Colorado Rockies Rundown: Jorge De La Rosa, David Dahl, Prospects And More

4 of 8

Jul 11, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies starting pitcher J. De La Rosa (29) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Atlanta Braves at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Your morning rundown — news, notes, analysis, and more — on the biggest stories surrounding the Colorado Rockies for this Saturday, September 19, 2015.

Jorge De La Rosa is great, part one

(via Rockies Zingers)

Jake Shapiro has a nice piece up about Jorge De La Rosa, and how the Colorado Rockies’ ace helped Jake become a baseball fan way back when in one of the unlikeliest of ways.

Some highlights from the piece include:

“DLR is the most unassuming, quiet guy you’ll ever met. If you walked around town and ran into him you’d easily confuse him for just some other guy in his thirties. He’s so introverted that #RockiesTwitter has learned more about Jorge from his wife’s Twitter than they have from his eight years in Colorado. Jorge is the longest tenured Rockie, yetyou never see De La Rosa jerseys at the ballpark or hear him talked about, ever! Here lies our theme.”

Yeah, you absolutely don’t see any De La Rosa jerseys out there, which is kind of ridiculous considering he is arguably the greatest pitcher in the history of the Colorado Rockies. (Oh, by the way, more on that below.)

Also, there’s this:

“He is one of only 50 Mexicans to start a MLB game, and he only trails guys like Fernando Valenzuela and Esteban Loaiza for the title of greatest Mexican pitcher of all time. Jorge is not only a great player, he is a trailblazer for his native Monterey who have had less than 10 big leaguers. His heart of a champion attitude continues to battle like a true warrior. He’s been traded three times in his career, and there have been rumors about a possible trade almost every single year since he joined the Rockies. Point here is to stop overlooking JDLR, he’s a stone cold ace that you’ve been overlooking for years. He’s been anchoring a Rockies staff that without him would probably be getting the Rockies the first draft pick every single year. Without question De La was instrumental in the Rockies’ 2009 run.”

Hey wait a second — about that last part — you mean the Rockies could’ve been better quicker with even higher draft picks had De La Rosa just pitched elsewhere and the Rockies could’ve raced to the bottom of the standings every year?! (Kidding.)

Seriously, JDLR is the best pitcher in Rockies’ history, and… oh yeah… we’re supposed to discuss that on the next slide…

Next: Jorge De La Rosa is great... again

Jul 23, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies pitcher J. De La Rosa (29) fields a ground ball during the fourth inning against the Washington Nationals at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Jorge De La Rosa is great, part two

(via Purple Row)

Hey, speaking of Jorge De La Rosa, the Purple Dino Podcast guys discuss him this week, too. Between Tyler and Anthony here, and Jake Shapiro on the previous slide, it’s as if JDLR had a great game this week?!

Oh yeah, he did…

Anyways, Tyler and Anthony debate De La Rosa’s legacy as another disappointing Rockies’ season (but solid personal season for Jorge) comes to a close with September quickly extinguishing itself.

I guess, to open it up to you guys, what do y’all think about Jorge? Is he the greatest Rockies’ pitcher ever? Nowhere close?

Next: David Dahl heads to the AFL

Oct. 14, 2014; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Detailed view of a batter keeping a foot in the batters box between pitches during an Arizona Fall League game. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The Rockies send David Dahl to the AFL

(via Baseball America)

The Colorado Rockies have announced that David Dahl will go to the Arizona Fall League this October in Phoenix, playing for Salt River at the Rockies’ home Spring Training facility.

Baseball America covered it, writing about Dahl (and Kyle Freeland, the Rockies’ other late announcement in the AFL):

“The clear winner here is Salt River. In Dahl and Freeland they get two of the better prospects in the Rockies’ system, both of whom missed significant time this year with injuries. Dahl, a rangy center fielder with burgeoning power, missed a chunk at midseason after a scary outfield collision necessitated a splenectomy. Freeland had surgery to remove bone chips in his pitching elbow and didn’t make it back until July 24. He threw just 47 innings all year, but was a first-round pick in 2014 who topped out at 97 mph with a wipeout slider at his best.”

Dahl has been in AA this year, except of course for the serious spleen injury that took him off the field in the middle of the year. The 2013 first round draft pick, should he make a good impression on the Rockies this fall and in the spring, could certainly find himself in the big leagues at some point in 2016, though the Rockies have lots of outfielders with which to work.

Freeland, on the other hand, has a bit more time to go before he sees the big leagues. But, he figures to be an interesting case in the AFL after missing so much time this year with an elbow injury.

Next: Nolan won't win the MVP; here's why

Sep 15, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Colorado Rockies third baseman N. Arenado (28) heads to the dugout after hitting a solo home run in the sixteenth inning. Rockies won 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Nolan Arenado is good… but not an MVP

(via Rockies Zingers)

Nolan Arenado is really good, but he won’t win the MVP — so says Adam Peterson over at Rockies Zingers, and I for one think he’s probably right about that.

Peterson makes a compelling case for Nolan (can you even imagine his future?!), but at the end of the day, Nolan isn’t quite the right fit for the National League MVP this year, especially considering Bryce Harper has been utterly dominant this year for a better ball club.

[ POLL: Could Nolan Arenado win the National League MVP Award? ]

The ROOT Sports guys also had an interesting conversation about this on Friday night during the Rockies’ game against the Padres. While Nolan is a compelling study and should receive some MVP votes, Harper has a better batting average and on-base percentage, he has now hit more home runs than Arenado, he’s carried a better team, and has been a part of a playoff race for longer than Arenado.

Yes, the Nationals completely faded in the last month of the season, but they would’ve faded much sooner without Harper, who literally held them up for the better part of the season, against all odds. The Colorado Rockies, on the other hand, faded from the start — even in spite of Arenado’s presence.

Next: The Colorado Rockies' final homestand of the year!

Sep 6, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; A general view of Coors Field before the first inning of the game between the Colorado Rockies and the San Francisco Giants. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

The final Rockies’ homestand of 2015

(via MLB.com, Twitter)

First off, this is just a wonderful thing:

Forecast for the last 'stand of the year?

Wish we were there, eh?!

[ POLL: What should the Colorado Rockies do first this offseason? ]

So enough crappin’ around and go get yourself some tickets to the last week at home right here.

The Colorado Rockies have been out of the actual race to the National League West crown since, well, May 15 or so, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still go see pretty good baseball at an amazing ballpark under an incredible week of weather. It’s the last chance you’ll have all year!

Next: Awards for Antonio Senzatela, Trevor Story

Oct. 9, 2014; Mesa, AZ, USA; Colorado Rockies infielder T. Story plays for the Salt River Rafters against the Mesa Solar Sox during an Arizona Fall League game at Cubs Park. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Two Rockies’ minor league awards given out

(via MLB.com)

We’ll have lots more on top prospects and minor league awards over the next few weeks as the Colorado Rockies wrap their own season up, but for now, congratulations to Antonio Senzatela and Trevor Story, who were named the Rox’s top minor league prospects after the 2015 season.

Senzatela is somewhat of a newcomer to an award that visible, but he had a great year as a starting pitcher at Class A-Advanced Modesto this summer, and he should start the year at AA New Britain next year, putting him as a possible contributor at the big league level in 2017.

Story, of course, is knocking on the big league door after splitting 2015 between AA New Britain and AAA Albuquerque, and showing power and decent average at each stop. He’ll have to fight with Cristhian Adames for the big league shortstop job, but he’ll likely have a big impact on the Major League roster next summer.

For what it’s worth, both of these guys are in the Rockies’ top 30 prospects list according to MLB.com, which can be seen here. (We’ll have our own top 30 prospects list coming soon, too!)

Next: John Axford stabilizes in Denver

Aug 30, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Colorado Rockies catcher D. Garneau (50) and relief pitcher J. Axford (66) celebrate after defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-0 at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Denver good for John Axford & family

(via MLB.com)

John Axford had a very nice interview with MLB.com this week, and explicitly states he wants to come back to Colorado next year (likely as a setup man, at least after Adam Ottavino returns from elbow surgery). Speaking to reporters, Axford said of the Rox:

“The Rockies have been great this year from top to bottom with everything that’s gone on. I want to be back here and be part of the Colorado Rockies team that pulls together and goes back to the playoffs. That’s something this team is capable of doing.”

Hmm… not sure about that last part (haven’t we heard that before?), and not sure Axford — or any veteran — fits into the Rockies’ relief plans, though perhaps another bridge year won’t hurt them.

Don’t get me wrong, we’ve roundly, harshly criticized Axford and felt the Rockies should’ve just gone younger from the start, but they didn’t, and now Axford has righted the ship to end the year on a strong note. And, obviously, even with promising younger bullpen options like Justin Miller, Jairo Diaz, and Miguel Castro, the Colorado Rockies are still going to need a veteran or two down there, as well.

What do you think: will Ax be back in 2016? Will he ever see the playoffs as a member of the Colorado Rockies?

More from Rox Pile

Home / Colorado Rockies News