Ken Roberts Up, Jorge Rondon Out and Why You Don’t Ask Dick Monfort About Pitching

Dick Monfort visits the Isotopes for the 1st time.; 5/2/15 Credit: Troy Olsen (@Troybuquerque)

Many people wanted me to ask questions of Dick Monfort, the Chairman of the Board for the Colorado Rockies and one of the principal owners, that simply do not fit him.

Mr. Monfort is a business man and runs the team. Sure he has final say on things but most items like trades and improvements in pitching are going to come through Jeff Bridich, the General Manager of the Colorado Rockies. Monfort is easy to blame for the problems of the Rockies. He and his brother, among others make millions on the Rockies, but he has said he wants to win. You don’t have to believe him but I do. It’s rare you get a chance to talk one on one with one of the owners of a Major League Baseball team but there was no reason for him to lie. We were watching Wilin Rosario take batting practice and simply talking. I’m not a homer, I have no reason to say nice things about Monfort. I am just trying to explain why some of those questions weren’t asked of him. I did, however, ask what he personally has done to help the pitching situation.

Outfielder Roger Bernadina was activated from the disabled list this afternoon. Bernadina was placed on the disabled list April 25 with a left wrist sprain. Prior to his injury, he was batting .186 (6-for-32) with six runs scored, two doubles, three RBI and eight walks in six games. He pollutes an already crowded outfield created by Wilin Rosario being added to the roster and taking all the time at first base.

To make space for Bernadina, left handed relief pitcher, Ken Roberts, was promoted to Colorado for his first trip to the big league. Roberts appeared in six games, working 11 innings and posting a 3.27 ERA.

Room was made for Roberts in Colorado by Designating Jorge Rondon for Assignment. He was sporting an ERA of 90.00 when he was DFA’d. If he clears waivers, he may be assigned to Albuquerque or outright released.

While the Isotopes were away on the road, Glenallen Hill managed to do something one of his players challenged him to do, get thrown out of a game. I asked him about what caused it and he said it was balls and strikes earlier in the game. He wasn’t very open as the team had just lost their 8th in a row. You can here it all in the audio.

I asked him about why Rex Brothers was gotten up and then sat back down after the Topes tied and Hill said it was simply to get the closer in, in a tie game and then move to the long man in extras. More in the audio above.

The Albuquerque Isotopes had over 12,000 fans in the stands for their 8th straight loss, Friday night, and expect their 7 Millionth lifetime fan, Saturday Night.
“We are expecting our 7 millionth fan in Isotopes Park history tonight. At 7,060 fans away, the 7 millionth will likely come in the gates between 6:30 and first pitch (7:05 p.m.).”

Infielder Jose Rivera rejoined the Albuquerque Isotopes earlier this week from the Short-A Boise Hawks roster after Infielder Cristhian Adames was placed on the disabled list with a bruised left ankle. Adames was the batting average leader and a solid second basemen for the Isotopes before the injury. Rivera is hitting under .200 but has only had 16 at bats.