Colorado Rockies: Stephen Cardullo, Matt Holliday and More

Here are three things to know about the Colorado Rockies as the first day of the workweek comes to a close.

Cardullo visits his corner

Stephen Cardullo was one of the best stories of the season for the Rockies. From playing independent league to making an impact on the Colorado roster in September, Cardullo had a feel-good story that was great to see unfold.

The Rockland Boulders certainly haven’t forgotten about Cardullo’s roots in the independent league … and neither has Cardullo. As I detailed in this article, Cardullo had the left field bleacher area named after him inside Rockland’s stadium.

Well, Cardullo actually had the time to visit Cardullo’s Corner recently and the Boulders preserved the moment for posterity. You can check it out below.

Cardullo appeared in 27 games for the Rockies last season, posting a .214 average with two homers and six RBI.

Rafters fall in Arizona action on Monday

Colorado prospect Zach Jemiola was tagged for two runs in his four-inning start as the Surprise Saguaros notched a 3-1 win over the Salt River Rafters on Monday afternoon.

Jemiola struck out five and allowed just three hits in his 62-pitch performance but five Surprise pitchers limited the Rafters to just five hits.

Batting as the designated hitter, Ryan McMahon went 1-for-3 at the plate to pace Colorado’s prospects on the team. He is now hitting .278 in AFL action.

Pat Valaika went 0-for-4 playing shortstop and saw his average drop to .235.

Holliday return still makes sense

In today’s article on MLB.com, Rockies beat writer Thomas Harding mentions something that I wrote about recently … the possible return of Matt Holliday to the Rockies.

With St. Louis seemingly unwilling to pay Holliday somewhere around the $17 million salary that he received last season, it is thought that the former Rockies outfielder could return to Colorado and fill a need for the Rockies at first base. He played 10 games at first base last season for the Cardinals in his first-ever action there.

Of course, a lot would need to happen for this to occur, including the Rockies not resigning Mark Reynolds and Holliday being willing to accept a lower salary (unless the Rockies are planning to splurge, which doesn’t seem likely).

Next: The Top 5 Shortstops in Colorado History

At age 36, Holliday blasted 20 homers last season for the Cardinals. He could bring right-handed power to a Rockies team that is desperately seeking just that. It would be a short-term fix, as Harding noted, but it could certainly happen.

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