Since the Rox have a ton of pitchers in camp, I can’t limit this to one post. To be honest, I’m not sure how many posts it will take before the job is done. Today, I’m delving into the starting rotation, sans Ubaldo. Like Helton, he is deserving of a post all to himself. After I’m done with the rotation, I’ll hit up the bullpen and the minor leaguers.

Right now, the Rockies are set with their top three starters — Ubaldo, Jorge De La Rosa, and Jhoulys Chacin. However, the back end has question marks and the fourth and fifth spots may be up for grabs. Let’s get to it.

Jorge De La Rosa

This off-season, the Tulo and CarGo signings attracted a bunch of attention, but, since they were already under contract, De La Rosa’s may have been more important. Many thought Jorge would sign for $40M or $50M. Instead, he took a discount to stay with the Rockies.

While Jorge was terrific down the stretch last year — especially in August — the Rox need more of him. He has a ton of talent, but needs to be more durable and eat up innings. He has not reached the 200 inning plateau. Hopefully, this year he will accomplish that goal.

Bill James’s 2011 Projections: 9-11 — 4.45 ERA — 27 Starts — 178 IP
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