The Colorado Rockies made a slew of sexy offseason moves ahead of the 2017 season. From inking Ian Desmond to the largest (average per year) contract in franchise history, to adding two-time All-Star, reliever of the year and World Series champion Greg Holland, to hiring Bud Black as the club’s new manager, Colorado had a busy and plentiful offseason ahead of the impending season.
However, while Desmond has been solid, and Holland and Black have been irreplaceable, one low-key signing this offseason continues to go mostly unnoticed despite his production when he hits the diamond.
In the middle of January, following a majority of the Rockies’ big offseason signings, Colorado pulled the trigger on a deal to bring in utility man, and Bud Black favorite, Alexi Amarista.
Amarista, 28, whose talent tends to fly under the radar due to the surplus of star power the Rockies possess, has been a key contributor this season.
Nevertheless, ‘The Little Ninja’ has stepped up when given chances this season. In 68 at-bats this year, Amarista is hitting an impressive .338 with two home runs and 14 RBIs. His hitting, mixed with defensive versatility, gives Black a weapon he can utilize almost anywhere, anytime.
“The thing about Alexi that stands out for me is his versatility,” Black told Zach Alivera of the Denver Post. “You can put him anywhere on the diamond and feel comfortable. I have always said that he will never lose you a game in the field.”
If it weren’t for Black, Amarista would probably be playing his ball somewhere else. An advocate of the ninja, Black wanted Amarista on his new-look Rockies for a reason and vice versa.
“I had the same role with Bud Black in San Diego, and now I’m able to have that role here [Colorado] with him,” Amarista said through a translator. “So being able to kind of have the same role and know what he’s asking me to do as a manager, and he knows what I can do as a player.”
Black’s managerial tenure with the Rockies is off to a great start. As it stands, the Rockies are tied for first in the National League West place largely due to Black’s impact on the club. Amarista, the only member of the club who had played under Black before this season, has been an advocate of the winning culture Black has instilled and helped propel the Rockies to their best start in franchise history.
“I think the success is coming from having such a great team chemistry and everyone playing really well,” Amarista said. “We are playing really good baseball. We are in first place, and that’s very exciting. We are all getting together and doing really well. It’s just really exciting.”
Right now, the Rockies are playing their best baseball in nearly a decade. The mixture of offense and stellar pitching has carried them thus far; however, utility players like Amarista have an underlying value that has been critical to the team’s success.
With roughly two-thirds of the season remaining, players like Amarista who can bring multiple skills to a ball club on a nightly basis will prove valuable to Colorado during their hopeful playoff push. The ninja may be little, but he certainly packs a punch that has helped the Rockies so far in 2017.
