Colorado Rockies reflect on the day Major League Baseball shut down

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Jul 5, 2020; Denver, Colorado, United States; Colorado Rockies second baseman Ryan McMahon (24) during workouts at Coors Field. Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports /

Scottsdale, Ariz. — One year ago today, the Colorado Rockies played their last spring training game of 2020, tying the Cincinnati Reds 5-5 at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick.

At the time, none of us (including myself, who was covering the team that week in person) knew that that would be the last spring action of the season. We were hearing talk of postponements and cancellations in the sports world, but it still seemed like that possibility was a world away.

We knew very little about COVID-19, and we certainly knew very little about how it would change our lives and our society, including the world of sports moving forward. It wasn’t long until the Rockies were like the rest of us, trying to figure out how to deal with a world without sports.

Briefly, let’s remember the timeline from spring training shutting down in 2020 from Colorado’s point of view.

March 10 — Rockies play their last game of spring training, tying Cincinnati.

March 11 — Rockies vs. Chicago White Sox is postponed because of torrential downpours in the Scottsdale area.

March 12 — Major League Baseball cancels the rest of spring training

This year, I planned my spring training coverage around the anniversary of the days that changed sports in 2020. I wanted to get some perspective from the players who went through that time, in their own words. What do they remember about those days and the emotions that were running rampant?

Here are start-of-the-pandemic thoughts, memories, and stories from three Colorado Rockies players, who all exclusively spoke with Rox Pile about the one-year anniversary of the shutdown.

Trevor Story

What do you remember about those final days here at spring training last year?

“A lot of unknowns. There was just an uneasy feeling about what this whole thing could be. Obviously, it was a very deadly virus. I just remember thinking about my family and safety first. That was it. I was just trying to figure out what we were going to do. Baseball was kind of on the backburner at that point. My focus shifted.

You knew things had changed after watching the Dallas Mavericks game the next night, right? Note: Story is a native of Irving, Texas, a Dallas suburb, and a big Dallas sports fan.

“Yeah, I was watching the Mavericks game. They were kind of the last game I think being played. I didn’t really correlate that we were going to be right behind those guys. I guess you can look back in hindsight. Obviously, it wasn’t going to be great after that.”

How has this last year changed you?

“In a lot of ways, my perspective was challenged because of not being able to play baseball. It took the thing that I loved to be able to do the most and I wasn’t able to do that.

“Trying to be a leader amongst these guys and being more vocal and talking about things that are uncomfortable. It was very uncomfortable doing that ,but I felt in my heart that I wanted to do it. You know those are things that I’m still trying to be good at and trying to grow at so it was a good year for me I think in that sense. You know, just kind of realizing that baseball is not the one and only thing in this world. A lot of times it seems like it is, but when you get it taken away from you, you kind of go through all the circumstances that we were in last year, it changes your perspective a little bit.”

DENVER, CO – AUGUST 10: Starting pitcher Jon Gray #55 of the Colorado Rockies delivers to home plate during the third inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field on August 10, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /

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Ryan McMahon

What do you remember most about the day everything shut down?

“I remember thinking, ‘Oh this will be a week then we’ll get back into it.’ We’ll be playing baseball again in no time, I thought. Obviously, I was extremely wrong about that. Everything else started to happen and you realized just how big of a deal this was going to be.”

Jon Gray

What do you remember most about the spring shutdown?

“I remember just trying to find out how to play baseball at all. A lot of people were leaning toward there’s not going to be a season. You know, it was crazy to think about just packing up and coming back next year. So that’s what I remember the most.

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“I think we all knew it was going to be tough. There are things that we don’t normally have to deal with, but I think everybody was on the positive side of things, for the most part. We didn’t catch many breaks but we tried to find things to look forward to, and that was figuring out how to play again.”

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Exclusive: Colorado Rockies reflect on the day Major League Baseball shut down

Here are start-of-the-pandemic thoughts, memories, and stories from three Colorado Rockies players, who all exclusively spoke with Rox Pile about the one-year anniversary of the shutdown.

Trevor Story

More from Rox Pile

Jon Gray

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