Two in a Row

A title such as this does little to strike fear into the opponent. It does even less in terms of providing warm fuzzies to the fans. Winning two games in a row certainly isn't something to be proud of, but it has been awhile since we has rockies fans could put those words down on paper. I said several posts ago that the rox had a starting rotation that essentially eliminated the strong possibility of a prolonged slump. That was when the bullpen had been going strong all season long. Who knew the pen, pretty much as a whole, would suddenly be unable to get outs and secure wins. A large part of me thinks that the pen can turn things around and return to the success they were regularly achieving the first couple of months of the season. If not, the season will end in disappointment. The general feeling is that the rox need to produce a significant win streak to recapture what they lost during the most recent losing streak. With the erratic and inconsistent ability to hit, especially in the clutch, I'm not sure the rox are particularly capable of mounting a winning streak of more than four or five games. It may not be necessary given that no one is playing particularly well in the division and every team is still well within striking distance of winning the division.

Francis certainly found a nifty formula to help the pen last night. Throw a complete game. It doesn't take an analyst, with I'm, to figure out that that's a pretty successful method for winning games. Hurdle probably enjoyed the relief from the relievers.

Last week, the RMN reported that the rockies' rotation had the best ERA in the NL. With the subpar performances by Kim and Jennings recently they have dropped to second in the NL behind Florida with an ERA of 4.25. As of today, the rox have four of the five members of their rotation in the top 21 in the NL in ERA. I'm just waiting for the rox' pitching staff to get some recognition from the "experts".

All in all, it's a good day as the Trolley Dodgers find themselves looking up at the rox.

The rox seem content to hang on to Ryan Shealy the rest of the season given what teams have been offering them in exchange. The Orioles wanting to give us Javy Lopez is a joke. The rox are in an envious position of not having bad contracts to dump on someone else. The result of this is usually taking back a bad contract. The rox can wait and see if someone feels desperate later this week and offers something better than has previously been offered. If not, Shealy's stock should only rise as the season wears on and teams address their needs in the offseason.

From the old news department: the Designation Committee met last week and repealed the Capital R. I apologize for the tardy announcement.

Until next time, go rockies!

State of the Rockies

The Designation Committee met Monday morning and voted unanimously to restore the capital R.

After a 42-day hiatus, the Rox returned to first place in the division. The NL West is not showing any signs of loosening up in what has been a tight division from the start.

The Rox are one of only two teams in the NL to have a winning record both at home and on the road. Read that sentence a few times and let it sink in. The New York Mets are the other team. This is the first indication that this Rockies team is vastly different than anything we have witnessed before.

With Fogg's win Wednesday night, the starting rotation is at .500 with a record of 31-31. With Fogg's recent success, every starter has at some point been dominant to the point of being nearly unhittable. How much longer until the Rox are considered to have one of the best rotations in the NL?

The Rox lead the NL in runs scored since June 7 with 162. June 7 coincides with the emergence from the only long-term slump this team has experienced so far. The sole reason for the 5-13 slump from May 22 to June 11 was a lack of hitting. As consistent as the pitching has been almost all season long, if the team is hitting they will avoid any additional slumps.

The Rox are third in the NL in ERA at 4.20, trailing only the Padres and Mets. That's right, THIRD. This is the second indication that this is not your father's Rockies. The highest the Rox' ERA has been is 4.45 on June 11.

The Rox have won five straight series, three at CF and two on the road. The general formula has always been to win two of three at home, split on the road and you have a good chance of winning the division. If the Rox follow that formula the rest of the season they'd finish at 89-73 and almost certainly win the NL West.

The Rox are in a position to be able to strengthen the team with a trade of prospects, but being ahead of pace in the rebuilding process means they don't have to trade away valuable prospects to win now. If the right deal comes along the Rox have the ability to take it, but if not, they also have the ability to wait since most likely the best days are ahead. Unlike the Diamondbacks or, even more so, the Giants. The Yankees are infamous for trading away what few prospects they had and overpaying for someone who will hopefully help right now. The Rox are in exactly the opposite situation. Tampa Bay offered Carl Crawford for Francis and Tulowitski. Yeah, right! It seems the Rox are willing to discuss trades as long as the counterpart is interested in either Ryan Shealy or Jeff Baker. If not, the conversations are probably rather short.

The Rox have a good opportunity to win their sixth straight series as the snakes are in town for three starting Friday to head into the All-Star break. Saturday should be a dandy as Jennings and Webb face off.

Until next time, go Rockies!