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The average age of the Colorado Rockies pitching staff just took a significant increase. The Rockies signed 49-year old Jamie Moyer to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training. That means that in just over 4 weeks, a man will take the field at Talking Stick who has nickels under the cushions of his couch that have been there longer than Rockies young pitching phenom Drew Pomeranz has been alive.

The Rockies have been overhauling their entire roster, a process that started with the pitching staff and the trade that sent ace Ubaldo Jimenez to Cleveland in exchange for pitchers Alex White and Drew Pomeranz. With the departure of Jimenez and longtime Rockie Aaron Cook, the rotation is anything but certain. Jhoulys Chacin figures to be in the rotation, and probably at the top, with the rest of the spots up for competition among Kevin Slowey, Pomeranz, White, Hammel, Josh Outman, Guillermo Moscoso, and now Moyer, with the hope of a full-strength return by hard-throwing Juan Nicasio.

So why Moyer? I think the real question is why not Moyer? Aside from Hammel and Slowey, these are all very young, inexperienced pitchers. Moyer, while no longer a top of the rotation guy, was once the number one starter for the Seattle Mariners, where I got to watch him in the prime of his career. He followed that up with a few solid seasons in Philadelphia before going down last season for Tommy John surgery. So while a 49 year old coming off of Tommy John surgery doesn’t sound terribly appealing, a de facto pitching coach with 26 years of major league experience sounds like just what this staff might need.

If you’re looking for Moyer to go out and post 200 innings and 15 wins, he’s probably not your guy. But there’s a role for him to fill, and that role is a vital one in such a young clubhouse.

Besides, he makes Todd Helton look like a spring chicken, and there’s no telling how much that will revitalize Todd for his 16th season.

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Unlike the unceremonious dumping of Ian Stewart to Chicago, this move has as much to do with roster building and economics. Smith hadn’t been quite the underperformer that Stewart was, nor the unpredictable hitter that Iannetta was. He figured to be penciled in as the fourth outfielder, his starting spot taken by the acquisition of Michael Cuddyer last month. With several guys available to jump into the fourth outfielder spot, the Rockies clearly wanted to unload Smith’s contract more than Smith himself ($2.4M, which avoided arbitration).

While this deal will not approach the Holliday to Oakland deal in terms of return, the Rockies got what they were after – unloaded a replaceable expense in exchange for pitching. At this point, it seems the Rockies are looking for any arm they can get. Both Moscoso and Outman were likely candidates for Oakland’s starting rotation, but that rotation was already weakened by the injuries, especially to Dallas Braden. At least one of these guys, probably Moscoso, will push Hammel for a rotation spot, and should be at the very least a good placeholder for Jorge de la Rosa, who will still be rehabbing from Tommy John surgery throughout the spring.

In the end, it’s probably a good deal for the Rockies, though Seth Smith is another one of the high character guys that just couldn’t make the case for a permanent roster spot. Time will tell if this all-out rebuild of the pitching staff, and the resulting shakeup that extends up and down the entire lineup, is successful. One thing is certain – just like every year, with San Francisco and Arizona sitting atop the division, and Los Angeles not far behind, solid pitching will be imperative for the Rockies to make a run at the NL West – slugging won’t win a title.

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It was a record setting night for Brady as well, throwing 5 touchdowns in the first half. On this side of the ball, it was almost laughable how easy the Patriots moved down the field. From the first drive, Brady dismantled Denver’s already shaky secondary.

The Patriots will move on to the face the winner of the Houston/Baltimore game in the AFC Championship game, while the Broncos will head home and evaluate a season filled with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.

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The new rules, enacted last season, read more like the fine print on your mortgage than a way to decide a football game. In the end, the problem the rules were amended to solve went entirely unsolved. The concise version of the changes is this -  both teams have a chance to possess the ball in overtime unless the team that receives the initial kickoff scores a touchdown or the defense scores on an interception, safety or fumble recovery.

The time-honored old way – sudden death – is no more. At least for playoff games. The change seems like the league wants it both ways. Since the coin flip played as much into deciding the winner as the plays on the field, they wanted to make overtime a more level playing field, so to speak, without going as far as the college game by adopting a matching-possession rule that can take a 17-17 game and turn it into a 41-38 barn-burner.

Sudden death was the warrior’s way to decide a playoff game. Play until someone scores. Period. Even if it takes an already brutal and exhausting game and doubles it in length. If you lose the coin flip, your defense had better hold. If you win the coin flip, it’s your one best chance to win the game while your defense sits comfortably on the bench.

But the NFL solution is half-baked. Each team gets a possession – unless the first possessor scores a touchdown. Then, as happened in Denver last Sunday night, the game could end on one snap. Even Demaryius Thomas, the receiver of the touchdown pass that will go down in Broncos history as one of the most exciting moments the Broncos have ever produced, was confused. He scored the touchdown and was already steeling his nerves to sit on the sideline and pray the worn-out defense could hold. But the game was over, and the mayhem around him soon clued him in to the fact that he was the hero.

So, NFL, what do you want? Matching possessions? Or sudden-death? Pick one. The Broncos were the beneficiaries this time, and I am not complaining about that. But for the good of the game, quit trying to confuse your fans, get down off the fence, and come up with a system that works. And while you’re at it, implement the system across the board – from preseason on. Even the prospect of a tie during the regular season makes fans shudder. Hockey eliminated the tie by introducing the shootout, which is one of the most exciting situations professional sports have to offer. NBA plays until there’s a winner. So does MLB. Either go back to pre-2010 rules with strict sudden death and regular season ties, or give us a matching-possession system all season.

And since we’re talking changes, about that replay system…

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And by the way: his final draft class as Broncos emperor may go down as one of the best in Broncos history, and was instrumental in the John Fox-led resurgence all the way up to this week’s wild card upset of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The most obvious are the 2 first round picks. Denver ended up picking 23rd and 25th in the first round – after a flurry of moves that ultimately resulted in moving the first round pick acquired in the Cutler/Orton deal. Denver’s first pick was Demaryius Thomas. Though he had been injured at Georgia Tech, it was clear that DT was meant to be the next big play receiver in Denver. After a rookie year lost mostly to an achilles injury, Thomas slowly gained confidence and skill over the 2011 season, and is now cemented in Broncos lore with his vicious stiff-arm of Ike Taylor on his way to an 80 yard touchdown on the first play of overtime.

After taking Thomas, McDaniels quickly maneuvered his way into the 25th pick, and as cameras watched from Florida, the cell phone of one Timothy Richard Tebow rang, and the QB expected to fall into at least the second round if not the third or fourth was on his way to the Mile High City, surprising analysts and fans alike. Not to belabor the point… but this move changed the course of the Broncos franchise. Even if Tebow never plays another down for the Broncos, his place in Broncos and NFL history is secure. This city and the league has never seen anything like the phenomenon that is Tim Tebow, and while there’s no way to tell how this would have played out under McDaniels, what the Elway/Fox/Xanders/McCoy crew have done with Tebow is nothing short of remarkable.

While Tebow and Thomas get all the press, the rest of the 2010 class wasn’t too shabby either. Take a look at the remaining players in this group.

2nd/3rd Round: Zane Beadles, JD Walton – these two have become fixtures on an offensive line that has established a reputation for simply pushing opposing defenses around. They protect Tebow – a quarterback that needs protecting. They do something Broncos offensive lines haven’t done since the 90s: they win the battles in the trenches. These two, along with Orlando Franklin (a 2011 rookie), Ryan Clady, and Chris Kuper, form a solid, young line that should be together for a long time.

3rd Round: Eric Decker. One of Tebow’s favorite targets earlier in his development, Decker sets up to be a solid third receiver. He’s not a #1, and won’t ever be, but he’s a tough, physical player with good hands. Decker has all the tools to be a consistent option.

From here on out, things are a little sketchier – but that’s the first five players, all starters and all contributing to the team’s success. In the 5th round, Denver took Perrish Cox, who by all accounts had the talent to develop into a decent corner, but due to off the field issues (namely, his arrest on sexual assault charges), will probably never play pro football again. The 6th round pick, offensive lineman Eric Olsen, never caught on. Denver’s last pick of the draft was 7th rounder Syd’Quan Thompson, who would likely be on the roster if not for an achilles injury early in the season. Syd’Quan was showing promise as a return man, and assuming a full recovery will compete for a roster spot next season.

The 2010 draft goes down as a successful one – even if we aren’t too keen on the guy that was pulling the strings.

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The Colorado Rockies have proven this if nothing else: they like to build from within. So you know when they finally let go a hometown prospect, they’ve given up on the development and are looking for a change. Year in, year out, Chris Iannetta is the proclaimed “catcher in waiting”. O’Dowd and the Rockies have finally tired of waiting. We’ve watched Iannetta lose his job to Yorvit Torrealba, then to Miguel Olivo. Then as the Rockies faded into obscurity at the end of the 2011 season, minor league phenom Wilin Rosario stepped in and proved that for all intents and purposes, the Iannetta experiment is over in Denver, made official by the trade yesterday that sent Iannetta to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Orange County of California in exchange for Tyler Chatwood, a young hard throwing lefty that projects to compete for the back end of the rotation.

It’s not like the Rockies didn’t try with Chris. After Torrealba did the bulk of the catching leading up to the World Series run in 2007, and was willing to stay, the Rockies made the choice that the potential in Iannetta was greater than the exhibited skill of anyone else on the roster, and told Chris the job was his to lose. This happened in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. Five straight years, with a hefty contract in the middle of it all, and while he showed flashes of brilliance, he never solidified himself as THE catcher in Colorado. Even Dan O’Dowd and the Rockies management, with their almost blinding loyalty to homegrown talent, had to concede the move that needed to be made. Of all the Kid Rocks that graced the field in LoDo, now Holliday is gone, Hawpe is gone, Jimenez is gone, and Iannetta is gone. And for all the criticism, each of these moves could turn out for the best. Holliday brought us Gonzales, Jimenez brought us White and Pomeranz (effect remaining to be seen), and now Iannetta brings us Chatwood, and opens a spot to bring in a new veteran catcher to hold down the fort while Rosario gets ready for the big show.

Chatwood is a young, hard-throwing lefty. While he doesn’t remind anyone of Pomeranz, he can hit 95 on his fastball, and as long as Apodaca doesn’t screw him up, has lots of years left on his arm. He’ll struggle with control, and as such will either compete for the 5th spot in the rotation, or find himself throwing setup relief, perhaps to fill the 8th inning spot left by Betancourt’s move to closer. We won’t even get into the whole Huston Street thing today.

All in all — probably a good move for the Rockies. We hate to see the good guys go. We all loved Atkins, and Hawpe, and Iannetta. Colorado is the home of the true character guys in baseball… but even the character guys have to produce, and the Rockies are slipping ever further from the glory of 2007 into the mediocrity of their past, and management would do well to continue to make moves to avoid such an ungraceful fall. Speaking of moves, any takers for Ian Stewart? Eh, didn’t think so.

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It’s going to be the lead topic of all the talk shows in the morning – Tim Tebow, leading the Broncos to a rare victory in San Diego, and an overtime thriller at that. It was, in fact, only the third time in twelve tries the Broncos have beat San Diego since Phillip Rivers came to town.

But the story in tonight’s game, remarkably, is not Tebow, at least no more than the story should be about the starting quarterback. Tebow put up numbers not unlike those of his counterpart, at least in terms of raw production. Tebow threw for 143 yards to Rivers’ 188. Each QB had a single touchdown and no interceptions. Tebow put up his yards with half the attempts, resulting in a much higher rating. Of course, Tebow also added nearly 70 rushing yards to the stat sheet before the night was over.

As in the past several weeks, the Broncos defense continues to shine. Von Miller continued his impressive rookie campaign with 8 tackles and 1 sack – and just generally harassed Rivers all day.  There’s just a level of intensity that the Broncos have not seen on the defensive side of the ball in years. Attribute some of this to the overall team success, some to the motivating presence of Miller and Dumervil, and some to new defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.

Perhaps the most frustrating part of the game — and since we can’t leave the Tebow factor alone — was to see that while Tebow’s passing has improved (I really only saw 2 passes that he just plain missed his target), the hands of his receivers have steadily gotten slipperier. (That’s right, I said ‘slipperier’) Tebow put a ball right on Royal’s hands for a first down, and Royal couldn’t haul it in. Jeremiah Johnson mishandled a pitch. If the Broncos can bring their receivers back to a level of consistency in terms of handling the ball, Tebow’s numbers will instantly improve.

But in wrapping up tonight’s game, I am struck by a couple final thoughts.

1. Tebow is improving. He is the QB of this team. Elway will draft a backup, I’m sure, but this is Tebow’s Team, and Tebow’s Town.

2. How did the refs miss the flagrant facemask and the obvious P.I.? Even SD homer extraordinaire Dan Fouts called them out on that.

3. McGahee is ageless, at least for now. There’s going to need to be a new RB next year though.

4. Rivers looks lost. First time in his career I’ve seen that. Maybe he’s just starting to resemble Norv Turner, in the way pets and owners begin to resemble one another.

5. Denver expects to win. For the first time in YEARS, they expect to win, and it shows.

All in all, another quality division win for the Broncos, extending the improbable run of 2011.

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Ubaldo Jimenez was traded to Cleveland Saturday, just minutes after starting in San Diego.

Early analysis shows two distinct sides to this trade: the emotional, and the factual. On the emotional side, fans of both teams are not exactly jumping out of their seats to applaud management for pulling off one of the bigger trades of this MLB season. Rockies fans are understandably upset that an organization that has spent its entire existence struggling on the mount, finally developed an all star, top of the rotation pitcher– a legitimate ace– and at the first sign of struggle trade him away. Indians fans don’t see the Ubaldo we know in Colorado,  but only see the Ubaldo that changed his off-season preparation, struggled with injury, and has barely crawled to a 6-9 record this season, leaving them to lament the gutting of their farm system for a pitcher with very pedestrian numbers.

For the Indians, the fact is they got a guy who takes the mound with the ability to strike out anyone he faces, and do so with authority. They got a guy who has thrown the only no-hitter on Rockies history. They got a guy that will work hard. They got a guy who is still in the top 10 pitchers in baseball in terms of average velocity. And they got a guy who is a top quality person – a positive presence in the clubhouse that will serve to make everyone better. Now you don’t trade your farm system for a good guy… but Ubaldo is a good guy with skills. The Indians got a new ace.

The Rockies, being the sellers in this deal, have a lot more to be concerned about. Of course they won’t admit it out loud, but this trade amounts to throwing up the white flag on 2011, and looking towards a new look rotation in 2012. The unfortunate thing is that while Ubaldo had his struggles, the pitching staff has paid the price for a wildly underachieving team. It’s not Ubaldo’s fault that Cargo and Tulo took 2 months to get their feet wet. It’s not Ubaldo’s fault that Ian Stewart couldn’t hit a canteloupe off a tee. It’s not Ubaldo’s fault that the revolving door at second base started with the failed Jose Lopez experiment and has landed with an aging veteran picked up from Oakland. It’s not Ubaldo’s fault. But in team sports, individuals pay the price for team failures, from managers on down, and so it is in this case.

Drew Pomeranz and Alex White are the centerpieces of this trade. While Ubaldo will make his first start in the next week, we’ll have to wait until September to get a good look at these guys. All indications and reports are that Pomeranz is the main piece of this trade, as he throws serious heat and projects to be a top of the rotation pitcher. Alex White has already booked some major league time, and will certainly be pitching here in Colorado before season’s end. To hear the Indian fans tell it, they gutted the system of their most prized prospects to take a gamble on Ubaldo. It seems like both sides took a gamble, and it will take a while to figure out which gamble paid off. This trade has all the makings of the rare situation where both teams come out smelling like a rose.

Either way, Rockies fans bid a fond farewell to Ubaldo. When Matt Holliday was traded, there was plenty of animosity due to the contract situation. In this case, we will remember Ubaldo has the most exciting pitcher to watch in Colorado history – Ubaldo Day was an event, every time he took the mound. He gave us the first no-no the Rockies have ever seen, and his smile lights up every room, every interview, every stadium. He’s the guy you want to see succeed. And so it is in Cleveland – we hope to see him succeed.

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More often than not, early and late season baseball in Colorado faces weather issues. The 2o11 campaign is no different. While weather issues are certainly not unique to Colorado, it’s not many places you can watch an evening game at 84 degrees, while the next day’s afternoon game gets scrubbed due to snow. The rubber match of the season opening 3-game set with the Diamondbacks suffered just such a fate, leaving the series deadlocked at one game a piece until a makeup is scheduled.

In the season opener, Ubaldo Jimenez fell short of expectations by allowing 6 runs in 6 innings. Later, Jimenez revealed a cut cuticle that kept him from being able to grip the ball properly, resulting in his inability to get the velocity on his fastball or the break on his curveball. And let’s face it – a Jimenez without his overpowering fastball is no Jimenez you want on the mound. Never was this more clear than when he served up a softball to Justin Upton, which Upton promptly deposited in the left centerfield bleachers for three runs. The Rockies took advantage of Arizona’s sloppy defense to tie the game and send it to extra innings, but a Lidstrom wild pitch scored what turned out to be the winning run in the top of the 11th.

Saturday, the Rockies bounced back with a solid defensive effort. The night was shaping up to be the Jorge de la Rosa show, who not only held the D-backs scoreless, but added an RBI single before leaving the game in the 5th inning with a blister. De la Rosa’s injury is not expected to cause him to miss his next start. Huston Street allowed a run in the 9th before finally shutting down the Arizona bats and earning the save in the 3-1 victory.

Observations

While it’s hard to identify any major trends with 160 games left to play, a few things stand out as the Rockies enter this highly anticipated season.

• Ubaldo needs to sit until his cuticle issue is resolved. Ubaldo is a Cy Young contender – for a cuticle to put his season in jeopardy is inexcusable. As Ubaldo goes, so will go the Rockies, and if that means he needs to sit back and heal, then fine. This same issue plagued him in the spring, and it came right back. It’s not like it’s a surprise that the air is dry in Colorado. Both he and De la Rosa need to take appropriate measures to make sure they are healthy.
• It’s early, but Iannetta looks to be taking his job seriously. His plate blocking play on Friday was a highlight-reel play – he stood his ground as Upton clobbered him with all the force of a fullback hitting the defensive line.
• Lopez looks as if he’ll play just well enough to keep Herrera on the bench – which is unfortunate, because Herrera could be the future at 2B, but instead we’ll stick with the veteran who will show flashes of brilliance, but ultimately be barely above average. Herrera’s potential far outweighs that of Lopez, especially on the basepaths.
• Hopefully, we’re not in for another year of 32-pitch 9th innings by Huston Street – no one in the ballpark was confident that he could keep the D-Backs down… and he made a game of it. Street is going to have to regain his ability to close the door decisively if the Rockies are going to contend for the division.

The Rockies resume Tuesday as they host the Dodgers for an abbreviated 2 game set. Chacin gets the start, with a stiff test facing Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw. Thursday, the Rocks hit the road to face former manager Clint Hurdle and the Pittsburgh Pirates for four games.

Upcoming Schedule:

Tuesday 4/5 vs Dodgers (6:40pm –  Kershaw vs. Chacin)
Wednesday 4/6 vs Dodgers (1:10pm – Billingsley vs Hammel )

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Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen sent a letter to season ticket holders (presumably with the bill for the mythical 10 games to happen at Invesco Field this fall), apologizing for the lockout and assuring fans the team will be ready to play come August, assuming a new collective bargaining agreement is reached. Like nearly all teams in the NFL, the Broncos are still requiring season ticket holders to pay for their seats on a normal schedule, with the promise of refunds for any games not played. The New York Giants are the only team not asking its season ticket holders to pay up front for games that are still very much in doubt.

In fact, as the front office goes, it is in many ways business as usual at Dove Valley. Elway, Xanders and Fox (sounds like a law firm, doesn’t it?) are busy scouting and preparing for their first draft as a leadership team, and the marketing arm is busy trying to sell tickets and keep from losing long-standing fans in the wake of the McDaniels Disaster. Players are not allowed to work out at team facilities or to be in contact with team officials. Now that the lockout is going into its second week, we’re mostly stuck waiting for the injuction hearing April 6th, since the NFLPA decertified and gave up its power as a union for collective bargaining.

With the looming possibility of a lost season, many players are looking for alternative employment. Anybody know of some job openings for current Broncos? For instance, Demaryius Thomas could sign up as Chevy Chase’s stunt double. Knowshon Moreno and is happy feet at the line of scrimmage might be a good fit on Dancing With The Stars. Ryan Clady as the new power forward for the Nuggets?  I’m sure you have much better ideas than I do. Leave your answer in the comments.

Here’s the full text of Mr. Bowlen’s letter:

Monday, March 14, 2011

Dear Broncos Fan:

You have every right to be disappointed and frustrated with the lack of a Collective Bargaining Agreement that would ensure the health of the National Football League for the 2011 season and beyond. As owner of the Denver Broncos and co-chair of the NFL Management Council Executive Committee, I want to say that I share your level of frustration.

I am sorry the negotiating efforts have yet to yield a new deal.

Although we had expected to reach an agreement by this point, I assure you that we are committed to this process. We have a shared responsibility to resolve this matter as soon as possible in a way that benefits teams, players, and most importantly, the fans. The fastest way to a fair agreement for everyone is for both the clubs and union to continue negotiation through mediation, not litigation, and we are eager to return to the bargaining table.

We will come to an agreement, and when a new deal is reached, the Denver Broncos will be ready to play.

John Elway, John Fox and Brian Xanders, along with the rest of our coaching and personnel staffs, continue to work hard in advance of the NFL Draft and the season. They are committed to building a championship team that will make you proud. We are making progress every day, and I am excited with the direction of our team.

Along with everyone in this organization, I care greatly about our players and am hopeful that the union resumes negotiations as soon as possible. It is unfortunate that this matter has taken the focus away from the game that we love. However, I am confident that this process will result in a long-term agreement that ensures the growth of the game well into the future.

I sincerely appreciate all of the support, patience and trust you have shown in the Denver Broncos. We will keep you updated and communicate regularly while maintaining an unwavering commitment to a resolution.

Yours truly,

Pat Bowlen

Owner, Denver Broncos Football Club

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