@MarkKnudson41
As he does most years, Colorado Rockies Owner Dick Monfort penned a letter to season ticket holders at the conclusion of the Rockies season. Given that the newly expanded Wild Card round of playoffs had just concluded, the timing might be considered by some to be rubbing salt in an open wound, but nonetheless, the letter most certainly came from the heart, and from a man who wants his team to win as much as any ticket buyer.
The issue continues to be that his wishes and desires aren’t always compatible with his methods.
Monfort made several things crystal clear. The result this season “were not acceptable” and he wants playoff baseball back at Coors Field ASAP. He noted the four year drought, and lamented this year’s team not meeting (his) expectations. While most astute baseball observers, including those in Las Vegas, projected the Rockies season to go pretty much the way it did, the owner was counting on significant improvement from last year’s 73 win team. Emotional attachment aside, how he looked at the roster n March and thought he saw a playoff contender is a head scratcher.
To be fair, no one expected newly signed Kris Bryant to miss most of the season with injuries and not hit a single home run at Coors. Still, even with Bryant, this was never going to be a playoff team.
Beyond that, Monfort made it clear that he’s been watching intently and sees the flaws the rest of us see. He noted the obvious, that the Rockies performance on the road continues to be dreadful. That the pitching was “inconsistent” (he may have been being kind) and the “situational” hitting “was disappointing.” He also showed that he was watching a little closer. The Rockies regression on defense – something that’s often unnoticed but very important – was a big factor, too.
But still, it’s hard to understand how he could look at this collection of players before the season, check out other rosters, and still think his team had a shot. It never did.
The part of the letter that may be the most frustrating to Rockies fans – who are also hoping for a quick return to contender status – is that the owner appeared, in his letter anyway, to be putting all of his eggs in the farm system basket…again.
It’s no secret that the Rockies under Monfort’s ownership want to be an organization that grows it’s own. They count more heavily than almost any team in baseball on having their own home grown players become quality big leaguers. While the Bryant signing shows they may, on occasion, dip into the free agent pool, fans should not expect much of that. Maybe none of that this winter.
That’s disappointing to many followers of the team. (Brandon Nimmo will be a free agent in less than a month…just sayin’)
Monfort rattled off the names of up and comers like Michael Toglia, Elehuris Montero, Ezequiel Tovar and others, along with several players that are in the system but won’t be seen at 20th and Blake for a while. In essence, he appeared to be telling fans to just give the organization a few more years – presumably like the past four – and we’ll turn this thing around.
The problem with this plan – and the Rockies under Monfort are very unlikely to vary from it…ever – is that every single player Monfort singled out will have to not only reach the big leagues, but become a standout player for the Rockies to actually contend. The chances of that happening are about as good as the chances of the CU Buffs or the CSU Rams reaching a bowl game this season.
He also touted the new rule changes coming next year, along with a visit from the New York Yankees. He did what all good business owners do – he emphasized all the things that are positive about the Colorado Rockies. If he’s one thing, Monfort is an excellent businessman.
There’s no question that Dick Monfort wants to win. And despite some who want to slap the “cheap” label on him, he’s certainly not that. But he has a business model – one that’s different from virtually every other team in MLB – and he’s steadfastly sticking to it.
That’s the part you didn’t get to read.