Nearing the end of April, the Colorado Rockies are 20 games into the season.

Yet, after 180 innings of baseball, the team and its direction remain an enigma.  Although currently at 10-10 in the standings (1.5 games behind division-leading San Diego), the Rockies are already feeling the sting of missed opportunities.

The Rox find themselves searching for answers.

We know Colorado is no stranger to slow-starting Rockies teams:

2007: 10-16

2008: 11-17

2009: 8-12

This year is different, however, and the 2010 model judges itself on the quality of the players on the field rather than the optimistic hopes that come each spring.  Thus far, the Rockies have fallen short.

Hitting:

So far this season, the Rockies have done both good things and bad things at the plate.

The “baseball card” statistics show a team that is hitting.  The club average is .265 and the Rox have scored 96 runs, good for middle of the pack in the National League.  Colorado has 305 total bases, 2^nd best in the NL.

Inherent power is evident in the lineup; Colorado has hit 24 homeruns (3^rd in the NL) and 71 extra-base-hits (5^th in the NL, but only 5 XBH’s behind the Brewers).

Lurking underneath, though, are some disturbing numbers.

The Rox have struck-out a frightening 161 times, only 1 K behind league-leader Arizona.  They have hit into 21 double plays (2^nd in the NL).  The clutch-hitting is woefully absent; Colorado has only scored 18 runs after the 7^th inning (last in the NL), and rank 14^th out of 16 teams in hitting with 2 outs and runners in scoring position.

Individually, the story is pretty much the same: stellar performances and sputtering starts.

Ian Stewart has clearly grown into himself, limiting strikes-outs and improving his pitch selection while losing none of his fearsome power.  Miguel Olivo has displaced Chris Iannetta by hitting over .300.  Brad Hawpe continues his tradition of fast starts, and Carlos Gonzalez is blossoming into a star.

The underside of this lineup is the lack of a defined spot for Clint Barmes, who remains sub-.200.  Dexter Fowler is only now emerging from an early-season slump, and has stolen just two bases.  Seth Smith started off terribly, but more recently last year’s Mr. Clutch is coming around thanks to more playing time.  (Due to minor injuries to Hawpe and CarGo.)  Jason Giambi remains a potent weapon off the bench and continues to have solid at-bats as a pinch-hitter. But as a starter, his bat goes quiet and he is an enormous liability defensively.

The offensive cornerstones of the Rockies lineup remain Troy Tulowitzki & Todd Helton.

Tulo seems to be adjusting lately, and his power will come around as a result.  Todd Helton remains an on-base machine with a respectable .274 average and a .357 on-base-percentage.  However, it’s clear his power is waning.  With only 3 extra-base-hits so far and no homeruns, one has to wonder how long it will be before manager Jim Tracy begins to consider Ian Stewart for the 3^rd spot in the lineup.

The Rockies clearly have the pieces to put together one of the more formidable lineups in the NL, if not all of Major League Baseball. The question is: can the pieces find a way to fit together before it’s too late?

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The hot dogs were sizzling, the beer was flowing and the red-white-and-blue banners draped over Coors Field hinted at the coming of summer and the promise of legend. The pageantry was on full display Friday afternoon and LoDo was abuzz with spring fever and dreams of possible October glory. And on a day where the weather was as grand as the expectations for the season, the 2010 Colorado Rockies sent a message to the San Diego Padres and the rest of the National League, winning their home opener 7-0.

Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa dazzled an anemic Padres line up, tossing a dazzling 7 innings of one-hit ball. He struck out 9 and threw 65% of his pitches for strikes. Working generally from the windup, J-Dealer kept the Padres off balance with change ups and fastballs and continued to demonstrate the mental composure Rox fans saw at the end of 2009 and in spring training. Regarded by die-hard Rockies fans as “The Other Ace”, De La Rosa gave the Padres their first taste of what it will be like to face him and Rockies Ace Ubaldo Jimenez in the same series (Jimenez is scheduled to start Sunday against the Padres).

The Rockies swung the bats as well, with 6 runs coming from the bottom half of the lineup. Ian Stewart broke the game open in the 4th inning, driving Tulo and Brad Hawpe in on a single to center. In the 7th, Clint Barmes smashed 408 foot, three-run homerun, batting in Hawpe and starting catcher Miguel Olivo. Overall, the Rockies peppered the Padres with 12 hits.

Barmes fireworks notwithstanding, it is has never been more clear that the days of homerun derbies at Coors Field are gone forever. The 2010 Rockies are fielding a team of speed and the homeruns have been replaced with doubles and timely hitting. They expect to win games with pitching and defense, even in Coors Field. Today, the team played error-free baseball, something that had eluded the team during their first 3 games in Milwaukee and looked sharp, despite De La Rosa keeping the ball in the infield for most of the game.

A winning home opener does not a 162 games make, and the grind of the season lies ahead. But even after one home game, Rockies fans have good reason to believe the team will need to re-hang those red-white-and-blue banners again a few more times in 2010. After all, October awaits.

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Rockies closer Huston Street

The owners of the Colorado Rockies have spent the last decade avoiding big-time contracts.  It’s a strategy that has, arguably, produced the best stretch in Rockies history.

For all of the rumblings within the fan base over the last nine-plus years, at least the Rockies’ national media time has not been occupied by chortling sportscasters bemused by another failed, high-priced pitcher coming to Colorado to die a slow career death.  The 2007 run to the World Series was followed by a disappointing 2008, but the 2009 Rockies that were knocked off by the Phillies may have actually been the most well-rounded baseball club that Colorado has ever produced.

With the signings this week of closer Huston Street and reliever Rafael Betancourt, Colorado is a step closer to becoming a consistent playoff contender.  You read that right; the Monforts are paying for pitching again.  Both players received multi-year contracts.  That’s another departure from the norm for the Rockies’ front office.

Street is locked up through 2011.  The primary loot garnered from the Matt Holiday trade that sent the soon-to-be-pricey slugger to Oakland, Huston will receive $22.5 million for the trouble of playing bullpen sweeper.  Betancourt will pocket $7.55 million over the course of his two-year deal.

Last week the Rockies were shelling out $3.25 million to lock up a utility outfielder for two seasons.  Ryan “Spilly” Spillborghs has officially become more than a fan favorite with a penchant for stellar defense.  Now he’s a well-paid fan favorite with a penchant for stellar defense.

The Rockies backed up that signing with a one-year deal to retain outrageously talented left-handed starter Jorge de la Rosa.  His $6.5 million deal is probably the biggest re-signing of the off-season.  At times last year, Jorge was the Rockies’ best pitcher.  And barring a late-season injury in Hell-A, de la Rosa would have been a series-changer versus the left-heavy Phillies.

Now we see the normally tight wallets of the Monfort brothers opening up for key closer Street and trade-deadline acquisition Betancourt.

In a league that puts the onus on small markets to invent ways to make money, the Rockies have carved out a place for themselves.  It all starts with farmed pitching that feeds off of a heavy Central & South American recruiting network.  But the Rockies have also brought up a litany of talented North American hitters since the front office stopped spending money after the 2001 season.

In fact, every likely Rockies starting fielder for next season came up through Colorado’s farm system, with the noteworthy exception of Carlos Gonzalez.  (Dexter Fowler, Brad Hawpe, Seth Smith, Troy Tulowitzki, Clint Barmes, Todd Helton & Chris Iannetta.  Not to mention Spilly, EYJ & Stewie.)

Thing is, Cargo is only in Colorado through the trading of the Rockies’ most trade-worthy, farm-produced commodity since Todd Helton.  The same savvy deal that shipped overly expensive defensive liability Holiday to the Athletics and brought Street to the Rockies also netted the struggling but talented Gonzalez.

Cargo opened up a can of whoopass in the late stages of the 2009 season.  Now the Monforts have opened up a can of cash to fund their rising Rockies.

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Clint Barmes, Rockies 2B

This version of our Roundtable looks at second base, where the discussion is all about Clint Barmes and his magically disappearing offense. There’s no doubt he’s a solid defender, and the job is his to lose… but anything can happen. With spring training right around the corner and a hot young backup with a familiar name breathing down his neck, will Clint become the stability at second that the Rocks have always sought but never found? Let’s start the roundtable with Dan Olsen. This week’s discussion also features our newest writer at PSC, Jason Dennee.

Dan: Clint is hitting arbitration again this year.  With the season he had last year he’ll recieve an arbitration figure of $3M-$3.5M.  That’s still a bargain for him.  We’ll pay it, and he’ll be the favorite to start come spring training.

Jason D: One thing is certain in life and Major League Baseball and that is there are no certainties. So even though Clint Barmes is supposedly locked in and priced in for Opening Day in 2010, second base is and has always been an enigma for the Colorado Rockies. A venerable cornicopia of free agents, trade castoffs and even raw, untested rookies have held the job for the Rox since Eric Young departed in the Pedro Astacio swap in 1997. In the last 8 years, no player has started consecutive Opening Day for the Rockies at second base:

Opening Day second basemen since 2002:

2002- Todd Walker
2003- Ronnie Belliard
2004- Luis Gonzales
2005- Aaron Miles
2006- Luis Gonzales
2007- Kaz Matsui
2008- Jayson Nix
2009- Ian Stewart

The need for consistency up the middle could not have been more evident in 2008. After having Kaz Matsui depart for Houston, his departure created a void where six players started 2nd base at some point or another and a total of 8 took the field at the position. No player in 2008 started more than 80 games at the position.

However, in 2009, Barmes seized the starting job and started in 130 games at second base. It is no coincidence that the two years in the 2000s where the Rockies received stellar second base play are the two years they have made the playoffs.

With that in mind, look for Clint Barmes to go into a season for the first time since 2005 penciled into a starting job. Though often streaky with the bat and a poor tendency to swing for the fences, Barmes main asset is his fielding and even more so, his chemistry with shortstop Troy Tulowitzki.

However, certainty is seldom in life and baseball. My guess is that at some point the Rockies second base bug will bite them and you’ll see someone other than Barmes feeding Tulo double play balls. Though at times last year, call-up Eric Young Jr. demonstrated speed and athleticism superior to that of Barmes, the idea of him claiming the job in spring training is far fetched. Even if at some point due to injury or performance Young takes the field as a starter, expect him to struggle in the field.

Jason A: History certainly doesn’t indicate stability at second base, but maybe Barmie is the guy. It’s just a matter of how patient the club can be with sub-par offense in exchange for above-average defense. How long before the games he saves at 2B outweigh the innings that stall because of yet another GIDP? The most frustrated person in the lineup this year could be whoever hits ahead of Barmes and gets to sit on first base praying they get a chance to go further.

Ian: Obviously, if there is an infield spot that needs an offensive upgrade, it’s second base.  But I like the wait-and see approach with Eric Young Jr taking a few starts away from Barmes, and those two players really challenging each other throughout the season as a result.  Competition at third base had Ian Stewart producing in the latter half of ’09, and EYJ could be worked into more consistent service in the same way.

Dan: Eric Young Jr. is the obvious choice to be backup 2B/switch hitting utility infielder.  Still in his rookie contract, if he can sustain what he did last year all season, he’ll be a steal financial.  And press Clint for the starting possition.  It’s a little scary though, cause if Clint gets hurt we’ll be depending on basically a rookie to start a middle infield spot.  Not that rookies can’t be depended upon, it’s just kinda risky.

Jason A: I don’t see anyway this club hits Opening Day without EYJ on the roster. The kid got some big league experience, he’s good, and he has Rockies bloodlines that can’t be denied. This town is nothing if not nostalgic. But nostalgia aside, I think you need EYJ simply for the speed factor. The dude can flat out run, and this team has proven to be effective when they put runners in motion. Of course, any team is effective when they put runners in motion… all the more reason to have some wheels on the bench. I think if you put EYJ on the bench, get him some innings early, and keep his legs moving, you’ll find that if Barmes goes down, you’ll have a backup that’s good enough on D to get by. And I don’t care how good his D is… if Barmes can’t wake up the bat, he’ll be sitting. Even Jim Tracy can’t wait forever.

Dan: For the second utitlity infielder we should go the veteran route, assuming EYJ makes the team (and I have no reason to think he won’t).  Since Vets only come via trade or free agentcy, I checked the list of free agents this year and one infielder jumped out at me:

Jamie Carroll

There would be something satifying about the man who got the greatest RBI in Rockies history coming back to the team.  Technically he hasn’t been tendered an arbitration offer yet by Cleveland, but if he come available, I’d like to see the Rocks go after him.

Ian: I love the idea of Jamie Carroll coming back, but have to admit that it is a nostalgia-driven desire.  I always like Jamie in a backup role, but can’t see him being any more successful starting over the course of a season than Clint was in 2009.

Jason A: That will be a lot of money for a backup. He made $2.5M at Cleveland… even if we get him at a bargain like $1.5M (which is unlikely), I can’t see paying $500K each for the 2 or 3 wins he might add over the course of the season.

Dan: Other interesting names on the free agent list:

Craig Cousell
Adam Kennedy
Felipe Lopez
Orlando “The Ghostrunner” Hudson
Placido Polanco

Polanco also could be offered the arbitration figure, and he’s the type of guy Detriot tend to keep, but his numbers dipped last year, so he could be gone.  I bet there would be an offer to start on a celler dwelling team, but if he has championship aspirations and doesn’t mind backing up someone, a trip to Colorado might bring his swing back.  Wouldn’t be the first person that’s happened to.

Ian: Clint Barmes is more than serviceable for now, and I think you’ll all agree that he has a lot of unrealized potential as a hitter.  Jim Tracy may yet shake up the coaching staff, so a change at hitting coach may be in the cards.  (Please no, not Donny boy!)  When it comes to starting personnel, I think that Tracy is likely content to see what he has from the start of training camp through the early stages of the 2010 season before making any unnecessary changes.

That’s all for 2B – as always, feel free to leave your comments below, we’d love to hear what you think. Next time the Roundtable gets together, we tackle 3B, which brings some interesting discussions and some uncertainty ahead for the Rockies.

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Barmes has come a long way from his days with the Triple-A Sky Sox

Colorado Rockies Manager Jim Tracy summed it up nicely Sunday night at Coors Field:

“There’s been pitches of the year, innings of the year — that’s the defensive play of the year,” Tracy said.

Clint Barmes’ diving catch turned into a game-ending double play when Ryan Spillborghs, charging in from deep right, instructed his second baseman to throw the ball to Todd Helton at first base.  The St. Louis Cardinals’ Albert Pujols had taken off on contact as the flare pop-fly drifted over the streaking Barmes in short right field with one out in the top of the 9^th inning.  The aggressive base-running decision would prove costly for Pujols and his Cardinals, as Colorado found yet another exciting way to win a crucial baseball game.

The awe-inspiring individual effort combined with trademark Colorado teamwork kept the Rockies 2.5 games ahead of the surging Atlanta Braves in the NL Wild Card race.

After a forgettable week of pitching from various Rockies starters, Colorado ace Jorge de la Rosa and closer Huston Street combined with Barmes to keep the Rocks’ playoff train on-track.  The 4-3 win kept the Rockies close enough to think about catching the LA Dodgers to win the division, but the Colorado clubhouse was undoubtedly dominated by the sentiment that Tuesday’s game versus the Milwaukee Brewers was the only one that mattered right now.

Barmes’ play Sunday night capped another dominant year of infield defense for the Rockies.  For those (like myself) who grew impatient with Clint’s batting woes, Sunday’s clutch play was a poignant reminder of how important an A-list group of fielders is to any team’s playoff hopes.

Said Manager Tracy after the game, “I kept playing him through times when there were some offensive shortcomings.  I will never ever give up on Clint Barmes.”

A noteworthy managerial decision that appears to have paid off in spades for the Rockies this September.

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