Black believes the Rockies are headed in the right direction
The Colorado Rockies announced that manager Bud Black will indeed return as the manager through the 2025 season, his ninth season with the team.
The Colorado Rockies announced today that they have extended Manager Bud Black’s contract through the 2025 season. pic.twitter.com/KqsGVKfkqH
— Rockies Club Information (@RockiesClubInfo) October 8, 2024
Black, 67, will stay at the helm of the Rockies despite back-to-back 100-loss seasons which left many to question if he would return. Both Black and the Rockies had been quiet about any discussions during the season despite the fact Black was set to be a free agent after the season. The extension follows the pattern of rolling year-to-year extensions the two parties have agreed to over the last three seasons.
“While our recent results on the field did not meet expectations, we believe this team is heading in the right direction with the growth of our very talented young players,” said general manager Bill Schmidt. “Our organization is committed to giving our fans the winning team that they deserve. We believe the foundation we’re building with our core roster and our farm system, along with Buddy’s skills, experience and knowledge are instrumental in achieving our goals of playing in October.”
Black has been vocal about his desire to continue working with the team for the future. Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reported that Black believes in the youth of the team and hopes to build for a better future, with the desire that the Rockies can follow in the footsteps of the Kansas City Royals who lost 106 games last year but made the playoffs this fall.
“I think anything is possible,” Black said on the final day of the season. “I’m optimistic.”
Since joining the Rockies in 2017, Black has a record of 537-657 over eight seasons. After leading the Rockies to the postseason in 2017 and 2018, the first time the club has gone to the postseason in back-to-back years, he has managed a team to six straight losing seasons. After losing 103 games in 2023, the first time in club history, Black managed a Rockies team to a 61-101 record in 2024. Regardless, he is the longest-tenured manager in team history as well as the winningest manager.
That said, Black is well aware of some of the major issues from the past season.
“The consistency of the starting pitching has to be there … and our pitching was not that, especially earlier in the year,” Black said. “It was too variable and didn’t lead to stretches of good pitching that would have enabled us to win some games.
“Offensively? We’ve talked about it ad nauseam. The strikeouts? We’ve talked about that. We need better contact. Maybe the roster changes. Maybe. But if a lot of the guys who are here come back, they have to cut the strikeouts down.”
Black was initially hired to be the pitching whisperer as the Rockies had a youthful rotation ready to take the stage. He will get a new opportunity as the Rockies have plenty of starting pitching on the horizon, namely 2023 first-round pick Chase Dollander along with a bullpen full of youthful potential. However, the offense has steadily gotten worse under Black’s tenure including numerous franchise lows in 2024 leaving the manager with a peculiar problem to solve in 2025.
Along with Black’s extension, the Rockies announced that bullpen coach Reid Cornelius and assistant hitting coach P.J. Pilittere will not return to the coaching staff. Saunders also reports that the Rockies aren’t undergoing a major coaching staff shakeup.
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