Colorado Rockies: what should the postseason rotation look like?

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DENVER, CO – AUGUST 29: Starting pitcher German Marquez #48 of the Colorado Rockies delivers to home plate against the Detroit Tigers during the first inning of an interleague game at Coors Field on August 29, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /

Assuming that the Rockies win one of the wild card spots and advance into the NLDS, one of the most interesting things for the Rockies will be to see how their rotation stacks up.

The Rockies starting rotation has an ERA of 4.48 in the month of September (including German Marquez‘s terrible start last night against the D’Backs). This has been an area of potential concern for the Rockies considering that their rotation is so young. This is how I would line it up.

Wild Card Game

For the Wild Card game, the Rockies need their best starter out their and that is Jon Gray. He has been the best of them this season and off late, he has been the best by far. Beginning with his start on July 25, he has gone ten straight starts without allowing more than three earned runs and he has gone at least six innings in eight of those ten starts. In that span, he is 5-3 with a 2.79 ERA with a .250 opponent batting average. No other Rockies starting pitcher is even close to having his ERA in this span.

NLDS Game 1

Assuming the Rockies make it to the NLDS, Jon Gray will not be available for game one. The starting rotation has not done well recently after Gray. I would probably go with German Marquez in the game. I really wouldn’t want to go with him as he has struggled a lot recently. In his past four starts, he has a 5.85 ERA and batters are hitting .341 against him in that span.

That’s part of the reason why I mentioned all the way back in July that the Rockies needed to get at least one starting pitcher (and preferably two) before the trading deadline. Relying on an extremely young pitching staff (especially one that has not pitched particularly well since the All-Star break as they have a 5.11 ERA since then).

Pitching (particularly starting pitching) wins games. The offense will provide them with some runs but when they (hypothetically) would be facing Clayton Kershaw. He hasn’t pitched well in the postseason (4.55 postseason ERA) but it still is a concern for the Rockies.

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