According to Power Rankings around the web, the season is looking grim for the Colorado Rockies. VegasInsider.com currently has the Rockies as 200-to-1 underdogs to win the World Series and their highest ranking, out of four, was given by ESPN.com, who had Colorado at No. 25 in their Power Rankings.
On Monday, Colorado Rockies reporter for MLB.com Thomas Harding joined Gil Whiteley to discuss where the team stands heading into the season.
“I do think the pitching will be a little better,” Harding said. “You’ve got a bunch of guys really in their mid-twenties here, and then you look at some of the younger guys behind them, they’ve got a chance for a pitching future. What that says about this year, I have no idea.”
The buzz around the web did seem to agree with Harding’s assessment of the Rockies’ pitchers, but with a few caveats: Joel Reuter of BleacherReport.com wrote that though the Rockies’ pitching has a chance of improvement across the board, it still wouldn’t be enough for the team to seriously contend.
One bright spot in Colorado’s pitching roster is the newly acquired closer Jake McGee, who was acquired back in January from the Tampa Bay Rays.
“He’s pitched in Tampa Bay for the last several seasons, and he’s been holding right-handed hitters to a .190 average and left-handed hitters to a .200 average,” Harding said. “This is a guy where you don’t have to worry about matchups with him.”
According to Harding, the Rays would save their best pitcher for when they needed him the most, and that man turned out to be McGee.
“There were a lot of games where it was the eighth inning and the game was on the line and that’s when Jake McGee went out on the mound,” Harding said.
Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post highlighted rookie shortstop Trevor story.
“If the first pitch of the baseball season is all about hope and dreams, then the best reason for the Rockies to smile is shortstop Trevor Story,” Kiszla said.
Though there are a few rays of hope for the Colorado Rockies, the overall mood for the team around the web was dark.
ESPN.com has the Rockies ranked at No. 25, both CBS Sports and BleacherReport.com have them at No. 27 and BusinessInsider.com has them at No. 28, just above the lowly Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies.
Listen to the full discussion in the podcast below…
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