Fansided

Colorado Rockies: Key stats you should know from August

By Ben Macaluso |
DENVER, CO - AUGUST 19: The sun sets over the stadium as Charlie Blackmon #19 of the Colorado Rockies jogs after a foul ball during the third inning against the Houston Astros at Coors Field on August 19, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - AUGUST 19: The sun sets over the stadium as Charlie Blackmon #19 of the Colorado Rockies jogs after a foul ball during the third inning against the Houston Astros at Coors Field on August 19, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
2 of 3
Next
PHOENIX, ARIZONA – AUGUST 26: Charlie Blackmon #19 of the Colorado Rockies is congratulated by Elias Diaz #35, Garrett Hampson #1 and Drew Butera #6 after hitting a grand-slam home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the eighth inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on August 26, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, ARIZONA – AUGUST 26: Charlie Blackmon #19 of the Colorado Rockies is congratulated by Elias Diaz #35, Garrett Hampson #1 and Drew Butera #6 after hitting a grand-slam home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the eighth inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on August 26, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

It feels like the Colorado Rockies played two seasons in one, just in the month of August.

There is only one month left in this crazy short season and about the best news Colorado Rockies fans can muster is that the club is at 17-17 headed into the last game of the month.

These are the numbers that defined the Rockies over the past month and what will need to improve in September for the team to make it back to the postseason.

Postseason odds and record

The Rockies were in first place for 14 days until August 12 and were 1.5 games up at their peak. The best record they had was eight games above .500 at 11-3 on August 8 after the Seattle Mariners series. Thank goodness for that start because, in a normal season, the Rockies would almost certainly be out of the playoff chase.

More from Colorado Rockies News

As it stands today, the Rockies are at a -3 run differential. On August 11, they were at the +27 only behind the Dodgers. The Dodgers today have a +88 run differential for reference. It is no breaking news that the Rockies have been struggling since they played both Texas teams back-to-back in the middle of the month. Their losses mounted and the Rockies are now third place in the division and were two games below .500 and eight games back for the division lead at their lowest.

Thankfully, this is a season like no other. With expanded playoffs and only a month left, anything can happen. The Rockies still have a 42.6 percent chance to make the playoffs, despite a seven-game losing streak toward the end of the month. This is how the Rockies got there and what they need to change if they are going to compete in September.

HOUSTON, TEXAS – AUGUST 17: Charlie Blackmon #19 of the Colorado Rockies during game action against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park on August 17, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TEXAS – AUGUST 17: Charlie Blackmon #19 of the Colorado Rockies during game action against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park on August 17, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Batting stats

To start the season, the Rockies seemed to score at will. Charlie Blackmon was hitting close to .500 for a quarter of the season, Trevor Story was staying at the top of the home run leaderboard while swiping bags, Daniel Murphy looked like the player the Rockies saw when they originally signed him to that hefty contract, Matt Kemp was a nice addition finding a role at DH and coming off the bench, and Garrett Hampson was finding his niche moving into Chuck Nazty’s traditional leadoff role. The only thing that seemed off was Nolan Arenado’s bat. His glove hadn’t missed a beat, but it is not likely he will be adding any slugging hardware to his massive trophy case this year.

Well, Arenado hit the cages hard and steadily improved his at-bats. It seemed like everything has changed since, as the Rockies have struggled to score, especially in a 13-2 drubbing against the second-place San Diego Padres. That has been a theme in the losses this year with very one-sided affairs of late. The Rockies (as a club) are still batting well with a .278 team average, which ranks sixth in the majors, and a .766 OPS, which ranks 11th in August. The Dodgers and Padres are leading the Rockies in the latter category. The Chicago White Sox are leading the majors in both categories.

The batting hasn’t been the biggest problem this year but it could stand to improve especially on the road. The club average at home is .306 at home and .216 on the road. The RBIs are 99 and 60 and the OPS is .852 and .645 respectively. That has to change immediately with two key series on the road against the Dodgers and Padres to start September. The Rockies don’t necessarily need another bat, just more consistency on the road. The same can’t be said for the pitching staff.

SEATTLE, WA – AUGUST 07: Reliever Daniel Bard #52 of the Colorado Rockies delivers a pitch during a game against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on August 7, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. The Rockies won the game 8-4. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – AUGUST 07: Reliever Daniel Bard #52 of the Colorado Rockies delivers a pitch during a game against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on August 7, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. The Rockies won the game 8-4. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /

Pitching stats

The Rockies rank 22nd in the majors with a 5.19 ERA. The pitching has the opposite problem as the hitters as they are great on the road (3.17 ERA) and unserviceable at home (6.18 ERA). With the exception of the last week, the starting rotation has been a bright spot. The formula for this club since 1993 is have the starters pitch just well enough to score a lot of runs. They’ve mostly done that. Unfortunately, the bullpen has not picked up the slack.

Ever since Wade Davis went down with an injury, it has been a close by committee situation at 20th and Blake. Not that Davis was particularly effective before that in the role with a 16.88 ERA in just 2.2 innings. The mega bullpen has officially failed with Bryan Shaw optioned to the Mariners alternate site and Jake McGee pitching (of course) effectively for the Dodgers. The club did address their struggles in the bullpen with a veteran presence from the Orioles in Mychal Givens. That won’t be enough, but it’s a start. They need to bolster the bullpen and even the back end of the rotation before today’s new August 31 trade deadline.

Next. What will it take for the Rockies to win awards on a national level?. dark

If the season ended today, the good news is that the Rockies would be in the playoffs. Due to this unprecedented schedule, the Rockies could play exactly the same in September as they did in August and still make the playoffs. Thank goodness for hot starts and here’s to the front office placing priority on the bullpen. For how awful the past two weeks of baseball have been, it’s hard to believe, but the Rockies are still very much in this playoff chase.

Next
Home / Colorado Rockies News

Schedule