Why We Watch - 2008 Colorado Rockies

February 21st, 2008 by Tuffy Posted in baseball, mlb, why we watch |

There’s 200 days or so of baseball to come this season and it can be quite intimidating to jump into the deep end of the baseball viewing pool.

To help, Refrigerator Logic is providing a list of reasons to watch every Major League Baseball team for the 2008 season. Anyone that’s read all the team lists should be able to pull up the MLB schedule on any day in early June and find reasons to enjoy any contest on the board that night.

Please join in the comments to add your own reasons. Tell everyone why your team is worth three and a half hours of their lives on any given day. Make us care and we’ll be there with a tasty beverage and an appreciation for what you feel each time your team takes the field.

Second Verse, Same as the First?

Jaws 2. The Matrix Reloaded. The Sting II. Speed 2: Cruise Control. Weekend at Bernie’s II. Blues Brothers 2000. Mannequin 2: On the Move. Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo.

The 2008 Colorado Rockies?

Admittedly, it’s hard to follow up their first act: winning 274 of their last 89 games to plow to the World Series, where they succumbed quite meekly to the Boston Juggernaut in straight sets.

Everyone can relate on some level to the dream introduced and then deferred nearly as swiftly. The Rockies weren’t seriously considering the playoffs in August, felt predestined for greatness in September, and were planning their winter home improvement projects by Game 3.

It’s difficult to quantify the effects of this on the newfound fans in Denver. Do they drift back to their ski lifts without a second thought? Will Dan O’Dowd see them back in the stands and in the television ratings in the spring, giving him a little more room to work in July?

For the casual fan flipping through the channels, will the Rockies still resonate? Do we still remember the impressive young Tulo and lovable veteran Todd Helton and Yorvit! the Playoff Hero? (If nothing, we should remember the latter for his short-lived Saturday morning cartoon on CBS this winter.)

It would have been hard to believe at the time, but these Colorado Rockies are actually the most nondescript league champions one could ask for. It’s difficult to imagine connecting with those emotional heights again in April or May. Perhaps the first home game in Denver will change all that.

Still… hell, as long as it’s not baseball’s version of Mac and Me, it’ll still be a treat to watch.

Shop Smart. Shop S-Mart.

After all the talk of humidors and improved pitching (hellooooo, Brian Fuentes!), it may be easy to forget: that there stadium is Coors Field. That’s where they hit all them home runs and triples. The Rockies take good care of their boom sticks: four of them hit over 20 home runs last season and Helton’s always a candidate to join that group.

Considering what the Rockies are rolling out at the back of their rotation again this year, you can also look forward to another season of Rockies pitchers giving up more than two home runs per contest at home and on the road.

For all our years of experience as baseball observers and alleged sophistication about pitching duels and strategic acumen, it’s still true:

They Tampered in God’s Domain

How could any team claim to find strength in the Almighty when they still dabble in whatever genetic experiments are required to create this abomination?

This is Dinger, the Rockies’ cruel joke against mankind made flesh. (No, that would not be Mike Hampton. Just stop that.) During the World Series, a horrified nation was forced to watch this personal insult to Darwin complete the following Poltergeist-ian move in the ninth inning of every home playoff game:

And, God help me, I think he’s adorable. Of course a purple dinosaur would have hallucinatory pastel dots on its head flap and knees. And Nature clearly meant for this horny lizard to wear Chuck Taylors or else perish.

You can blame PBS and Barney if you’d like, but I lay my perverse fascination with Dinger at the feet of Don Bluth:

Somewhere out there, Bluth, you’d better be sleeping with one eye open.

Calling It a Position “Battle” Seems a Bit Much - A Skirmish, Maybe?

The Rockies’ main offseason acquisition was one overripe Giles to challenge for the second base job this year now that someone else is overpaying for Kaz Matsui. (By the way, I can report firsthand that the Asian population in Denver is fairly heartbroken over this. His picture was everywhere last fall.)

This might seem to be rather pointless, considering Giles’ competition consists of Jayson Nix, Clint Barmes, Jeff Baker, Ian Stewart, and an NRI familiar to Mythbusters fans.

Still, Marcus Giles hasn’t been that impressive in the last few seasons, either. This may be an excellent way of marking time until an affordable second baseman comes along, but it’s only interesting viewing if you like the kinds of wrecks Buster normally gets into. It wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect this scuffle to continue throughout the season.

Behind the plate, Yorvit! Torrealba was signed again by the Rockies after the Mets discovered his World Series ring size was irregular and would have cost more to make. (Hey, it makes as much sense as any other reason at this point.) As of now, he’s tabbed to start again.

While Chris Iannetta struggled mightily last season, he’s not a Clint Barmes-level failure yet. Hopefully, the postseason exploits of Yorvit! don’t distract the management team from the goal of developing young cheap talent that will help them stay competitive, especially as Helton’s contract grows to $19m in 2011. (Oh, and hopefully Iannetta rewards that faith in him.)