The Rockies had a rough 2016 if you look at their Pythagorean record, as they finished 5 games below what they would have been expected based on their runs scored vs. allowed. Is there help on the way to turn that luck around?
An Introduction
Our minor league top 10 series is coordinated by Benjamin Chase, one of our contributors at Call To The Pen.
He has poured over thousands of minor league games over the course of the year via milb.tv along with speaking with a number of team and independent scouts. These lists are based out of those conversations.
Each system will have prospects from 10 to 1, and then finish with one newcomer to the system that is worth keeping an eye on that is not in the top 10 at this time.
Conversations are certainly encouraged in the comments section on each system as we go along!
Rockies System Review
The Rockies as a whole saw a bit of an upturn in 2016 in their organization’s on-field success, with the first 75-win season since 2010, but they also then saw a shakeup in the manager role and some internal movement in the organization after the season was over that has some fans wondering how much more of the losing to expect.
This season’s bright story was, no pun intended, Trevor Story. Taking over shortstop from opening day after Troy Tulowitzki was traded summer of 2015 and Jose Reyes faced a domestic abuse suspension, Story flourished, hitting 27 home runs before a season-ending injury after just 97 games.
The Rockies saw the debut of one of their long-time prospects, David Dahl, and he made a very positive impression, hitting .315/.359/.500 over 237 plate appearances with 7 home runs and 5 stolen bases, flashing some impressive athleticism.
On the pitching side, Tyler Chatwood took another step forward as a starter, becoming an excellent mid-rotation option. Jon Gray had a tremendous season, and Tyler Anderson made a very positive impression.
All of those guys coming from the system has allowed the Rockies to consider the idea of moving Carlos Gonzalez or capitalizing on DJ LeMahieu‘s breakthrough 2016 to acquire even more assets into the system.
Overall, there’s an excellent depth of high-ceiling arms in Colorado’s system along with some very intriguing bats that go quite deep. I’d probably consider the Rockies system overall as a top ten system in the league right now, but I haven’t dug into it completely yet. They do have an impressive blend of high-floor and high-ceiling both on the hitting and pitching end with good overall system depth.
Next: #10