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| Only Jonah Keri thinks the Rockies will avoid the NL West cellar this year among CBS experts. |
1. Trevor Story getting the opening day nod.
Even though this would not be a conversation if not for Jose Reyes' offseason domestic abuse and Daniel Descalso's spring training injury, the Rockies giving the opening day SS job to Trevor Story is an unusual, and positive, move by the club. On the surface, some people believe that it makes no sense to get three extra weeks of Trevor Story and lose team control over him in 2022 as a result. After all, the Rockies handled Nolan Arenado oppositely, and as Matt Gross of Purple Row argues, nobody looks back and wishes Arenado had been brought up three weeks sooner. What Gross is overlooking, however, is the broader implication of this move on the general philosophy of the club.
Even in their worst seasons the Rockies seem to get off to a strong start, so bringing up Trevor Story now is not a move just about winning games in 2016. They are rewarding Story for being the most deserving candidate for the job, which likely affects the psychology of the rest of the clubhouse in only positive ways. Since we already know the Rockies are capable of performing at a league average level on the mound, and that "the Coors Field effect" is not solely to blame, establishing such philosophical changes early may be a sign that, behind the scenes, whatever systematic flaws that lead to and endless amount of "bad luck" that inevitably derail their early season decency are being addressed and maybe even fixed as well.
2. No veterans were brought in to "bolster the starting rotation."
This is closely related to the same type of philosophical change that Story's opening day start represents. In 2011, Jhoulys Chacin was an up and coming young starter, opening the year in the #3 spot in the rotation behind Ubaldo Jimenez and Jorge De La Rosa. He ultimately put together an excellent year by Rockies' standards, filling in for Jorge admirably following his Tommy John surgery with an ERA of 3.62 in nearly 200 innings. Entering 2012, with Ubaldo traded away and Jorge still on the shelf, Chacin was poised to make the leap to an ace-caliber pitcher for the Rockies. Instead, the club brought in Jeremy Guthrie and Jamie Moyer, keeping Chacin where he was in 2011 in the #3 spot in the rotation. Chacin ended up taking a major step back early in 2012 before suffering an injury and ultimately missing most of the season. Dan O'Dowd effectively chalked it up to bad luck, saying he did not foresee such injuries happening. Of course, perhaps Chacin, feeling frustration that he needed to prove himself even further after already doing so, was overthrowing and overworking, leading to a season full of injuries.
The 2016 season's opening 4-man rotation (with Gray presumably being added back in once he is needed and healthy) consists of four pitchers (JDLR, Tyler Chatwood, Jordan Lyles and Chad Bettis) that are all in at least their third year with the club. Tyler Chatwood was excellent in 2013, Chad Bettis was serviceable last year, and Jordan Lyles deserves a shot after the club handled his health so poorly last year. None of them are feeling replaced by a Guthrie or Moyer, or Brett Anderson, Kyle Kendrick, Jon Garland, or Roy Oswalt. Each of these four guys earned their spot in the rotation and is not immediately threatened by anyone to lose it. Such stability surely does wonders on a professional athlete's psychological health, and should Jonathan Gray even come close to replicating Ubaldo's 2009 season, there's no reason why this year's rotation couldn't come close to matching those numbers.
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| The Rockies 2009 rotation, leading to their last playoff appearance. If Gray can even come close to replicating Ubaldo Jimenez, the back end of the rotation is certainly capable of maintaining ERAs in the mid to low 4s. Perhaps the psychological stability is what is needed to allow this year's staff to stay healthy and reach these innings numbers. (Baseball Reference) |
Although there may have been veteran pitchers the Rockies could have brought in to improve their rotation, the psychological stress that would have placed on the long-time Rockies would have almost certainly caused such moves to be a net negative on the franchise, as they clearly were in 2012.
3. The absence of Troy Tulowitzki could be addition by subtraction.
Many fans of the Rockies know that Troy Tulowitzki was never particularly shy with his body language. He would glare at Nolan after the third basemen failed to handle a grounder and complain to the umpire after nearly every single called strike. Most fans were not particularly bothered by this, as his undeniable excellence on the field surely outweighed any potentially negative contributions his attitude brought to the clubhouse. A game I attended on May 21st, 2013 forever made me think that, despite his obvious status as one of the most skilled players in the game, Tulo might do more harm than good to the Rockies.
With the Rockies and Diamondbacks tied at 4 in the bottom of the 10th inning, Carlos Gonzalez hit a 1-out double to bring Tulo up with a chance to end the game with a base hit. The Diamondbacks wisely intentionally walked Tulo to set up the double play opportunity, and the next batter, Wilin Rosario, slapped the first pitch down the right field line to bring CarGo home and end the game. Carlos Gonzalez touched the plate, and immediately trotted back up the first base to meet the rest of his teammates as they came from the dugout to celebrate the night's hero, Wilin, at first base. The rest of his teammates except Troy Tulowitzki, that is, who jogged down to second base, touched the bag, then immediately ran back to the dugout and down into the clubhouse, ignoring the rest of his team as they celebrated with Rosario. Of course, there are a number of possible explanations, but given his body language as he ignored his teammates, it certainly seemed that Tulo was frustrated, possibly feeling that HE should be the one being celebrated.
This may seem like a stretch and a conspiracy theory, but that reaction would certainly fit in with Tulo's personality. And even if there was no malicious intent, with Tulo just being frustrated that he did not get the chance but not actually feeling ill will towards his ecstatic teammates, it certainly cannot help the psychology of a team when their leader reacts so negatively to what should be a celebratory event. Perhaps it's not a coincidence that CarGo and Nolan were two of the best hitters in baseball following the Tulo trade last year, and perhaps similar improvements will continue across the board now that there is less negativity in the clubhouse.
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| A happy, psychologically healthy clubhouse could go a long way in helping the Rockies bounce back from the worst five-year stretch in franchise history. (Rockies Team Instagram) |
A lot would have to go right for the Rockies to be able to replicate their 2009 success, and even if they do, a greatly improved NL West makes the Rockies best case scenario for 2016 still significantly short of a playoff experience. However, signs point to subtle changes in clubhouse philosophy, and if such changes have the positive affect on the team that they certainly could, we could find the Rockies still hovering around .500 late in the season, with even more hope for 2017 and beyond.
