If you struggle with the pronunciation of Rockies relief pitcher Adam Ottavino (/ah-tah-VEEN-oh/) it’s understandable. And my guess is that if you’re not a diehard Rockies fan you would struggle recognizing the man at all. In pitching for the Rockies, Ottavino’s job is to not be noticed.  As a middle-to-late-inning set-up man, Ottavino’s job is to hope that the flashy, high paid starters throw a solid six or seven innings, as closer Wade Davis (3yr/$52 million) begins to stretch and warm up in the bullpen to close it out. Ottavino’s job is to face just a few batters in the seventh or... Read More

The story is familiar. The young, first baseman reaches the major leagues by swinging for the fences on every pitch. The big league team sacrifices a high strikeout rate and low batting average for long term potential, and tape measure home runs. But Father Time catches up to the powerful first baseman as the strikeout rate continues to rise and his production declines. At 33 years of age, Mark Reynolds should probably be out of baseball, but instead, he may start at first base in the All-Star game as he is currently hitting .302 with 17 homers and 55 RBIs, and the Colorado Rockies sit near the... Read More

Starting at Third Base – I Don’t Know It was known as the classic Abbott and Costello comedy sketch, confusingly funny as the ballplayers included names like Who at first, What on second, and I Don’t Know at third base. But as the Rockies enter the month of June in second place in the NL West, life seems to be imitating (comedic) art. I recently took an informal poll of my friends and relatives, all with decent baseball knowledge, and asked the simple question. Who plays third base for the Colorado Rockies? The response included many wrong names, plenty of mispronunciations, and lots... Read More

Almost forty games into the season and the Colorado Rockies are sitting in first place in the NL West. First baseman, Mark Reynolds is on fire (.331, 12 HR, 31 RBIs), Nolan Arenado is still the best third baseman in the game, and the young pitching staff is throwing well. This could be the year…. I want to believe that too. But as you sit there with your purple shaded glasses on, my job is to explain to you the harsh reality of how the rest of the season will sadly progress. 1) Injuries. Pitchers just can’t make it through a season anymore. Tyler Anderson and Jon Gray are already on the... Read More