Colorado Rockies: Do Hundley, Parra Deserve Criticism?

Perhaps it is ironic that two of the Colorado Rockies who have received the most criticism this season hit career milestones on the same night at Coors Field.

Gerardo Parra notched his 1,000th career hit and Nick Hundley logged his 600th career hit as the Rockies downed the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-1 on Monday night.

Parra became the third active Colorado Rockies player to reach the 1,000-hit mark, joining Carlos Gonzalez (1,122) and Mark Reynolds (1,061). He was 0-for-4 on the night before hitting a soft line drive to center off Pedro Baez in the seventh inning.

Parra has come under fire this season from many in the Rockies community after signing a three-year, $27.5 million contract in the offseason. At .253 for the season (heading into Tuesday night’s game), Parra is hitting well below his career .275 average. Additionally, he has struck out 59 times while walking just seven times. Parra’s previous low for walks in any season was 23 in 2010 with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

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Since coming back from an injury he suffered before the All-Star break, Parra is hitting just .219. He has also forced the hand of manager Walt Weiss, who continues to try to find a way to play Parra despite the explosion of David Dahl into the outfield mix. With Dahl, Gonzalez and Charlies Blackmon in the outfield, Weiss has tried fitting Parra into the lineup at first base.

Has Parra deserved the criticism? Absolutely. He was supposed to be the answer in left field but has consistently shown a tendency to underperform. His refusal to take pitches and try to work the opposing pitcher for a walk has been frustrating. Additionally, when in left field, Parra has had his good moments, but also moments when he’s misplayed fly balls and taken bad routes to cut off base hits.

As for Hundley, he’s in the final year of his contract with the Rockies just as many are pushing for Tom Murphy to take his place behind the dish. After a .301 season last year, Hundley came back to earth this season. His .249 average has been tough to stomach, although he has come through lately when needed.

He opened the scoring on Monday night with a two-run shot, but he’s batting just .219 in August. Hundley went cold at a time when the Rockies went into a slump as well. The timing couldn’t have been worse.

On the season, Hundley is batting .294 with runners in scoring position. He’s approaching a career high in walks (24 heading into Tuesday night, four behind his career-high). However, he’s also just 40 strikeouts from his career high as well.

Has Hundley deserved the criticism? Yes and no. He’s been serviceable behind the plate but not spectacular. Weiss believes his veteran leadership has been critical with young pitchers like Jon Gray, Tyler Anderson, and Jeff Hoffman on the hill. However, that’s hard to see in the box score.

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With Murphy in the minors and Tony Wolters hitting .360 in limited duty since the All-Star break, Colorado fans seem more than willing to see Hundley sit and let the young catchers have their chance. However, that may be something not seen until spring training next season.