How much will the loss of Kazuo Matsui hurt the Rockies?

Where They Are Coming From

The Colorado Rockies surprised everyone, except themselves, with their showing in 2007. They hung close in the standings all season long, then went on a tear in September, winning 14 of their last 15 regular season games, including a one-game playoff with San Diego to win the NL West. Then they proceeded to win seven straight post-season games to advance to the World Series. Unfortunately, they were no match for the AL champion Red Sox, who proceeded to sweep the Rockies away in four straight, ending their incredible, unprecedented run.

The Rockies have an incredible lineup that is stacked with sluggers, and one of the deepest and most talent rich minor league systems. They ended the season with few needs, as the young core of the team was to remain intact. General manager Dan O’Dowd coveted an experienced starting pitcher to bring a little wisdom and guidance to their otherwise very young starting five. Another bullpen arm or two was also on his list since he had decided not to bring LaTroy Hawkins back. Finally, second baseman Kaz Matsui filed for free agency, creating the need for a second baseman. O’Dowd has several candidates for the job within the organization, and Marcus Giles was available on the free agent market at bargain basement prices. The Rox had a number of players eligible for arbitration, and several young players that they wanted to lock up for at least the duration of their arbitration years. They spent a lot of time, energy, and money extending the contracts of Troy Tulowitzki, Matt Holiday, and Aaron Cook with the intention of keeping them together as part of the core of the team.

There is a lot of confidence in Colorado that the Rockies can repeat their 2007 performance and be contenders this season. There is no question they have the offensive guns to put plenty of crooked numbers on the scoreboard, and their defense was the best in all of baseball. As a team, they committed just 69 errors last season, while the team with the next fewest had 79, and the NL average was 101 errors! Ultimately, it will come down to pitching for the Rockies. Aaron Cook is the old man at age 29, and the Rockies have two very young pitchers, Ubaldo Jimenez (24), and Franklin Morales (22), who stepped in last year to help the team during their phenomenal late season run. It will be interesting to see if they can do as well over an entire season. There is no question the team will be competitive, but the West division could be the most improved in the National League. Every team in the division, except the Giants, made significant improvements this winter and will compete, so the Rockies will have their work cut out for them.

Players Lost

Pitchers LaTroy Hawkins, Jeremy Affeldt, Josh Fogg, Jorge Julio, Elmer Dessens, and Rodrigo Lopez filed for free agency.

• Second baseman Kazuo Matsui filed for free agency


• Pitcher Denny Bautista was traded to the Detroit Tigers for pitcher Jose Capellan


• Infielder Jamey Carroll was traded to the Cleveland Indians

Players Added

• Free Agent pitchers Josh Towers, Kip Wells, and Luis Vizcaino were signed.


• Pitcher Jose Capellan was acquired from the Detroit Tigers

Moves Still to Come

During the winter after the 2006 season, there was a great deal of speculation about Todd Helton being dealt to free up some payroll so that the Rockies could sign some of their younger players to longer term deals. This winter, there has been no talk of Helton going anywhere. Considering that the organization has his heir apparent, Joe Koshansky, ready to make the leap to the majors, the Rockies could shop Helton around this spring. However, considering their post-season success last year, and his status as the elder statesman of the team, O’Dowd will likely keep Helton around for another year. With Manny Corpas set to be the closer, Brian Fuentes could become expendable and used in a trade. Then again, the team does not currently have another left-hander to replace him. Unless O’Dowd can roster another lefty from among the non-roster invitees this spring, he is not likely to trade away Fuentes, who can also close games should Corpas struggle.

The roster is fairly deep with outfielders, which sets up the possibility that O’Dowd will move one in a trade. He brought speedster Scott Podsednik into the fold with a minor league deal and an invite to Spring Training even though the Rockies already had more than enough outfielders. The reason may be that he wants to move someone out, with Cory Sullivan being the most likely bargaining chip. Sullivan was the starting centerfielder a few years back, but he struggled to hit, had precious little power, and was not particularly good on the base paths. All of which leaves him in a position to be traded.

What to Watch in Spring Training

Spring Training should hold few surprises for the Rockies this year, as there are very few position battles to be fought. Second base is the most notable job vacancy, and there are no less than five players in the hunt. Former starting shortstop Clint Barmes has shifted to second, and he has been working out there over the winter in the hopes of regaining a full time job with the team. Barmes is just an average defensive player, and his hitting skills seemed to evaporate when he had the full-time shortstop job in 2006, so he would seem to be a longshot to be a starting second baseman. The Rockies have two rookies they are hoping will compete for second base. The first, Jayson Nix, is the current favorite to win the job. The team has confidence in his defensive skills, but there are questions about his ability to hit at the major league level. The other rookie, Ian Stewart, is actually more of a corner infielder, but has been working out at second this winter. He is a better hitter than Nix, but there are questions about his defense and range at second. The Rockies also have the versatile Seth Baker, who has played a little second base and some outfield for them already. They really like Baker off the bench and would rather keep him as a super-utility player. That leaves non-roster invitee Marcus Giles as the other competitor for second. If he finds his long lost stroke and hits anything like he did as a member of the Braves, Giles would have a decent shot. However, the likelihood of him regaining that long lost stroke is fairly remote. It is not clear how much patience the team will have with Giles, therefore, do not bet the ranch on him sticking around.

The other position to keep an eye on will be catcher, where Yorvit Torrealba and Chris Iannetta will again duke it out for the right to be the primary catcher. Last year it was supposed to be Iannetta who got the majority of the innings. However, early season struggles at the plate led manager Clint Hurdle to go with Torrealba and stick with him all season long. If Iannetta hits well in the spring, he could supplant Torrealba as the primary catcher. Runners go at will on Torrealba, and Iannetta has a much better arm.

Speaking of arms – Aaron Cook and Jeff Francis return as the one-two punch at the top of the Rockies starting rotation. Jason Hirsh and Ubaldo Jimenez are the anticipated 3-4 starters. The battle for the fifth spot will be among Kip Wells, Josh Towers, Mark Redman, and the guy the Rockies want in there, left-hander Franklin Morales. Watch Morales closely, he is a fantasy deep sleeper.

The following players have been signed to minor league contracts and given an invitation to Spring Training:

Pitchers – Alberto Arias, Micah Bowie, Darren Clarke, Chris George, Brandon Hynick, John Koronka, Zach McClellan, Greg Reynolds, Sean Thompson, Casey Weathers, and Victor Zambrano

Infielders – Christian Colonel, Matt Kata, Marcus Giles, and Christopher Nelson

Catchers – Michael McKenry, Mike Rose, and Neil Wilson

Outfielders – Sean Barker, Dexter Fowler, Joe Gaetti, and Scott Podsednik