A Colorado Rockies Thanksgiving

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What Colorado Rockies fans have to be thankful for

It is that time of year again, turkey, stuffing, green beans, and the works. People are about to line up all over and their father is going to ask them, “What are you thankful for, kid?” So what, as one of the most miserable teams in baseball, would the Colorado Rockies have to be thankful for? Despite the terrible season, it isn’t all doom and gloom for the team in Denver. Let’s look at the positives.

Coors Field

Despite its age, I am still thankful that Coors is still one of the best ballparks in baseball. It is gorgeous, with a superb view of the mountains, great deals on tickets, and nice, cheap beer (for a ballpark at least). There isn’t much to say here, beautiful ballpark, high-scoring games. What more could you want?

The (non-Front Office) Staff

While I can’t find much to be thankful for in the people who run the Colorado Rockies team itself, I can find thanks for those who are on the ground every home game working with fans.

For those who luckily avoided this stupid news story, Zack Hample came and threw a tantrum at Coors Field this past season, having an altercation with one of the ushers, putting him in his place. The one thing that Hample highlighted in his video was not what he intended. He intended to make these employees look bad, but all he did was call himself out and show what some of these workers deal with daily.

I do not know John (the employee from the video), but I know people like Mary and Beverly. The community loves them and put up with so much stuff they don’t deserve while getting so little thanks for it. So here is at least a small morsel. Thank you to the workers at Coors. It wouldn’t be the wonderful place it is without their help and contributions.

The Great City Connect Jerseys

I, like most people, would like to see the team wear something other than the green pants with the City Connect uniform. That said, I think the uniform itself is exceptional; the socks are outstanding, and the hat is incredible. We may have lost the awesome black vests, but I am thankful that the Colorado Rockies did something special with the uniform. I look forward to getting one soon.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JULY 16: Zac Veen #9 of the National League hits a base hit in the third inning during the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game at Dodger Stadium on July 16, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /

The Future and the Farm

It must seem rather bleak that it took me this long to talk about something actually baseball related, and well, next season doesn’t look much better than the train wreck that was this year. But that doesn’t mean that the Colorado Rockies won’t eventually put together another playoff run in a few years.

With Brendan Rodgers finally hitting a groove (and winning a Gold Glove!), Ryan McMahon extended for 5 years, Ezequiel Tovar and Michael Toglia getting the call up, the Rockies infield of the future is coming into form. Drew Romo appears he could finally be the answer for the team at Catcher.

The next step seems to be creating an Outfield to build around Kris Bryant and boy does it look like Zac Veen and Benny Montgomery will fill that void in the future. Veen is projected to make his debut next season and Benny Montgomery is projected to get the call in 2024.

The only prospects that the Colorado Rockies seem to lack is pitching, the position that is the hardest for the team to fill in free-agency. There are some players who have shown flashes like Helcris Olivarez and Chris McMahon, but ultimately none have seemed promising, thus far. Hope is not lost. The Colorado Rockies have drafted several promising pitchers in the last two drafts and have their on-and-off pitching core of Marquez, Freeland, and Marquez locked down. Because of how young these prospects are, it isn’t expected for these prospects to be ready until 2025-2026. Considering that the current Colorado Rockies pitching staff can either pitch like All-Stars or outfielders coming in during a blowout on any day, earliest the team could compete would be 2024. It is entirely possible that the 2020s follow a similar format to the 2010s, with the Rockies hitting extremely well, but poor pitching will propel them into last place. A playoff run will not happen until they answer pitching for the team.

All that said, I do not trust the front office to do right by it, but I am thankful for the future of this team. I believe that there are some bright stars coming up in the farm and the mid-2020s could be fun to watch. I just wish there wasn’t so much failure leading into it.

Aug 23, 2022; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Rockies first baseman C.J. Cron (25) and designated hitter Charlie Blackmon (19) celebrate defeating the Texas Rangers at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /

Charlie Blackmon, Daniel Bard, and CJ Cron

We looked to the future, now let’s look to the past. There wasn’t much to be thankful for this year, but I believe these players deserve a special shout-out (Brendan Rodgers already got his in the last section).

Charlie Blackmon may not have had his best season, but man does he love being in Colorado. He is a Rockies legend whose number deserves to hang next to Helton and Walker when he finally hangs up the cleats. Naturally, I am always thankful for him and his beard.

Daniel Bard was an absolute shining star for the team in 2022 and I am thankful that the Colorado Rockies took him in after retiring from pitching for 7 years and turned him into an MVP-vote getter. If he continues to pitch like he did this season (and 2020), Bard could see an All-Star nod come his way soon.

I am finally thankful for CJ Cron, the Colorado Rockies lone All-Star in 2022. Seemingly the only person on the team who could hit the dang ball. I talked extensively about how he should’ve been traded at the deadline here, but I hope he can continue to produce for the team in 2023.

While there are a lot of things for Colorado Rockies fans to lament about the previous season: the poor performance, the incompetent FO, etc. I think right now is the time to look at the little things that we fans have to be thankful for. Enjoy the turkey and a Happy Thanksgiving to all.

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