Thread: The Official Colorado Rockies thread--Now with extra awesome!!

Originally Posted by Denver Native (Carol)

AND, I did a search on google, plus the Denver Post to find out what was wrong with Spilly

Sorry. Spilly is protected always by the Spilly Slam. I'm glad we have Mora and Jonathan "The Answer" Herrera platooning at 3B.

ROCKIES 6 - REDS 5

Rockies down 5 - 0 - come back to win - Chris Nelson, pinch runner, steals home for winning run

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?...=.jsp&c_id=mlb

Nelson's first career stolen base lifts Rox to seventh straight

DENVER -- Rockies pinch-runner Chris Nelson stole home off Reds reliever Nick Masset to score the go-ahead run in the eighth inning, completing a 6-5 comeback Colorado victory on Thursday afternoon at Coors Field.

Nelson, in to run for first baseman Jason Giambi, caught Masset off-guard as catcher Miguel Olivo stood in at the plate. The pitcher stepped off the rubber, spun toward second base and never had a play on the speedy Nelson.

It was the first time Nelson, who spent nearly the entire season with Triple-A Colorado Springs, stole a base in his career, and the 15th time in franchise history a Rockies runner stole home.

Closer Huston Street pitched a scoreless ninth, ensuring the Rockies of their seventh straight win and a four-game sweep against the first-place Reds.

In the last three weeks, the Rockies have swept series against the Braves, Padres and Reds -- all leading their respective divisions at the time. It was a particularly brutal trip to Coors Field for the Reds, who have now lost 19 of 22 to the Rockies in Denver.

With the Rockies trailing, 5-4, in the eighth, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki drove his 18th homer of the season over the right-field wall to tie the game. It was Tulowitzki's sixth homer in his last seven games.

The clutch drive came shortly after a marquee matchup between two of the premier young talents in the league -- Rockies Triple Crown candidate outfielder Carlos Gonzalez and Reds flamethrowing reliever Aroldis Chapman -- which resulted in a 6-4-3 double play that retired the Rockies in the seventh and put an end to Gonzalez's 16-game hitting streak.

When all was said and done, the Rockies climbed back from a 5-0 deficit after starter Jason Hammel surrendered five hits and five runs in the first two innings.

Giambi's two-run blast in the fourth -- his 414th of his career, tying him Darrell Evans for 43rd on the all-time list -- got the Rockies on the comeback trail. After an RBI double from center fielder Dexter Fowler in the fifth cut the Reds' lead to 5-3, right fielder Ryan Spilborghs walked and catcher Chris Iannetta doubled to lead off the seventh before Chapman entered out of the bullpen. Spilborghs scored on a fielder's choice before Fowler walked to load the bases for Gonzalez.

http://www.denverpost.com/rockies/ci...ssimplepiehome

Since 2007, the Rockies have done things in September that would make the folks at Disney blush. Walkoff home runs. Diving catches. Goosebump performances from anonymous rookies.

But no one in the Up-With-Purple crowd has ever seen any like this. Stealing from a scene in "Sandlot," Chris Nelson pulled a fast one on the Reds, stealing home in the eighth inning to send the Rockies a stirring 6-5 victory.

It was their seventh straight win, pulling them to within four games of the division-leading Padres and the wild-card pace car Braves.

Nelson, a former first-round pick whose career finally gained traction this season, entered as a pinch-runner for Jason Giambi. With one out and runners at first and third, Nelson and third base coach Rich Dauer got bold. Reliever Nick Masset was in the stretch, but was not peeking at Nelson.

The rookie took off. Masset stepped off. But in the wrong direction, turning to face Melvin Mora at first base as Nelson slid safely into home. It was the first stolen base of Nelson's career. No one can remember anyone in recent memory making their first swipe at home.

Players in the Rockies dugout reacted as if it was a walkoff blast, greeting Nelson with equal parts enthusiasm and amazement.

Huston Street recorded his 17th save, preserving the victory as B.O.B.'s "Magic" played following the final out. Troy Tulowitzki's solo homer (his third homer in two days) tied the game in eighth before Nelson's mad dash to glory.

The Rockies' victory was more made more impressive considering that Colorado trailed by five runs after two innings.

Jason Hammel stumbled into an old trap — the big inning. The Reds tagged him for four runs in the second, swelling their lead to 5-0. Ramon Hernandez doubled, scoring a run when outfielder Carlos Gonzalez fumbled the ball. Drew Stubbs, hitting leadoff with Brandon Phillips struggling, homered to left. Gonzalez jumped at the wall, but Stubbs' 16th home run ticked off his glove as a fan inexplicably hit Gonzalez's mitt.

Hammel spent the next five innings stringing together enough zeroes for a Powerball jackpot. The Rockies have won in his last five starts.

After dropping the hammer Wednesday night with three homers, the Rockies delivered repeated jabs at Reds' starter Travis Wood. Giambi, making his fourth start in nine days, belted a two-run home run to center field in the fourth inning.

Dexter Fowler's fifth-inning double easily scored Eric Young Jr. from first base, shaving the deficit.

The play in the seventh wasn't nearly as conclusive. Ryan Spilborghs raced home on a groundball to first. Joey Votto made a nice stab then threw quickly to Ramon Hernandez. The ball beat Spilborghs, but plate umpire Bill Miller ruled that he avoided the tag, cutting the deficit to 5-4. The run proved pivotal after somebody finally pinched Gonzalez, awakening him from a two-week dream sequence. He grounded into an inning-ending double play on a 103-mph fastball from Cuban import Aroldis Chapman.

CarGo didn't have to win the game as Nelson led the Go-Go Rocks to a victory.

Footnotes: It was the Rockies' 23rd comeback victory...Rockies are now 31-17 in day games...The steal of home was the 15th in Rockies' history, the last coming when Matt Holliday raced home in 2006 against the Dodgers...CarGo's 16-game hitting streak ended...Tulo has six home runs in his past seven games.

I was listening to that game at work yesterday. I tweeted this in the 3rd inning I think:

This #Reds Vs. #Rockies game is beginning to feel like the last game in the series the Rox played against the Braves. about 18 hours ago via Echofon

I had to go home right before the start of the 8th, and I got home, turned on MLBn, and got a big shit eating grin on my face when I saw we were up 6-5 with Street on the mound. I keep watching the Nelson Steal over and over.

ROCKIES 2 - AZ 1 - 9 IN A ROW FOR THE ROCKIES

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?...=.jsp&c_id=mlb

DENVER -- Add a new name to the growing list of clutch Rockies.

Jonathan Herrera's pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the seventh inning provided the difference in the club's ninth straight victory, 2-1, over the D-backs at Coors Field on Saturday night in front of 48,023.

The most fans ever to purchase a ticket on the day of a September game, 7,673, had to wait for the Rockies to surge enough to win. The Rockies remained 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Padres in the National League West, pulled to 1 1/2 behind the second-place Giants and remained 3 1/2 games behind the Braves and Phillies in the Wild Card standings.

The Rockies -- 18-4 at home since July 29 -- struggled with former teammate Rodrigo Lopez (5-14), who had given up 33 homers in his previous 28 starts. Lopez yielded nothing until one out in the seventh, when Melvin Mora singled, Ryan Spilborghs doubled and Miguel Olivo singled in the tying run.

Herrera, facing reliever and one-time Rockies ace Mike Hampton, drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly to center. In his last six plate appearances with runners in scoring position, Herrera has driven in six runs.

Then again, clutch performances are the norm these days. Saturday's was the fourth one-run decision during the nine-game winning streak. The Rockies also have won by two runs once and generally have had just two games that were blowouts throughout.

As has become custom lately, the Rockies could not take advantage of stellar pitching from ace Ubaldo Jimenez, who gave up one run and six hits while striking out eight in six innings. However, Jimenez left with a 1-0 deficit and could not earn his 19th victory. Despite a 3.51 ERA in his last six starts, Jimenez is 1-3. Rookie left-hander Matt Reynolds (1-0) gave up one hit and struck out Stephen Drew to end the seventh for his first Major League win.

The Rockies managed seven hits in 6 1/3 innings against Lopez, who was a key rotation member in 2007 until he suffered an elbow injury during the second half. However, it wasn't until the seventh-inning rally that they put more than one runner on base against him.

Rafael Betancourt threw a scoreless eighth with two strikeouts and Huston Street pitched the ninth for his 18th save.

10 in a row baby. And I hear that one of the Gnats center fielder will be out 10 days with an appendectomy.

The division is ours for the taking.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?...s_mlb&c_id=mlb

DENVER -- Folks describe Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, the National League's batting leader and a prime candidate for the Most Valuable Player Award, as a five-tool player. Yet, they leave out the most important tool -- the ability to learn from failure.

Gonzalez, 24, carries a .341 batting average, 32 home runs and 106 RBIs -- numbers that put him alongside the Cardinals' Albert Pujols and the Reds' Joey Votto as a threat for baseball's first Triple Crown (titles in batting, homers and RBIs) since the Red Sox's Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. It's hard to believe failure is any part of his story.

Yet, it's much of the full story.

Had the Rockies not stuck with Gonzalez through a .202 batting average in his first 27 games -- including 23 starts -- through the All-Star break last season, there would be no story. There might have been no playoffs for the Rockies, since Gonzalez hit .320 with 12 home runs and 24 RBIs after the break. The sizzling National League Division Series against the Phillies, in which Gonzalez went 10-for-17 in four games, would not have happened.

It's easy to look now and say being patient with such a talent should be a no-brainer. Yet, Gonzalez was traded twice, and Rockies manager Jim Tracy received questions and criticism for sticking with him through his early struggles.

"You have to fail," Gonzalez said. "That was the difference here. I could be playing on another team right now if Colorado didn't have confidence. I failed in the beginning, and Colorado could have traded me.

"Sometimes, for young players it's not that easy to create confidence. You have to be able to do something so you can realize, 'I'm good. I can play at this level.' I can do whatever I want."

"Just state the facts," Tracy said. "Go back to how many times last year was I getting hounded about, 'How much longer are you going to play the guy?' to doing what he did last year and pole vaulting himself to the point where he is a legitimate contender for a Triple Crown. I'd say that's pretty rapid advancement."

Gonzalez has been on the big league scene in one way or another for three years, but this is just his first full season in the Majors.

He was a top prospect with the D-backs until the club traded him to the Athletics after the 2007 season as part of the deal to acquire All-Star pitcher Dan Haren. Gonzalez was disappointed the D-backs didn't call him up before the end of the 2007 season, but he understood the offseason move.

"They wanted a really good pitcher," Gonzalez said. "When you're a prospect, that's the cost that you have to pay."

The next trade felt different to Gonzalez. The A's wound up with a gem: outfielder Matt Holliday. But the D-backs held onto Haren for 2 1/2 seasons. Holliday was heading into a free agency year and wasn't even expected to be with the Athletics long term. They wound up dealing him to the Cardinals.

"I know that Oakland didn't have any patience with me," Gonzalez said. "I was not even there for a year. I played for five months, then right after the season I got traded here. I don't know how they're feeling, but I feel good."

The A's called Gonzalez up from Triple-A on May 30. He hit .306 over a 32-game stretch between June 30 and Aug. 8, but things soured during a 6-for-60 slump over 18 games that resulted in his being sent back to the Minors. After earning Pacific Coast League playoff co-most valuable player honors while leading Sacramento to the title, Gonzalez returned to the A's and finished .242 with four home runs and 26 RBIs. A penchant for striking out -- 81 times in 302 at-bats -- and a .188 average and 58 strikeouts in 85 at-bats against left-handed pitching made him more of a question mark than a prospect.

The struggles against lefties were a particular problem. It was an issue that cropped up during his time with the D-backs, who insist it wasn't the reason he never reached the Majors with the club.

"You don't just come to professional baseball and have it all figured out," said D-backs first-base coach Matt Williams, who managed Gonzalez at Double-A Mobile for part of the 2007 season. "It took him some time. For our organization, it was one of those situations where we needed pitching and he was one of the guys that they demanded in the Haren deal, and we had to do it."

Interim general manager Jerry Dipoto said, "That is not out of the ordinary for young left-handed hitters. What you have to remember with Carlos is that he was young for every level of play when he got there."

In fairness to the Athletics, they didn't send Gonzalez back to Sacramento until late August. They also had a sense they were giving up a potential star when they decided to take a shot at Holliday.

But Rockies closer Huston Street said the Athletics could have done a better job with Gonzalez.

Street, part of the trade (as was Rockies Minor League pitcher Greg Smith, who also was part of the Haren deal with the D-backs), said Gonzalez would have paid off for the A's had they been willing to suffer a little longer through his growth period.

Street noted that the A's also had current Padres outfielder Chris Denorfia and Aaron Cunningham. Oakland also had players such as Travis Buck and Jack Cust, who are still there. But he believes they shuffled Gonzalez out without having a full look at what he could become.

"You've got to put somebody in the fire," Street said. "You've got to let him sink or swim. He was always being played with a life preserver and he never really had to fight and battle.

"Selfishly, I'm thankful for that. Had it not been for him, I would not be here. I'm glad the A's tucked him away and stopped believing in him. It provided me with an opportunity to change my life in a better way. He's the MVP of this team, but I've got to give him a big hug every day."

Gonzalez wasn't finished when he joined the Rockies. It was clear he was the key to the deal from the Rockies' standpoint, but general manager Dan O'Dowd and then-manager Clint Hurdle were measured in their comments about him, feeling he had work to do and didn't need the pressure. In Spring Training, Rockies hitting coach Don Baylor noticed Gonzalez's top hand was turned inward, which created an inconsistent swing. It would take time for him to adjust and make it habit. After working on the new grip, Baylor would ask Gonzalez to grab a bat with the old grip. Pretty soon, that one became foreign to him.

Teammates heard of the potential, but playing alongside him, they saw something in him even greater -- the willingness to learn.

"I remember from last year, even this year, he's not afraid to come up to me and ask questions," said shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who, while hitting behind Gonzalez, has risen to second in the NL with a .325 average. "That shows a sign of a guy that's really growing and wants to get better each day."

Gonzalez began the year at Triple-A Colorado Springs. Even after a successful Triple-A stint, he arrived in the Majors with a strike zone that, Tracy likes to say, was "from the tip of his helmet to the ground."

Once he learned what a strike was, pitchers found out the hard way they couldn't beat him with too many of them.

"He hits lefties like it doesn't matter," Tracy said. "There are special players like that throughout the league. When you identify who those guys are, it's not so much, 'I'm putting this lefty on this lefty here.' You're just trying to make it as difficult as possible for a very special hitter that you know doesn't care if the glove's on the right hand or on the left hand."

Gonzalez finished last season at .284, and was a respectable .276 against left-handers. Now he is lighting up lefty pitching at a .322 clip with 13 homers. The other forward step is in on-base percentage, at .378. The number was .313 entering the year.

Since being snubbed for the All-Star Game in a move decried as resulting from a lack of attention for a small-to-mid-market player, Gonzalez has hit .385 with 15 home runs and a .428 on-base percentage. Much of that has come in pain.

Early in an Aug. 30 game against the Giants, Gonzalez fouled off a pitch from the Jonathan Sanchez and suffered pain in his right wrist and thumb. It has throbbed ever since, to the point that he has been playing with it heavily taped.

That night, he shattered his bat, but improbably sent a pitch from closer Brian Wilson to deep right-center for the winning triple in a 2-1 victory. The performance was part of a career-best 16-game hit streak, all done with soreness in the bottom hand on his swing. It also was part of a seven-game streak in which he broke at least one bat, but had hits on many of those swings.

It wasn't until Saturday, when he was not in the lineup, that Gonzalez's soreness reached the public.

"Of course you're not going to tell everybody what's hurting or what's not hurting," Gonzalez said. "I'm sure a lot of players late in the season are having problems just like me, but we're in the right situation. You want to be in the lineup and finish strong."

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?...s_mlb&c_id=mlb

LOS ANGELES -- Octavio Dotel's no stranger to jumping around. At least he didn't have to go far this time.

The 36-year-old right-handed reliever walked across Dodger Stadium from the Dodgers clubhouse to the Rockies clubhouse on Saturday before the middle game of a three-game set at Dodger Stadium. The Rockies acquired the veteran reliever for a player to be named later, and he was available for Colorado in Saturday's game.

Dotel, who will wear No. 35, began the year as a closer with the Pirates before he was traded to the Dodgers on July 31. The Rockies are his 10th Major League team in 12 seasons.

Dotel, who has 105 career saves, has spent the majority of his career in the National League. This season, Dotel is 3-3 with a 3.99 ERA and 22 saves between Pittsburgh and Los Angeles. He went 1-1 with a 3.38 ERA in 19 appearances for the Dodgers.

To make room on the 40-man roster for Dotel, the Rockies transferred right-hander pitcher Manuel Corpas from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.

The national sportscasters and writers might want to put a lid on the only reason any Rockies' player hits homeruns is because they play at Coors Field

http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_16111937

LOS ANGELES — Troy Tulowitzki's September to remember has reached legendary status.

The Rockies' star shortstop just homered — again. This one was a two-run blast to center field in the fifth, putting the Rockies in front of the Dodgers 5-0. A single by Ryan Spilborghs made it 6-0.

It was Tulo's second homer of the game — sandwiched around a double — and his club-record 14th homer this month.

The player who first lifted the Rockies from dreamers to playoff contenders was MVP candidate Carlos Gonzalez. Now it's Tulo's turn to carry the Rockies on his broad shoulders.

In the first inning this afternoon, the Rockies' all-star shortstop cranked a 78 mph changeup from Dodgers starter John Ely into the left-field seats, scoring CarGo to put the Rockies in front 2-0. It's Tulo's 25th homer and his 13th in September, setting a Rockies record for most homers in a single month. His fifth-inning homer made it 24 bombs in September.

If the Rockies' lead holds up, they will continue their toward push toward a playoff spot. They were 11 games out of first place in August, but they entered today's play 1 1/2 games behind San Francisco and one game behind San Diego in the NL West. The Rockies are 2 1/2 behind in the wild-card race.

Record-setting month

According to Elias Sports, Tulowitzki is the first player in major-league history to hit 12 or more homers over the first 17 days of September.

He blasted a two-run homer Friday night in Colorado's 7-5 victory over the Dodgers. That home run was Tulu's third in the last two games, and ninth in his last nine games. He now has 11 in his past 10 games.

Friday night's homer was Tulowitzki's 12th in the month of September, tying him with Matt Holliday (12 HRs in September 2007) for the most home runs in the month by a Rockie.

Tulo entered today slugging .985 this month, putting vast distance between himself and the next closest player — Detroit's Ryan Raburn (.745).

On the hill for the Rockies today is 22-year-old Jhoulys Chacin (8-9, 3.53 ERA). Ely entered today with a 4-7 record and 4.62 ERA.

Because of Major League Baseball's television guidelines, today's game is not being televised by FSN Rocky Mountain or any other network.

Tulo doubles, scores as Rockies take 3-0 lead

The Rockies sprinted out to a 3-0 lead in the third on Tulowitzki's double and a run-scoring single by Melvin Mora. Tulo's average was up to .328, second in the NL to CarGo's .341.

Rockies acquire Dotel for bullpen

The Rockies bolstered their bullpen for a postseason push today by acquiring right-handed reliever Octavio Dotel and cash from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for a player to be named later.

"In the bullpen right now it's all hands on deck and we needed another set of hands," Colorado assistant general manager Bill Gievett said today.

Dotel will be in a Rockies' uniform today. He is expected to be used as a late-game reliever to help ease the burden, when necessary, on Matt Belisle. Dotell began the year as the Pirates' closer and was traded to the Dodgers on July 31.

Dotel, 36, has gone 3-3 with 22 saves in 28 opportunities, with a 3.99 ERA, 28 walks and 69 strikeouts in 60 games.

To make room on the roster for Dotel, the Rockies transferred right-handed pitcher Manuel Corpas from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.

Dotell will not be eligible for the playoffs if the Rockies make it, but that didn't dissuade the club from making the move.

Tulo the 3rd player in MLB history to have 14 HR's in 15 games. Crazy.

Mora just hit a grand slam - he must have thought he was hitting at Coors Field

Nail biter in LA.

CarGo up with bases loaded and tie score in the top of 11.

Bad loss after dominating Kershaw and getting out to a big lead early...

But I guess they can't win 'em all.

We've got 13 games left with a series left with the Gnats at home. We should take care of business in AZ. I think the division is ours for the taking.