About time for some success…

April 30, 2009

You know that you’re not the brightest crayon in the box when you log on to http://www.mlblogs.com and say, “oh hey, I know that guy in the picture… oh… wait… that’s me next to him.” Yeah… it actually took me a few seconds to recognize myself in the picture. Props go to Don for that picture.

So a heart felt thanks to you, oh loyal readers, and of course, MLBlogs.

But, we have business to attend to. The series against the Padres looked good, and it’s about time that the Rockies started winning. Five games behind, is totally unacceptable. With a few recent wins under their belt, let’s examine what has been going right for the Rockies.

We’ll single out the most recent game, April 29, as our point of reference.

Aaron Cook finally has a little confidence instilled in him. It’s about time too, Cook hasn’t been looking too pretty out there on the pitcher’s mound. Compared to what we usually expect out of Cook, this season he appeared mediocre. Like a washed up pitcher, no longer the ace or fall back guy of the Rockies. That was not the same Aaron Cook who pitched on April 29. Cook is best known for his sinking fastball, however, this great pitch wasn’t going to accomplish a whole lot if his sinking fastball was not sinking! I can’t say what Cook did to remedy this problem, but now that the mechanics of his pitching are fixed, I think he’ll be back to his old self. Cook needed this win, his problems with his pitching have been affecting his confidence and I think even he started to doubt if he would be back to his old self. With Cook’s confidence back to what it needs to be, I’m sure that he’ll start pitching like the ace that we know and love.

Dexter Fowler. That’s all I can say is Dexter Fowler. This guy has looked beyond amazing and has been shrinking the outfield. Dexter Fowler is going to be one of the top players in our club, the kid has looked beyond phenomenal. He not only has been looking good to fans, but players inside the clubhouse as well. Ryan Spilborghs has been saying what a great player Fowler has been not only on the team, but for support as well. Dexter’s been doing a lot of things right, including having the ability to be an ambidextrous batter and he’s been shrinking the outfield with his incomparable speed. During Monday’s game, he stole five of the eight bases that Colorado had. Both offensively and defensively, no one could ask more of Dexter Fowler… unless you’re the opposing team. Then you’ll ask him to stop running so fast.

Seth Smith hasn’t played as much as I originally thought he would. With the rise of Dexter Fowler and Ryan Spilborghs being placed into left, Smith hasn’t seen as much action as he probably would have liked. However, regardless he’s looked good when he’s been out on the field. He’s got three home runs, six RBIs, and has the highest OPS in the club. Look at how cute he is too!!! Aww, he’s adoreable. Anyway, back to business. I read that Seth Smith does this like… baseball instruction thing during the off season, and I’ll bet having the basics constantly being instilled in you are helpful when it comes to hitting.

Ryan Spilborghs was struggling a lot in the beginning of the season. His batting has finallypicked up and he’s looked pretty good. Unfortunately, in the April 29th game, batting third wasn’t the place for him. They took Garrett Atkins out of the game and Brad Hawpe was injured so batting third so Todd Helton could be in the clean up spot would make sense. The third spot is always for the best hitter on the team, and needless to say, unfortunately Ryan Spilborghs isn’t the best hitter on the team. However, I understand that for the line up’s sake, it was important to put him in the three spot. With his batting alas picking up, it’ll be easy to see him more consistently in left field.

Todd Helton just needs to keep being Todd Helton. After his injury last season, I was worried about what he would look like when he came back to action, but he picked up right where he left off… ya know, before the injury. He’s been playing like good ol’ Todd, or Sweet T.

Ian Stewart is having some trouble with the bat, and I think that’s because he doesn’t have a defined role with the team yet. With the Rockies having so much success with their outfield and infield, it’s hard to find a spot for a player as great as Stewart. I think because it’s been difficult for him to adjust to the idea of being in multiple roles, his attention hasn’t been with his bat. Last season, when he was much more settled at third, he looked great both offensively and defensively. His inconsistent playing time mixed with his sporatic placement on the field has become a struggle for Stewart. Once he gets used to being shifted around and the idea that he could become a semi utility player, he’ll find more success.

Troy Tulowitzki… I don’t know what to say about you. Defensively you’ve looked good… that is, when you’ve been in the lineup. Tulo hasn’t seen as much playing time because his stats with his bat have looked… well… needless to say… terrible. The kid’s been struggling a lot and he’s in need of a confidence booster to get him going. It seems Tulo has high points and low points, although he can’t entirely forget about his defensive plays, his focus needs to be on hitting right now. That’s where it’s most important.

Clint Bames… well, like Todd Helton, he just needs to keep being Clint Barmes. Barmes looksgreat with a bat and playing defensively. He puts his heart into every play, and it’s
incredibly evident. I’m always impressed with what I see from him.

Chris Iannetta has been looking good defensively, yet he’s been struggling with the bat. While I don’t think he took it easy during the off season, I think he believed that his success with the bat would travel with him into this season… however, that has not happened. Iannetta has finally raised his BA to above 100 and perhaps is starting to pick up. Iannetta’s great with pick offs and blocking wild pitches, but his trouble with the bat has probably been effecting the true potential that he has.

I also wanted to share this comic I found, it’s Korean and it’s about the Rockies… weird… and hilarious.

The caption is: The Mailman

Tulowitzki: I never fail to deliver my five tools for free

Helton: Wow! Fast!

Awesome.

1. Photo courtesy: www.sportsfaith.com
2. Photo courtesy: my baseball photos
3. Photo courtesy: vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com
4. Photo courtesy: my baseball photos
5. Photo courtesy: www.i-ontheball.com
6. Photo courtesy: www.rockymountainnews.com
7. Photo courtesy: mlb.mlb.com
8. Photo courtesy: www.rockiescast.com
9. Photo courtesy: my baseball photos

Written by mlblogsdeconstructingthoughts Posted in Dailies