in the past four seasons, the Rockies have been respectable at home. In 2021, the Rockies went 74-87 overall. Incredibly, they went 48-33 at home, good for seventh best in the MLB. The other six were all postseason teams and finished first or second in their divisions. The Rockies finished with a better home record than any NL East or NL Central team. But a porous 26-54 road record doomed their postseason chances. It is apparent this season how drastically the Rockies’ record falls if they do not perform at home.

The Rockies are a Major League worst 2-17 on the road this season, which is normal. The big difference this season is their Major League-worst 4-14 home record. The Rockies managed to avoid truly disastrous seasons in the past by taking care of business at home after winless road trips. They don’t have that fallback this season. In nine of their 14 home losses, they scored three or fewer runs. The Rockies’ run differential of -109 is a galaxy away from the rest of the league. A full 40 runs behind the 29th-place Baltimore Orioles (-69). Per Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post, the Rockies are hitting a paltry .198 with RISP, only ahead of the Orioles (.192).

 

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Unexpected Turn In Rebuild

A perplexing situation in Colorado. They returned mostly the same offense from last season, led by young stars Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle. Despite finishing 61-101 last season, they went 37-44 at home. Tovar, Doyle, and breakout first baseman Michael Toglia all performed very well at home and on the road.

Forming a nucleus for the young Rockies to build around. But Toglia started this season ice cold, including a 48.6% strikeout rate. Tovar has been on the injured list for an extended period due to a hip injury. For much of the season, Doyle has been the sole producer in a stagnant Rockies’ offense, though that has improved slightly in recent weeks. There was hope that former Rockies manager Clint Hurdle would repair the offense when he took over as hitting coach earlier in the season. However, the unit has still largely struggled. A lot of baseball is left, but it has not been lovely in Colorado.

Outlook for the Rockies Moving Forward

The national media has poked fun at the Chicago White Sox’s record for most losses in a single season, being in danger after only one season. It appears that could be the case. The Rockies are seven games into the second month of the season and are still only at six wins. It took until the first day of May for the Rockies to achieve their first back-to-back wins. It has not come together in a season where some exciting young talent was ready to take the next step, and the rotation was finally reinforced. The Rockies are fully aware of how badly they are playing.

LHP Kyle Freeland, one of the veteran leaders on the Rockies, fell to 0-5 after the close loss to the Tigers on Wednesday night. The Denver native wears his heart on his sleeve. He was visibly frustrated in the postgame presser. Freeland was a leading Rockies rotation member when they last made the postseason in 2018. The losing is wearing on him and assuredly the entire clubhouse.

 

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One silver lining for Colorado is that the national media have credited the Rockies’ attendance recently, considering the terrible play. Fans will continue to support the Rockies no matter how far this team falls. Toglia has played marginally better since the awful start. Jordan Beck has played very well recently, and Doyle can always be counted on. The void left by Tovar is also being felt. Ironically, the bullpen could be on pace for its best season ever.

Perhaps if some things finally turn the Rockies’ way, the club can become competitive again and gain back its respectability at home. No matter what, surely there will be drastic changes for the organization this season. With a tough stretch ahead, things will likely get worse for the struggling Rockies before they get better as their extended rebuild continues.

Main Photo Credits: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

 

 

The post Beyond Defeat: The Rockies’ Slide into Non-Competitiveness appeared first on Last Word On Baseball.