Colorado Rockies: Random Thoughts on a Thursday

The Colorado Rockies just won another series against a National League leading team in the Los Angeles Dodgers. However last night’s bullpen collapse left a bad taste in Rockies fans mouths. Can they recover in time when they face another division rival in the Arizona Diamondbacks starting tomorrow night?

Here are three random thoughts about the current state of the Colorado Rockies going into September, with an outside chance of getting the second Wild Card (currently 6.5 games back).

The Rockies bats are mashing the ball

In the last two series, firstly versus the National League East-leading Washington Nationals, the Rockies bats scored a total of 19 runs in three games, and followed this outburst by piling on another 23 runs versus the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers.

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It’s startling the Rockies can barely score against the bad teams (could only manage a total of seven runs against the Milwaukee Brewers) but took the good pitching staffs of the Nats and Dodgers to the cleaners.

The Rockies batters are clearly motivated to perform well versus the quality pitching staffs. All the key hitters had a great month of August. DJ LeMahieu – .439 average. Mark Reynolds – .395 average. Charlie Blackmon – .360 average. Nolan Arenado – .356 average. David Dahl – .324 average.

The Nationals had a 4.13 team ERA in August and the Dodgers had a 5.05 team ERA without their ace Clayton Kershaw.

However the team went just 12-16 in August. Whilst the hitters could hit, the pitching was uneven.

The starting pitching was much improved, however the bullpen was disappointing

Starters Tyler Anderson and Jorge De La Rosa had excellent months, finishing with a 3.57 and 3.90 ERA respectively. Chad Bettis and Jon Gray struggled with command at times (both finished with five-plus ERAs). Triple-A top prospect Jeff Hoffman was promoted and after a tough first outing, pitched well last night only allowing two runs on three hits in five innings against a Dodgers team which managed 132 runs in August.

The bullpen took a major step back last night, allowing eight runs in 1 2/3 innings. However, they were very good in the first two games against the Dodgers. There is no magic solution to fix the problem. The simple fact is they need to stop leaking runs – but how? Do the Rockies try more rookies or bring back guys currently at Triple-A Albuquerque, such as Eddie Butler and Christian Bergman?

The Rockies brought up rookie Matt Carasiti, who was was solid for the Isotopes. However, he has been hit hard at the major league level. In just 9 2/3 innings pitched, he has allowed 15 runs, has a .444 batting average against and a porous WHIP of 2.90. In every game he has allowed at least one run, and he just cannot miss bats.

He is learning by fire, which will benefit him in the long-term, but for now, with the team still scratching the Wild Card hunt, this performance hurts.

The Rockies mental state is reflected by their fielding defense

The Rockies, defensively, were excellent in the Dodgers series. Second baseman DJ LeMahieu was the standout, as you can see below:

The Rockies committed just two errors in the series. However, in the series against the Nationals, the team managed four errors. Catcher Nick Hundley was horrible trying to throw out runners trying to steal second, sailing one throw into the outfield. Backup shortstop Christhian Adames was lazy on a routine ground ball and despite having plenty of time to set his feet, he threw from mid-air and sailed his throw nearly into the dugout.

The Rockies go from phase to phase mentally. In some games they are tuned in and play sharp baseball. There are other times, like this particular game, where their minds are elsewhere and they make fundamental mistakes which are purely from a lack of focus.

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If the Rockies want to keep any chance of snatching the second Wild Card, this team needs to stay switched on for the entire month of September. The Rockies rank 13th in the NL with a team fielding percentage of .982, and have 91 errors, with only the San Diego Padres and Brewers having more.

This series against the Diamondbacks will be a key barometer to see where the Rockies are at right now. Do they continue to hit? Can the bullpen put last night’s disaster in the rear-view mirror? Can they stay switched on defensively? Can they beat a bad team for once? The Diamondbacks come in with a 56-77 record.

The Rockies, as a minimum, have to take two-from-three from Arizona, and all three phases of the game have to be switched on.

If they get swept by the D-Backs, like they were by the lowly Phillies and Brewers, serious questions will have to be asked about the future of this team.

Next: Colorado Rockies Countdown: Top Five Right-Handed Pitchers

All statistics, records and accolades courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and MLB.com unless otherwise indicated.