12 Weeks in: The Colorado Rockies by the Numbers
How are they faring so far?
It’s been about six weeks since I looked at some numbers that indicated where the Colorado Rockies (26-49) were at that point in the season. By now, we’ve got enough data to begin to draw some conclusions, so this seemed like a good time to get caught up.
With that in mind, here goes.
• 66 – That’s the number of home runs the Rockies have hit in 2024, which ties them 25th with a lackluster Chicago White Sox team. That’s just not enough. For a team that plays half its games at Coors Field, this is disappointing. (The Baltimore Orioles top MLB’s leaderboard with 116 home runs.) Ryan McMahon’s 13 home runs lead all Rockies with Ezequiel Tovar’s 11 homers ranking him second. Third are Brenton Doyle and Michael Toglia with six each. (Aaron Judge leads all of baseball with 26, double the number hit by Ryan McMahon.)
• 43 — That’s the number of bases the Rockies have stolen this season, and ties them with the Arizona Diamondbacks for 18th in baseball, a marked improvement over last year and even earlier this seAs on. Leading the league? The Cincinnati Reds with 107 followed by the Milwaukee Brewers with 104. Elly De La Cruz has the most with 37 followed by Brice Turang with 26.
Unsurprisingly, Brenton Doyle leads the Rockies with 18 while Charlie Blackmon has five.
• 7.4% — That’s the Rockies’ BB%, and it remains unchanged from the last update. They’re ranked 26th in MLB. The New York Yankees’ 10.2% tops all of baseball. (Turns out, having Juan Soto on your team matters.) For batters with more than 200 plate appearances, Ryan McMahon leads the Rockies at 10.3%. Ezequiel Tovar’s abysmal 3.4% is the lowest for Rockies hitters with more than 200 PA.
• 24.6% — That’s the Rockies’ K%, or their strikeout rate, which has improved from last month’s 26.5%. The Seattle Mariners lead MLB at 27.7%. Striking out the most with a minimum of 200 plate appearances? Ryan McMahon (27.7%) followed by Ezequiel Tovar at 27.2%.
The lowest K% for Rockies with a minimum of 100 plate appearances? It’s still Charlie Blackmon’s 13.0%.
• 84 — That’s the Rockies’ wRC+, which marks an improvement over last month’s 74 wRC+. (A 100 is average.) The number suggests the Rockies are improving at the plate. The Los Angeles Dodgers have the highest wRC+ — by a lot – at 123. (Turns out, having Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman on your team matters, even though Betts has been sidelined for a bit due to injury.)
The highest wRC+ on the Rockies for players with a minimum of 200 plate appearances? Ryan McMahon (1115) followed by Elias Díaz (108) and Ezequiel Tovar (105). Everyone else is below replacement level.
• 43.9% — That’s the Rockies’ GB%, or the number of ground balls they hit, and they’re fifth in MLB. It marks a slight improvement over last month’s 45.2%. That’s not good, especially at Coors Field, which rewards baseballs hit in the air. The good news is that no Rockies are in the top 30 in this category. (Last month, Ryan McMahon was ranked seventh with a 55.6% GB% while Brendan Rodgers was tenth at 53.8%.)
• 6 — That’s the Rockies’ current DRS (Defensive Runs Saved), which ranks 16th among all MLB teams. (The Toronto Blue Jays lead MLB with 49.) Ezequiel Tovar has the most DRS on the Rockies’ roster with eight followed by Ryan McMahon with three.
• 3 – That’s the Rockies’ OAA (Outs Above Average). This part of the Rockies’ game has improved from -5 last month, so it’s trending in the right direction. They’re currently ranked 13th. Tovar’s 8 lead the Rockies and makes him eighth in MLB.
• 5.42 — That’s the ERA of the Rockies’ starting rotation, and it’s the highest in baseball — and it’s not close. Still, it’s an improvement from last month’s 6.33. The best ERA of the Rockies starters? That goes to Cal Quantrill (3.43). Highest K%? That goes to Ryan Feltner (20.4%).
• 5.91 — That’s the ERA of the bullpen, and it’s the worst in MLB. That’s up — a lot — from last month’s 4.78. (Second highest would be the Miami Marlins’ 5.34). Of the current bullpen. Jalen Beeks has the lowest ERA (3.50) followed by Victor Vodnik (4.50). The highest K%? That goes to Nick Mears (26.8%). The bullpen is not good — but you probably already know that.
• 40.0 — That’s the number of innings Victor Vodnik has pitched, and it ties him for sixth-most in MLB. Jalen Beeks has pitched 36.0 innings. It’s a real concern that Bud Black will repeat the mistakes of 2023 where he overused Jake Bird and Justin Lawrence.
During a post-game presser during the Rockies series with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Bud Black stressed that this is a young team, still learning — “under construction,” as he put it. This is not a good team that’s showing some signs of improvement.
On the Internet
I realize this was from last week, but it strikes me as worth watching again.
Hunter Goodman — who’s finally catching more games — is a player to watch.
What I’m Reading & Listening To
• “Diamondbacks Claim Gavin Hollowell from Rockies” (MLB Trade Rumors) — Why the Rockies decided not to protect Gavin Hollowell remains unknown, but if Bret Strom, the D-back’s pitching coach, sees something, it’s probably not good for the Rockies. But it should be good for Hollowell, so here’s wishing him luck.
• Patrick Lyons’ “Rockies Returning From IL Could Increase Colorado’s Trade Deadline Potential” (Just Baseball) — Lyons considers players the Rockies could move next month.
• Kenneth Weber’s “Five LHP that Could be on the Colorado Rockies’ Radar in the 2024 Draft” (Purple Row) — The MLB Draft will be next month, which leads to all kinds of speculation. While most fans are focused on the first round, Weber looks to possible later action.
• Renee Dechert’s “Yes, Ezequiel Tovar Should Be an All-Star” (Purple Row) — Last week, I argued that this probably wasn’t Tovar’s year. Reader, I changed my mind.
• “Rox Starter Cal Quantrill” (The Drew Goodman Podcast) — This one is worth a listen as Goodman visits with the Rockies best starter.
Closing Thoughts
That will do it for another week.
The Rockies will finish their longest home stand of 2024 this weekend when they welcome the Washington Nationals to Coors Field. Here’s hoping they get a series win.
As always, thanks for reading —
Renee
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