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Colorado Rockies 2000 Draft: They could have drafted Yadier Molina

By Noah Yingling

DENVER, CO - JULY 03: Yadier Molina #4 of the St. Louis Cardinals throws to first base after fielding a fifth inning bunt attempt against the Colorado Rockies during a game at Coors Field on July 3, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - JULY 03: Yadier Molina #4 of the St. Louis Cardinals throws to first base after fielding a fifth inning bunt attempt against the Colorado Rockies during a game at Coors Field on July 3, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /
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Colorado Rockies, Jim Leyland, Bob Gebhard, 2000 MLB Draft
Jim Leyland (L) tries on his new jersey with the help of Colorado Rockies Executive Vice President and General Manager Bob Gebhard (R) during a press conference 07 October at Coors Field in Denver, CO at which the Rockies formally announced the signing of Leyland as their new manager. Leyland, who was the manager of the 1997 World Champion Florida Marlins, signed a three-year deal with the Rockies which will keep him at Colorado through the 2001 season. AFP PHOTO/Doug COLLIER (Photo by DOUG COLLIER / AFP) (Photo credit should read DOUG COLLIER/AFP via Getty Images) /

We continue our Colorado Rockies draft series by looking at the 2000 MLB Draft.

In 2000, the Colorado Rockies were coming off of a 72-90 season and the resignation of their manager Jim Leyland and general manager Bob Gebhard after a stressful season. By and large, Leyland resigned since the club hadn’t yet figured out how to pitch well at Coors Field, let alone between Coors Field and sea level and Gebhard resigned due to that and what ended up being four years in a row of not making the playoffs.

Gebhard resigned in late August and Leyland resigned at the end of the season. The Rockies hired Dan O’Dowd, an assistant general manager with Cleveland, to be their new GM in late September and he hired someone he was familiar with as his new manager: Buddy Bell.

Bell was the manager of the Detroit Tigers from 1996 through 1998 but prior to that, he was Cleveland’s bench coach in 1994 and 1995.

How did the Colorado Rockies try to fix their pitching woes? Draft a lot of pitchers in the 2000 Draft

Since the Colorado Rockies had so many issues in 1999 and, frankly, for most of their franchise’s history, they turned to the draft to try to get some pitching help. The Rockies drafted 13 pitchers with their first 19 picks, including each of their first four picks and five of their first six picks.

But, as had most of the draft picks that the Rockies had before, they all fell flat. Only one of the 13 pitchers made more than a dozen appearances for the Rockies.

But first, the biggest dud of them all: their first-round pick.

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