7 replies to this topic

[ColoradoJack]

I couldn't find another thread regarding Colorado's off season (I'll admit I didn't look that hard) so I will go ahead and start one.

First, the Rox locked down Troy Tulowitzki through 2020 and now are apparently on the verge of extended Carlos Gonzalez through 2017. Although CarGo only has one full season in majors, 7 years at $80 million seems a good deal for the Rockies. Shit, they may think it's worth it just to hold off Boras (CarGo's agent) for a few extra years.

Next up: Ubaldo Jimenez.

[Wilco's Last Fan]

CarGo's one of those guys who seems much more valuable to his own team than to anyone else. He had an amazing 1.162 OPS in Coors, and a relatively pedestrian .775 OPS away from home. He's only 25, so if he keeps producing at or around the level he did last year, he's in a decent position to get another big deal at 32.

I do like the continuing trend of small-to-mid-market teams locking up their own players long-term before they hit FA. It also may provide insight into Theo's thought process for those who think the Crawford deal was an overpay- the number of impact FA hitting the market in their prime has dwindled since revenue sharing began, and he must have thought that going all-out for the right guy was appropriate given the available options the next few years.

[JMDurron]

I couldn't find another thread regarding Colorado's off season (I'll admit I didn't look that hard) so I will go ahead and start one.

First, the Rox locked down Troy Tulowitzki through 2020 and now are apparently on the verge of extended Carlos Gonzalez through 2017. Although CarGo only has one full season in majors, 7 years at $80 million seems a good deal for the Rockies. Shit, they may think it's worth it just to hold off Boras (CarGo's agent) for a few extra years.

Next up: Ubaldo Jimenez.

This seems like a promising name for a Rockies-themed sex toy.

This is a low-value post, but I couldn't let that one slide.

[ColoradoJack]

Giambi back (maybe) as Rockies add Matt Lindstrom as well.

[ColoradoJack]

I suppose I would be remiss if I didn't point out that the Rockies are off to the best start in the history of the franchise after last night's 5-4 win over the Mets.

That is all.

Edit: oops, there is more. They also own baseball's best record.

Edit: the most disappointing team in baseball.

Edited by ColoradoJack, 20 August 2011 - 05:35 PM.

[Harry Hooper]

Forbes Mag has a feature Return of the Rockies:

The payoff finally came with an improbable 21–1 run at the end of 2007 that landed the club in its first World Series. The Rockies lost to the Red Sox in a four-game sweep, but a workable midmarket model was up and running. With a commitment to player development, including an international scouting operation that's yielded rich pitching talent, the team had won the National League championship with a mostly homegrown roster and baseball's sixth-lowest payroll. Only veteran first baseman Todd Helton earned more than $4.5 million.

Meanwhile, Monfort and brother Charles (whom Dick officially succeeded as CEO this season) opened snazzy new restaurants at Coors Field (the Mountain Ranch Club on the right-field line comes with a personal TV at every seat, while the new Wazee Market serves brick-oven pizza), inked a $20 million annual cable deal with Fox Sports (in addition to the 14% equity stake) and upped the occupancy rates for the stadium's 60 suites to 70%--not great but 15% higher than last year, according to Chief Operating Officer Greg Feasel. Season ticket sales in 2011 were up roughly 20% from 2010. The team even created its own branded hamburger, for which Montfort--who made his fortune in the family meatpacking business in nearby Greely, Colo.--devised the recipe.

The added cash enabled the Rockies to reduce their ratio of debt to enterprise value to 19%, down from 35% when Monfort took over. Despite a disappointing 2011 season so far (the Rockies were 48–56 through July 26), ESPN ranked the team number 9 of 122 major North American sports teams in its annual Ultimate Standings roundup, which measures teams by the overall value they provide to fans through winning, affordability and stadium experience, among other attributes.

Five straight years of profitability convinced Monfort to commit $200 million through 2020 to his two young stars, outfielder Carlos Gonzalez and shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who's become Denver's most popular athlete since John Elway.

As Monfort watched from his box in July, Tulowitzki and Gonzalez both homered to ignite a 12–3 rout of the Atlanta Braves. Fans also cheered beloved veteran Todd Helton after he legged out a first inning double. But the 37-year-old's $19.1 million salary takes up almost a quarter of the team's payroll--an albatross for the Rockies that limits Monfort's personnel options. "We're a midmarket team; we can't afford to make mistakes on older players," he says.

He'd rather focus on another number: 36,460. That was the night's paid attendance, in line with the averages of the past two seasons and among the best in years despite fading playoff hopes. It's a sure sign that after a decade of decline baseball is back in Denver.

[priestvalon]

Chances were, with the disappointing season, at one or more of the coaches were getting canned. I heard it on the Rockies radio broadcast tonight, that Tracy and the rest of the coaches will be back in full for 2012, although surely that puts more pressure for them to win next year.

[rembrat]

There has been some talk that the Rockies are doing a 180 and instead of targeting groundball pitchers they are acquiring flyball pitchers. The theory is that there is a ceiling to how many HRs a pitcher can give up in a season. Whether that holds any water remains to be seen.

Kevin Slowey, Jamie Moyer, Josh Outman, and Guillermo Moscoso are all new Rockies and all have flyball splits.

Should be interesting to follow.