One of the Rockies’ all-time greats had his last hurrah in 2024.
Welcome to the 2024 edition of Ranking the Rockies, where we take a look back at every player to log playing time for the Rockies in 2024. The purpose of this list is to provide a snapshot of the player in context. The “Ranking” is an organizing principle that’s drawn from Baseball Reference’s WAR (rWAR). It’s not something the staff debated. We’ll begin with the player with the lowest rWAR and end up with the player with the highest.
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No. 13, Charlie Blackmon: 0.6 rWAR
On September 23rd, 2024, 38-year-old Charlie Blackmon announced his intent to retire from professional baseball after 14 seasons—all spent with the Colorado Rockies.
— Charlie Blackmon (@Chuck_Nazty) September 23, 2024
“I have been blessed to call the city of Denver and the Colorado Rockies my baseball home for the entirety of my career,” Blackmon posted on his social media accounts. “I am grateful for the support of this organization, my teammates, and most of all Rockies fans. It is with a thankful heart and a career’s worth of memories that I choose a new path.”
For the first time since 2010, Charles Cobb “Chuck Nazty” Blackmon is not on the Rockies’ 40-man roster.
In 124 games in 2024—primarily as the Rockies’ designated hitter—Blackmon had clearly lost a step. Sometimes his swings would look sluggish or he would chase a pitch he wouldn’t have earlier in his career. His .256 batting average was the lowest mark of his career since his 2011 rookie season, a far cry from the .331 of his 2017 National League batting title. His .329 on-base percentage and .412 slugging percentage were both bottom five performances in his lengthy career and Blackmon’s 0.6 rWAR was his second worst since 2014 and just the third time he was worth less than one win above replacement in that time frame.
But then Chuck Nazty would do Chuck Nazty things. A ball hit perfectly right to where the defender wasn’t. A bases-clearing triple. A clutch home run. He would do one of the things that made him so special in a Rockies uniform and you would think “the old man’s still got it!”
Blackmon was still a team leader on offense for the Rockies. His 115 total hits, 24 doubles, six stolen bases, and 43 walks were all top five on the team, while his 52 RsBI were sixth most. He was tied for the lead in triples with five to pad his very comfortable lead as the franchise’s all-time triples leader.
Parts of Blackmon’s 2024 season were a final showcase of what made him so special. Operating as the Rockies’ primary leadoff man once again, he hit double digit home runs for the tenth time in his 14-year career. He hit five or more triples for the ninth time in his last ten seasons, and his six stolen bases were his most since 2018 and capped off a streak of having multiple stolen bases in a season dating back to 2013.
Charlie Blackmon took the field for the last time on September 29th against the Los Angeles Dodgers to a standing ovation from a packed house at Coors Field. He took his place in center field—where he spent most of his career—for the first time since 2018.
In the bottom of the third inning, Charlie Blackmon put a single into center field against Dodgers pitcher Landon Knack. It was his 1,805th career hit… and the final hit of his career. In front of a shocked crowd, Blackmon hugged rookie pinch runner Jordan Beck, waved to the crowed, and walked back to the Rockies dugout for a final time. His career had drawn to a close.
A four-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger, and a Batting Champion, Blackmon finishes his career at the top of the franchise leaderboards for most offensive categories and his 21.3 career rWAR puts him at seventh all-time. He has the second-most runs scored, hits, doubles, stolen bases, and total bases in franchise history.
Like Larry Walker and Todd Helton before him as faces of the franchise, Charlie Blackmon’s departure marks a period of transition for the Rockies and a changing of the guard. The young men, led by the likes of Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle, are taking over.
“I don’t know what’s on the other side of the fence,” Blackmon concluded in his retirement announcement. “But I take solace in knowing one thing remains constant. Although names and faces will change, the game will continue to be played. I’ll hop over that fence, pickle the beast and embrace the next phase of my life.”