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

In addition, the club released its full list of 22 non-roster invitees. It includes three recent top Draft picks: shortstop Chris Nelson (2004), right-handed pitcher Greg Reynolds (2006) and right-handed reliever Casey Weathers (2007). Of the 61 players who will be in camp, 41 were developed by the Rockies organization.

Love that stat.

7 days and 3 hours until pitchers and catchers report!!!

DENVER -- The Rockies used some of baseball's youngest pitchers while nailing down a playoff berth and marching to a National League pennant last year. Now, right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez notes, the young rotation faces a challenge almost as big.
"In the playoffs, it was just a couple of games," Jimenez said. "Now I have to be here for a 162-game season. It's a challenge, but I'm ready for it."

The biggest challenge of Spring Training -- which starts with pitchers and catchers reporting to Hi Corbett Field in Tucson on Feb. 15, with the first official workout the next day -- will be preparing for a season in which three of the five starters have yet to face a wire-to-wire, uninjured season in the Majors.

Jimenez, 23, whose only previous experience was two games in 2006, went 4-4 with a 4.28 ERA in 15 games after being called up in July. He fashioned a 2.25 ERA in three postseason starts with the only loss coming in Game 2 of the World Series, a four-game sweep at the hands of the Red Sox.

Right-hander Jason Hirsh, who turns 26 on Feb. 20, was 5-7, with a 4.81 ERA in his rookie year. He was on an upsurge when he suffered a fractured fibula on Aug. 7.

Left-hander Franklin Morales, 22, made his Major League debut Aug. 18 but gave the team a lift by going 3-2 with a 3.43 ERA in eight regular-season starts. He was the least-experienced of the bunch, with just five Triple-A starts before his callup, and it showed during the playoffs (0-0, 9.90). His lack of seasoning is one reason the Rockies have veterans Mark Redman, Kip Wells, Josh Towers and Victor Zambrano in camp.

Still, if all goes as planned, this youthful trio will be a big part of the Rockies' defense of their first National League championship. The rotation is headed by two veterans, left-hander Jeff Francis, who had one of the best seasons in Rockies history in 2007 (17-9, 4.22), and right-hander Aaron Cook (8-7, 4.12), who had overcome a slump just before he suffered a oblique muscle injury on Aug. 10.

Francis and Cook will lead the rotation, but for the team to succeed, they must rely on the followers.

Don't try to tell them they're too young to be so important to the team's fortunes.

"I think the talent level is very high," Hirsh said. "Everybody here has got real high ceilings.

"I think the organization has enough trust in us that we can get the job done. Otherwise, they would have gone out and gotten bigger names. So I think that helps all of us in regards to our confidence and the confidence our coaching staff has in us to go out there and get us back to where we were last year."

To do so, all three must make forward steps.

Jimenez made a dramatic leap after his callup. Just five of his 19 starts at Triple-A Colorado Springs were "quality starts" (six or more innings, three or fewer runs). Counting the postseason, 10 of his 18 starts met the quality standard.

The key was staying in the strike zone better than he had in the Minors. He had 68 strikeouts to 37 walks with the Rockies in the regular season. At Colorado Springs, he finished with 89 strikeouts and 62 walks.

Jimenez said at the time he felt freed by concentrating only on winning games, rather than working on mechanics. He won by challenging hitters with his fastball, and his changeup was effective. He used his impressive curveball to make batters chase out of the strike zone, but he wants to do more with the pitch.

"I have to be able to throw it for a strike more when I fall behind in the count," Jimenez said. "I just need to trust it, to throw it for a strike whenever I want."

Hirsh, a key figure in the December 2006 trade that sent former Rockies No. 1 starter Jason Jennings to the Astros, is a cerebral fellow who impressed the Rockies with his attention to detail and preparation. However, it took a while for Hirsh to hear the Rockies' message to pitch off his fastball. The words got through while Hirsh was with Colorado Springs on a rehab assignment for an ankle injury.

"I talked to Jim Wright, who is our Minor League pitching coordinator, and he kind of gave me the other side of the story -- when I was in the Minor Leagues, how I was succeeding against them," Hirsh said. "It made me go back and re-evaluate my philosophies, from where I was at that point of the season to really rely on my fastball more than I had been previous to the injury."

It was just two starts. He held the Marlins to three runs in 5 1/3 innings of a Rockies victory but didn't figure in the decision. Then he was hit in the leg by a line drive in the first inning but lasted six and held the Brewers to three hits and three runs -- two earned -- and took the win in an 11-4 victory.

Morales had the most impressive stretch of the three, tying Denny Neagle's club record for starters by pitching 20 straight scoreless innings. He was better on the road (2-1, 2.05 ERA) than at home (1-1, 6.23), but it's hard to argue with any of his accomplishments, considering how far he had come.

Morales began the year at Double-A Tulsa 0-4 with a 4.05 ERA through his first 13 starts. But he was 3-0 with a 2.17 ERA in his final four starts before being called up to Triple-A. After three Triple-A starts during which he fanned 16 but also walked 13, the Rockies needed him.

The club will be open to keeping him in the bullpen should he not make the rotation, but Morales is looking at the main goal.

"I want to maintain my consistency and be 100 percent prepared for my outings," Morales said. "I really haven't been paying attention to who they've signed. The only thing I can do is pay attention to my pitching and be ready to do my best. It's up to the front office to see what happens."

Atkins back for 1 more year:

DENVER -- Third baseman Garrett Atkins and the Colorado Rockies agreed Monday to a one-year contract worth $4,387,500.

Atkins batted .301 with 25 homers and 111 RBIs last season for the NL champions.

Eligible for arbitration for the first time, he had asked for a raise from $400,000 to $4.65 million when arbitration figures were exchanged last month. Colorado offered $4,125,000.

Atkins can earn $92,500 in performance bonuses: $17,500 each for 600, 625 and 650 plate appearances, and $20,000 each for 675 and 700 plate appearances.

Colorado has two players remaining in arbitration, pitcher Brian Fuentes and outfielder Brad Hawpe.

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

I am interested to see how good to Rockies will be this year. I still have minor doubts about them.

Originally Posted by BroncoAV06

Atkins back for 1 more year:

This is great news, Atkins is a key player and he doesn't seem to get as much credit as I think he deserves. I think we should have maybe wrapped him up for longer, but there is a chance that he will totally suck this season I suppose.

Probably was the best they could do right now to keep him.

Might not be horrible actually. Gives a chance tyo see how good the minor league guys are before shelling out millions on a guy for a position we have great depth at.

I am glad they atleast got the 1 year done though, buys us time incase those guys are not as good as advertised.

http://www.9news.com/sports/article.aspx?storyid=86184

Agent: Atkins hopes deal is stepping stone to long term deal

DENVER – The agent for Colorado Rockies third baseman Garrett Atkins says his client hopes his new contract is merely a step toward keeping the infielder in purple pinstripes long term.

On Monday, Atkins inked a one-year deal with the Rockies worth just short of $4.4 million. Atkins was eligible for arbitration for the first time in his career and asked for $4.6 million, a raise of about $4.2 million over his 2007 salary of $400,000.

Atkins and the Rockies were able to settle on the deal announced Monday, which includes more than $92,000 in potential performance bonuses which hinge on his reaching minimum plate-appearance requirements.

"Garrett is very pleased with the contract," said Jeff Blank, Atkins' agent, in an e-mail to 9NEWS. "Now he does not have to fly across country for an arbitration hearing three days after reporting to spring training and can instead focus on what should be an exciting 2008 season for the Rockies. Garrett hopes this is a stepping stone to a long term deal at some point."

Among active third basemen over the past two seasons, Atkins ranks second in hits (380) and third in RBI (231), ahead of New York Mets third baseman David Wright in both categories. Wright signed a six-year $55 million contract extension in August 2006.

Atkins batted .301 with 25 homers and 111 RBIs last season for the NL champions.

A deal between the club and right fielder Brad Hawpe was expected on Monday, according to colorado.com. Terms of the potential deal were not immediately known, but was expected to be worth close to $4 million.

With deals in place with Atkins and presumably Hawpe, only three-time All-Star Brian Fuentes was left facing an arbitration hearing. The two sides were said to be far apart in negotiations, according to the team's official Web site. Fuentes asked for $6.5 million and the club offered $5.05 million.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z5TlRC3Zd0


Hope you all enjoy that.

Originally Posted by Snapping Turtle

This is great news, Atkins is a key player and he doesn't seem to get as much credit as I think he deserves. I think we should have maybe wrapped him up for longer, but there is a chance that he will totally suck this season I suppose.

They do need to wrap him up long term....he is vastly underrated. I doubt he will start the season like he did last year (in a major slump). I think that was an aberration. He will hit .320 with 25 HR and 120 RBI.

Great artical on Little T and Hoffman about the final Brewers-Padres series which lead to the 1 game play-off. Did not know that there was so much history behind that one at bat!
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/s...t&lid=tab2pos1

Pitchers and Catchers report TODAY! What a great day to be in Tucson...

Yay!!

I have a package arriving today (via UPS). A Helton jersey and a Rockies T-shirt. Perfect timing

Originally Posted by slim

Yay!!

I have a package arriving today (via UPS). A Helton jersey and a Rockies T-shirt. Perfect timing

Sweeeetness!!! I really want a new jersey, my old one is now signed and framed ...so I need one to wear!!!

Rockies avoid big bucks early, next year will be interesting with Hawpe and Atikin, at this rate it looks like we will lose one, going to have to generate a bunch of revenue this year, better start buying tickets, jerseys, hats etc..

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- An arbitration panel decided in favor of the Colorado Rockies on Friday, ruling reliever Brian Fuentes should be paid $5.05 million this year rather than his request for $6.5 million.



Arbitrators Robert Bailey, Dan Brent and Elliott Shriftman made the decision one day after listening to arguments. Fuentes made $3,525,000 last year, when he saved 20 games in helping Colorado win its first NL pennant.



Outfielder Brad Hawpe and the Rockies avoided a hearing when they agreed Thursday to a one-year contract worth $3,925,000. Eligible for arbitration for the first time, Hawpe had asked for a raise from $403,000 to $4.35 million. Colorado filed at $3,575,000.



Hawpe batted .291 last season with 29 homers and 116 RBIs. In addition to his salary, Hawpe can earn $100,000 in performance bonuses: $50,000 each for 600 and 675 plate appearances.


The Associated Press contributed to this report.