The Rockies-Cardinals Series, July 30th-August 2nd 2015: A four game intro to the post-Tulo era.

               As a Rockies fan stuck in St. Louis who formerly attended a dozen or more games at 20th and Blake each year, I take full advantage of my infrequent opportunities to see the Rockies in person by attending every game in their annual series at Busch Stadium. The first two years of this tradition had already lowered my expectations to nearly zero; the Rockies' 1-5 record included the unforgettable May 2013 game where Eric Young Jr. led off the 1st with a broken bat single, only to have Shelby Miller proceed to retire the next 27 straight hitters. Last year consisted of a swift 3-game sweep in mid-September featuring a healthy dose of Rafael Ynoa, Matt McBride, and other Culberson-esque AAA-caliber players. So when Tulo was shipped to Toronto 48 hours before their arrival in St. Louis, I knew this would be a particularly difficult weekend to wear purple among the unrelenting self-proclaimed best fans in baseball.

Jose Reyes does not seem to fit in. He did not address or
acknowledge any Rockies fans, despite many trying to get
his attention.

Sitting in the front row next to the Rockies dugout as I always do for one of the games of the series, I watched one of the most devastating losses in recent memory on Thursday. After outplaying the Cardinals for most of the game, taking advantage of their defensive mistakes and getting contributions at the plate from everyone up and down the lineup (including a 2-run homer from starting pitcher Chris Rusin), the Rockies turned to closer John Axford to protect a two-run lead in the 9th. I respect Walt for having faith in his players and allowing them to work through rough patches, in sharp contrast with the Jim Tracy-era Rockies who might yank Juan Nicasio from the rotation after two bad starts or send Dexter Fowler to the Springs after a single rough week. But Axford had given up runs in his last four appearances, resulting in three blown saves and another loss, and it would have been four blown saves except that he entered one game with the Rockies and Rangers tied at 8.

Thank you Jorge for being an actual major league caliber pitcher.

Axford's final warmup pitch skipped in the dirt and went past Nick Hundley all the way to the backstop. Correctly assuming this meant the 9th would not be a smooth finish to the game, I expected Justin Miller, who had been warming up the previous inning before the Rockies regained the lead, to be ready to enter the game (more on him later). But after Axford began the inning by allowing a walk and then a base hit, it was clear that Walt was going to let the implosion proceed, as nobody stirred in the Rockies bullpen. The lone out of the inning for the Cardinals, a sharp liner from Yadier Molina to Blackmon in center, probably should have ended the game, but third base coach Jose Oquendo wisely declined the risk of sending the tagging Kolten Wong home, as he surely expected Axford to complete the job for them. Ax promptly did just that by walking the next batter, Greg Garcia, to push the winning run home.

The Rockies trading away one of the best players in the league for an older, more expensive, and far less valuable shortstop and some middling prospects made it clear they have no expectation to win right now, but the events of Thursday night made it hard to believe that they even want to win on any given night. Walt would rather hang a veteran reliever out to dry under the guise of "allowing him to work through a rough patch," while a young recently promoted Justin Miller was likely dying to prove himself in a high pressure situation to be a dependable member of the bullpen. Sure enough, the following night when Michael Wacha was making sure the Rockies had no chance, Miller came in to the 7-0 game in the 8th and nearly had a 9 pitch, 3 strikeout inning, if not for Pete Kozma flying out on Miller's 0-2 pitch. I find it hard to believe that Walt leaving Axford in on Thursday was in John's, or the team's, best interest.

The Rockies were at least able to take one game of the series, thanks to Jorge De La Rosa being an actual major league pitcher. One of the main takeaways from the series was seeing an undeniably decent pitcher who would likely be a number 4 starter on most teams look like a legitimate Cy Young candidate compared to what we've come to expect over the last few years.

The Cardinals walked off on the Rockies again on Sunday, with some more questionable late inning managerial decisions to thank. Scott Oberg worked out of trouble in the 8th, so naturally with the game still tied going in to the bottom of the 9th, Walt left the ball in Oberg's hand. With one out and a runner on second, Randal Grichuk hit a slow roller up the middle to Jose Reyes, who double clutched before throwing to first and, for about the 5th time in the series, failed to make a play that Tulowitzki would have completed easily. The Rockies put the shift on for the next batter, new Cardinal Brandon Moss, leaving Nolan Arenado by himself on the left side of the infield. Standing about halfway between second and third, Nolan could be seen yelling at the dugout with his arms up, presumably wondering what to do about Jason Heyward on third base and his 15 foot lead. It ultimately did not matter, as Brandon Moss's easy double play ball went right through the hole recently vacated by Jose Reyes to give the Cardinals the win.

Tommy Kahnle can't wait for his winter vacation to begin.

I will continue going to every game when the Rockies visit St. Louis, but it is becoming more and more difficult to get excited about. The Rockies got about one third the value for Tulo that they would have gotten two years ago, because the front office stubbornly thought they would be competing by now, and it's clear that they are not any closer than they were during the despicable four-man rotation stretch. Maybe Jon Gray, Mike Nikorak, and Jeff Hoffman will anchor a rotation that carries the Rockies back to the playoffs in 2017. Or perhaps they will continue to ruin prospects and waste promising careers while blaming the altitude and coincidental bad injury luck for their never-ending struggles. Either way, it's a rough time to be a Rockies fan.



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