Picture this: It’s October 3, 2016.
Check that, Rockotber 3, 2016 – exactly two months from today.
The Rockies have scratched and clawed their way to the final Wild Card spot and are in Los Angeles to play the Dodgers. Tied at 2 in the top of the ninth, here comes rookie sensation Trevor Story to pinch hit.
Bang!
Story blasts one into the left field bullpen at Chavez Ravine and the Rockies escape 3-2, moving on to the next round of the playoffs.
It was Story’s first at-bat since the team announced Aug. 2 he’d be out eight-plus weeks with a torn UCL in his thumb, likely ending his year.
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Just because Story’s season could be finished doesn’t mean the Rockies should pack it in. In fact, they can absolutely still make the playoffs for the first time since 2009.
First things first: The loss of Story is huge. No rational person is going to argue against that. Replacing his eye-popping (and league-leading) 27 home runs, 72 RBIs and solid .272 batting average isn’t going to be easy. Story was well on his way to winning Rookie of the Year, something a pesky thumb doomed last Saturday in New York.
Still, this Rox lineup is loaded. Even without Story they boast the likes of Nolan Arenado, Carlos Gonzalez, D.J. LeMahieu, Charlie Blackmon, Mark Reynolds and the newest kid to start writing his own Story, David Dahl.
Plug in Daniel Descalso as the everyday shortstop, who’s hitting a tidy .320, and this offense can average more than five runs per game (currently averaging 5.1 – best in the NL).
The Rockies lost a lot of fire power with Story going down, but they’ve still got plenty of ammo to fight the battle. You dig?
And the real reason for Colorado’s success since the All-Star break isn’t Story, or anyone on the offensive side. No, it’s the starting rotation, who arguably is at its best since the team’s last playoff run in 2009.
Jon Gray appears to be on the verge of becoming a bona fide ace, if he hasn’t already reached that level. The rookie Tyler Anderson has been a pleasant surprise, both Chad Bettis and Tyler Chatwood have consistently won games all year and Jorge De La Rosa (who just reached 100 career wins) appears to have enough left in the tank.
The fact I just rattled off five legitimate starters, who barring injury will be the Rockies’ five starters the rest of the season, is remarkable. It’s been a long time since we knew who the Rox rotation was even going to have in it the last two months, let alone had faith in all five guys.
At 53-53, an honest and educated fan knows the Rockies have underachieved. They’ve lacked late inning magic except in random spurts, and have an ugly mark of just 8-13 in one-run games.
Even without Story, there’s a real window for the team to make a run. The Rockies play 22 of their next 33 games at home, including the next five against teams they’re looking up at in the standings in the Dodgers and Marlins.
A big series with the Cardinals looms in September, as well as seven more with Los Angeles even after these next two games. The gist: The Rockies, as a team, can still write their own 2016 Story, even without Trevor.
Extend that Story long enough into October, and Trevor will be back. Maybe even on a cool Southern California night, with a spot in the next round of the dance on the line.
The Rockies can make the playoffs without Story, they’ve got plenty of bats in a stacked lineup and reliable starting pitching for the first time in forever.
If the team’s playing ball on Rocktober 3, 2016, maybe the kid can add another chapter to his rookie Story, something we can’t be sure has concluded just yet.