On Saturday night, a few of my friends from high school visited campus. I hadn't seen them since their beloved New York Mets had plummeted out of postseason baseball, so I followed my "Hey!" with "Oh, man, I'm sorry about the Mets." They expressed their condolences about my beloved Yankees, and we all shook our heads in shared frustration. I then asked what I thought was a rhetorical question: "So now you're gonna root for the Red Sox, right?" (FYI: Bitter Mets fans tend to root for the BoSox once their Mets are eliminated, just to spite the Yankees.) I was thrilled when I heard the unanimous response.
"Rockies all the way, baby!"
"Yes! Me too!" I responded. "Let's go Rox!"
Those lovable losers from the Mile High City have united fans across the country. They have blossomed into America's darling, the feel-good story of 2007. But why?
First of all, no one saw this coming. Literally, no one. Even the city of Denver wasn't expecting this kind of a miracle. Not one of ESPN's 18 expert analysts predicted that the Colorado Rockies would even make the playoffs. In fact, most projections placed the Rocks in the cellar of the National League West. And yet, here we are.
The Colorado Rockies have won 21 of their last 22 games - an astonishing feat - and have reached the World Series for the first time in their 15-year existence. As recently as Sept. 10, with only 19 games left in the regular season, the Rockies were treading water in fourth place in the NL West, seven games behind the division-leading Arizona Diamondbacks. Then they began their amazing streak, leapfrogging the Dodgers, Padres and Mets to seize the NL Wild Card. This is even more impressive when you realize that the Rockies haven't had a winning season since 2000.
The Rockies are the epitome of a well-rounded, small-market ballclub. Their homegrown talent is responsible for a large part of their success. First baseman Todd Helton, third baseman Garrett Atkins, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, left fielder Matt Holliday, right fielder Brad Hawpe and pitchers Jeff Francis, Aaron Cook, Ubaldo Jimenez, Franklin Morales and Manuel Corpas are all lifelong Rockies. This is in stark contrast with, for example, the New York Yankees, who infamously phone in their talent from the free-agent pool each winter. The Rockies' payroll is the sixth lowest in baseball, so they certainly didn't buy their success.
And they didn't just mash their way to the World Series either. Many Colorado teams of the past have been built around the long ball, but this year the Rockies finished eighth in the NL in home runs. They got this far by playing smart baseball. Their offense led the majors in sacrifice hits, while their pitching staff induced more ground balls than any team. To top it all off, the Rockies' defense led the major leagues in fielding percentage. They played old-school baseball, a style of play that fans appreciate and have been yearning to see for years.
The Rockies are like the scrawny kid who somehow hits a home run in a Little League game. You're not sure how it happened, or if it will ever happen again, so you're going to give him a standing ovation.
Ellis Rochelson '09 could be Todd Helton's grandson.
