Colorado Rockies: Jeff Bridich and what led to 2019’s disappointment

All of this caused much tension throughout the Rockies organization, who have been visually panicking since day three of the season. When they fell to 2-1 in Miami, Bridich was seen sternly talking to Bud Black in his office and he did so again the following day to Black and the entire coaching staff when they split the first series with the Marlins.

These moves continued when they, what one former MLB executive agreed in saying, made a panic move in calling up top pitching prospect Peter Lambert and top overall prospect Brendan Rodgers.

What was known in-house as a team a few players short ultimately derailed 2019 right before they could’ve filled those gaps.

“I’m not quite ready to make a judgment on the core,” Bridich continued during his post-deadline media session. “The rollercoaster of this season, we’re not ready to jump off the building based on one month. We’re all competitive and sometimes emotional throughout the season. We all try to keep a level head in order to continue to evaluate. We’ll see how this group responds to adversity. We are fairly healthy. We expect a lot of these guys to be a part of us next year. We have to learn from this and the big hope is we play the baseball we were playing for large parts of June.”

Most will tell you that the Rockies’ lack of willingness to sell was an indictment on Bridich and his inability to be on a plane with every other front office in baseball. While there are hints of truth there and a dash of prospect hugging, the reality is that the Rockies entrenched themselves with this core and relied upon players who have not lived up to value. To sell any of them this year would’ve been a net negative in terms of value for Colorado. They were designed to buy, but they collapsed before they could even target a need to buy.

Bridich didn’t make a significant move. He didn’t really have a choice or time to make a rational decision as the walls around him ignited in flames.

“There was a lot of activity and interest in our players,” Bridich explained. “Most of it was in players we didn’t want to move. We could’ve traded a large portion of our team if we wanted to. In this case, because of the last month of play, we weren’t looking to strictly buy. We never got to a point where it made sense to trade anyone. We want them as parts of our future.”

Has Bridich helped himself with his lack of communication to fans? No.

Has Bridich helped himself with his differing approach compared to other MLB GMs? No.

Has Bridich helped himself with a contention season that blew up? No.

As bad as his quotes in If These Walls Could Talk may look, and as bad as today and the last month have looked, this had been building for a full calendar year. It won’t be 2019’s deadline that irks fans five years from now … it will still be 2018.

Wednesday was just a continuation of more of the same from the Rockies trusting their core which birthed the first back-to-back playoff appearances in franchise history. For better or worse, their chips were already all-in on that, the 2019 trade deadline wasn’t going to alter that unless they completely folded.

“I still very much believe in this group,” Bridich said. “We have things to improve on. We have a strong core and, hopefully, they’re learning about themselves and each other.”

At the very least, July has made Bridich realize there is a foil to his plan — some holes, indicated by the pressure he’s admittedly felt — whether self-inflicted or from management.