New Year’s Resolutions for these Colorado Rockies

Oh, like you didn’t know one of these articles was coming for the Colorado Rockies.

Next year (2022) is knocking on the door and that means we need to come up with resolutions that we’ll start for a month and then lose interest in shortly after. But that’s us, not professional ballplayers who will most certainly apply more focus to their resolutions than we will. And while we’re currently in the middle of a lockout, we’re hoping these players stay locked in to these resolutions I will be suggesting for them (which I know they will read and take extremely seriously).

So let’s get these Colorado Rockies New Year’s Resolutions churning and burning and ready to go!

Raimel Tapia: Hit the ball in the air more

I wrote about this previously but Tapia could become a significantly more productive hitter if he was able to lift the ball in the air more. As the owner of the highest single-season ground ball percentage over the past 20 years (67.4%) and the lowest launch angle since Statcast started recording it in 2015 (-4.4 degrees), there’s literally nowhere to go but up (Launch Angle joke: Check).

In 2021, he had a wRC+ of 27 on ground balls and a wRC+ of 104 on fly balls. Quite simply, the more productive hit is in the air. And when he does it’s usually a great result, especially when facing guys like Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer (both of whom he hit homers off of this season). Given his launch angle, if he just gets a bit more under balls and turns more grounders into line drives then he’ll have even more success (316 wRC+ on line drives in 2021). So let’s try to get some air under it Raimel and watch your productivity soar!

Antonio Senzatela: Rack up the strikeouts

As the leader of the Senzatela Fellas, it honestly won’t take much from our dude Antonio to really help him unlock the next level. He was, by fWAR, the Rockies’ best pitcher in 2021 just barely edging out Márquez (3.5 vs 3.4). He’s mastered contact at Coors Field, but if he can start to rack up the Ks then he’ll unlock a new level.

In 2022 he had a K/9 of 6.03, which equates to a K% of 15.5%. That’s the third-lowest K/9 and K% among starters who threw at least 100 innings in 2021. In today’s game, strikeouts are valued and the more a pitcher racks up, the better he generally will perform in the future. Senzatela’s been able to avoid much negative regression and posted up a strong FIP (3.61) and xFIP (4.17) in 2021. That points towards more future success, but he can unleash a more dominant side if he gets just a few more Ks.

His best stretch this season came June through August when he posted a:

3.63 ERA
2.79 FIP
3.74 xFIP
6.78 K/9

At almost 1 more K/9 higher than his season average, the results were evident. If Senzatela can add this dimension to his game then he can really, really take the next step forward in his career.

Colorado Rockies Front Office: Indulge in analytics

You’re going to be shocked, but the Rockies have largely not been all that invested in the analytical side of baseball that almost every other franchise has started to embrace. It’s hampered the team over the past few seasons (Laundry joke: check) but there may be some hope that they’re finally starting to take them into consideration more with a few hires this season. After all, analytics have been rumored to be the reason that guys like CJ Cron ended up on their radar.

Should the Rockies embrace analytics and improve their team by doing so, maybe I’ll be a little less hesitant to consider the over on their wins next year (which are currently listed at 71.0 on WynnBET).

Connor Joe: Prove 2021 wasn’t a fluke

One of the best stories for the Rockies last season, Connor Joe was a delight when he was on the field. He posted an impressive 116 wRC+ (fueled by an even more impressive 12.3% BB%) and accumulated 1.4 fWAR in just 63 games. In a full season’s worth of games he’d be at least a 3 fWAR player, which would have made him the Rockies’ second-best position player this year behind Trevor Story (3.5) and Ryan McMahon (2.5).

But early success doesn’t always mean it will repeat the next year. After the clear impact he made in 2021, teams will be on the lookout for him in 2022. He’s going to need to make the proper adjustments because the league will be adjusting to him. How will he react?

With only eight career games in the majors before 2021, Connor Joe is essentially still beginning his major league career at age 29. Maybe the league adjusting to him won’t be that big of an issue given that maturity, but it’s easier said than done. Can he keep his K% below 20%? Will his BB% stay at that impressive level above 10%? Anything to prove that 2021 wasn’t just a flash in the pan and that he actually has the skills to be a consistent Major League start will be great to see and I’m hoping Joe proves he can make an impact on this team for years to come.