Colorado Rockies: 3 things to notice about Friday’s lineup

With the Colorado Rockies opening the unofficial second half of the Major League Baseball season on Friday night against the New York Mets, there were some interesting things to notice about Colorado’s Friday lineup.

In the first game back from the All-Star break, all Rockies were rested and ready to be in the lineup. However, there were three things that stood out to us in Bud Black’s lineup.

Story not starting

The last time the Rockies went to Citi Field, Trevor Story was on top of the baseball world. His home run hitting and offensive production had Rockies fans salivating about what was to come in the second half of the campaign. However, Story slid into second base and tore a ligament in his thumb. His season was over and Rockies fans were left to ask, “What might have been?”

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Fast forward to this year and Story is struggling on offense, hitting just .224 and already compiling 100 strikeouts.

Pat Valaika was slated as the starting shortstop on Friday night, ahead of Story. Black said not to read too much into it, but we’ll side with Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post here and say it’s certainly something to keep an eye on.

Desmond not back

Ian Desmond was scheduled to return from the disabled list prior to the start of Colorado’s series in Queens. However, Desmond was not on the lineup on Friday night. Saunders tweeted that he is due back soon, more than likely on Saturday.

Desmond’s return means the Rockies will have a tough decision to make with their active roster. His return more than likely means Valaika or Raimel Tapia is sent to Triple-A. Both have produced well for the Rockies as of late while Desmond is still trying to get into gear at the plate.

Another day on the disabled list gives the Rockies another day to figure out who gets a plane ticket to Albuquerque. Of course, that’s provided the Rockies don’t expand their bench to a five-man bench (which seems highly unlikely) by getting rid of a reliever. That won’t happen.

CarGo batting sixth

The Rockies are intent to give Carlos Gonzalez every chance to break out of his slump. He went 2-for-4 batting seventh in the final game before the All-Star break against the Chicago White Sox. However, he’s hitting just .211 in July and .221 for the season.

Next: Check it out: Rockies at Mets series preview

Will this be the game where things start to turn around? Rockies fans have been asking that all season.