Fansided

Could Jon Gray Solve Colorado Rockies History of Pitching Woes?

By Josh Sippie |

When you play at 5,280 feet above sea level, you may notice a few differences. The Colorado Rockies play at such an elevation and as such, they have a history of not attracting too many pitchers. Because who wants to play in a park that can turn pop flies into round trippers?

More from Call to the Pen

This year is no different. The Colorado Rockies rank dead last in the Major Leagues in team ERA. But that is not all a matter of elevation. In fact, they’ve only given up the fifth most home runs, which while it is still not a desirable position, is not the worst in the league as one might expect. There is just a lot of ineffective pitching for the Rockies this year.

Enter Jon Gray.

Gray is a highly touted prospect given the fact that he was drafted in the first round. However, Jon Gray was drafted into the unenviable situation of being destined to either be traded or pitch a mile above sea level where, as I may have mentioned, pop flies turn into round trippers.

As it stands, the Rockies starters on average give up a home run every 7 innings. Again, it is not the worst statistical line in the world, but there is room for improvement and Jon Gray could be that improvement, as he currently surrenders a home run every 9 innings.

Triple-A and MLB are two different ball games, but lets look at the stats. While an initial survey of Jon Gray’s stats look rather anticlimactic. A 3-5 record with a 4.50 ERA is nothing to promote, but if you look at what he has done since getting his feet underneath him, it is a different story.

In his last 10 games as a starter, Gray is 3-2 with a 2.74 ERA and at 23 years of age, it is prime time to get him up and let him lose in one of the worst starting rotations in the league.

It may be a bad situation to be putting a rookie into but it’s not like the Rockies have a choice. A shabby pitching staff and the hardest park to pitch in means that Jon Gray will have the chips stacked against him but they can not delay his arrival forever. If ever there was going to be an opportunity to promote the youngster, now is that time. Very little is at stake, and the pressure will be off the shoulders of Gray.

Next: Who didn't draft a shortstop in the draft?

More from Call to the Pen

Home / Colorado Rockies