The Rockies appear to finally – FINALLY – be committed to letting the kids play
A couple weeks ago, my good buddy Evan Lang wrote a great article detailing the necessity of the Rockies moving on from some veterans in favor of their young players. This is a sentiment shared by many an embattled Colorado fan that has become disillusioned with the middling on-field product – if they aren’t going to compete now, it’s better to give the “kids” an opportunity to progress and learn at the big league level.
Unfortunately, such opportunities have been hard to come by, there have been more than a few talented rookies that have spent more of their time on the bench, getting more acquainted with Coors Field’s dugout than the field itself.
It appears that’s about to change.
Saturday’s game against the San Diego Padres saw the MLB debut of catcher Drew Romo, one of the most anticipated prospects in recent memory. He was joined in the lineup by fellow youngsters Ezequiel Tovar and Jordan Beck, two players who are likely to factor heavily into the team’s future plans. In fact, it was the first time a Rockies lineup included three players age 23 or younger since September 28, 2008 when Dexter Fowler, Ian Stewart and Troy Tulowitzki were all in the same lineup.
They, in turn, are backed up by a pitching staff that features multiple rookies such as Angel Chivilli, Bradley Blalock, and Tanner Gordon. Finally, the bench is filled out by newcomers Hunter Goodman and Aaron Schunk (though Goodman was optioned yesterday in favor of Nolan Jones).
The kids are really and truly here.
Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images
They’re making an impact, too.
Beck recently recorded a three-hit effort in a win over the Padres, and Viktor Vodnik (playing his first full season in MLB) has become a staple in the back end of Colorado’s relief corps.
Gordon has pitched far better in the month of August than July. Romo figures to be the catcher of the future and second-year Nolan Jones recently returned to the Rockies and looks to return to his Rookie of the Year finalist form. There are young, exciting players at just about every position, and it seems there are more to come.
Now, there’s a difference between having these young stars on the team, and actually using them. There are still those that are on the outside looking in, such as Goodman, who had seen his playing time diminish in recent weeks prior to yesterday’s option. Prior to his injury, Kris Bryant was also viewed by some as blocking others like Michael Toglia from getting the playing time they needed to develop. It’s not a perfect science.
Still, it seems the Rockies are determined to continue to let these newer faces get acclimated to baseball at mile high.
Manager Bud Black understands how crucial regular at-bats are to the newer guys. Prior to Saturday’s game, he used Jordan Beck as an example.
“The best experience for him to learn is by playing,” Black said. “He’s got to get out there and experience Major League pitching and Major League games. When we brought him up in May, it was interrupted. So now he’s back on track. He’s gonna get his playing time and hopefully continue to grow.”
Hearing that is encouraging, especially because Beck is viewed as a potential stalwart in Colorado’s outfield. Knowing that Black has his development at the forefront will help put the fears of Rockies fans to rest.
How about Chivilli? Once viewed as a fringe prospect, he impressed the front office enough to earn a promotion to MLB. Black understands better than most the trials and tribulations of a pitcher’s first foray into Major League action, and wants to allow the 22-year-old right-hander to continue to develop his repertoire.
“I think there is a calmness there,” Black said of his reliever. “What I do like, fundamentally, is that there’s a little bit of a swing-and-miss in there on (his) change-up and slider. I think we’ve got to tighten up fastball command. Those are things we’ll have to handle.”
Colorado’s manager seems to have faith in Chivilli’s latent abilities.
And what of Drew Romo? The fan-favorite backstop has officially taken the first steps of his MLB career, but how much action will he see?
When asked about the likelihood of Romo being on the short side of playing time in favor of veteran Jacob Stallings, Black had this to say:
“Not necessarily. I think it will determine itself. We’ll see how it goes.”
At least it’s not a no, right?
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
General manager Bill Schmidt believes it’s the culmination of a process years in the making.
“The fact that these guys are improving – as an organization, you’re always looking forward to these guys getting (to the big leagues), and more and more of them are making the steps you need to make. That’s what we’ve been striving to do, is build a foundation to support, ultimately, a championship organization. All we’re trying to do is just keep improving our talent level. At the Draft, (Senior Director – Scouting Operations) Marc Gustafson and (Vice President and Assistant General Manager of Scouting) Danny Montgomery did a tremendous job bringing in some additional talent.”
There’s work to be done, of course, but at least for now it seems that the Rockies have finally turned the corner on letting the kids play. While that by no means guarantees results, it’s at least exciting to finally be able to see the prospects that we’ve pined for.
With more help on the way, it’s finally looking like the Rockies may be embracing the talent of tomorrow. Let’s just hope they stick to the plan.