MEDIA CLIPS – September 8, 2015

Arenado leaves game with chest contusion

By Beth Maiman / MLB.com | September 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO -- Third baseman Nolan Arenado left the Rockies' 6-4 win over the Padres in the eighth inning with a chest contusion, but X-rays taken after the game came back negative.

Arenado injured himself after attempting to make a diving play into the stands while going for a foul ball with bases loaded, which would have ended the inning. Arenado couldn't make the catch, as the ball graced his glove and he landed hard into the stands.

Despite being in pain from the fall, Arenado was light-hearted when talking about the play after the game.

"I thought if I dove I would have landed on some people," Arenado joked. "It would have cushioned my fall."

Arenado said he thought he may have fallen on the armrest of an empty seat that he hit hard, causing him pain.

Looking back on the play Arenado was upset he didn't make the catch, stating that it was right on his glove and that if he jumped a little further he would have been able to make the play.

"When I watched the replay I actually got upset, Arenado said. "And then I was in pain."

Arenado said he hopes to feel good for Tuesday's game and expects to be in the lineup.

Carlos Gonzalez took his spot in the batting order and Rafael Ynoa took over duties at third base.

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In his last at-bat of the game, Arenado had to dodge a pitch towards his head from Kevin Quackenbush, taking an awkward swing in the process for strike two. Arenado would eventually strike out and have a few words with the umpire in frustration.

"It was hurting and it kind of got tight a little bit and every time I threw it kind of hurt. And that last at-bat it was feeling sore," Arenado said.

"Anytime a guy goes into the seats you are a little nervous, but Nolan -- we have seen him pull off the impossible and he almost did it again," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "He came close to catching that and it was well into the seats."

Arenado said it was just instinct to dive into the stands.

"I feel like I have a chance to make a play and go for it," Arenado said. "I am not thinking about myself, I am just thinking about making that play and hopefully we get the out."

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Kendrick’s arm, bat do it all for Rockies

By Beth Maiman / MLB.com | September 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO -- Monday's 6-4 win for the Rockies against the Padres would turn out to be a memorable game for starting pitcher Kyle Kendrick.

Surprisingly, not for what he did on the mound, but at the plate.

In the fourth inning, Kendrick smashed his first career , blasting a 368-foot homer to left field, as the ball hit of the second deck of the Western Metal Supply Building. It took Kendrick 368 career at-bats before notching his first homer, which in turn was the 800th home run at Petco Park.

"Ran into one I guess, was looking for a fastball and ran into it," Kendrick said. "It was fun, I enjoyed it."

Kendrick said he plans on keeping the ball.

"Oh yeah I am going to keep that," Kendrick said. "First home run, I think that's pretty special."

Manager Walt Weiss admitted he wasn't expecting Kendrick to go long.

"It was a good day for [Kendrick], gets a W, hits a home run," Weiss said. "He has been working back, it's only his second start after being out a long time. Still trying to build him up, but he did a great job, put us in a position to win that game."

Kendrick, who made just his second start since coming off the disabled list on Sept. 2 with right shoulder inflammation, allowed three runs off seven hits, while striking out four in five innings to pick up his fifth win of the season.

After his home run, Kendrick made a big play on the mound. With runners on the corners, and the Rockies with a three- run lead, Padres Austin Hedges lined a ball up the middle that Kendrick caught, saving a run. The right-hander then quickly threw to first base to double off Derek Norris to end the inning.

"I felt better today," Kendrick said. "The weather was great. My arm felt a lot better, my pitch count is better. I felt stronger.

Got some tough innings, got some guys on base, got out of some jams, but all in all it was pretty decent."

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Kendrick’s arm, bat do it all for Rockies

By Corey Brock and Beth Maiman / MLB.com | September 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO -- Kyle Kendrick yielded three runs in five innings and hit his first career home run on Monday as the

Rockies edged the Padres, 6-4, at Petco Park.

Kendrick, who won for just the fifth time in 23 starts this season, allowed seven hits and had four strikeouts. Charlie

Blackmon and DJ LeMahieu each had two hits and scored two runs. It was the first win for the Rockies at Petco Park this season.

"It was a good day for [Kendrick], gets a W and hits a home run," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "He has been working back, it's only his second start after being out a long time. Still trying to build him up, but he did a great job, put us in a position to win that game."

Matt Kemp had a two-run home in the first inning for the Padres, though he also failed to catch a Daniel Descalso fly ball in right field in the third inning that led to two runs as he was charged with an error.

Ian Kennedy took the loss, allowing six runs, four earned, in five innings.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Sun Strikes: In the third inning with runners on second and third and with two outs, Descalso lofted a ball to right field, which looked like a routine play for Kemp, who drifted back on the ball. However, while looking into the sun, Kemp dropped the ball, which allowed two runs to score as Descalso took third base. Kemp was charged with an error. More >

Big bat Matt: Kemp continued his torrid second half with a two-run home run to left field in the bottom of the first inning after the Rockies jumped out to a 2-0 lead. For Kemp, it was his 19th home run of the season. The ball was smoked to left field, and Statcast™ tracked it having a 107-mph exit velocity. Kemp has 44 RBIs in 46 games in the second half

A first for everything: Kendrick hit his first career home run, blasting a 368-foot homer to left field, as the ball hit of the second deck of the Western Metal Supply Building. It took Kendrick 368 career at-bats before notching his first homer.

"Was looking for a fastball and ran into one I guess," Kendrick said. "It was fun, I enjoyed it."

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A near-miss: Wil Myers narrowly missed a grand slam in the sixth inning, as his drive to left field would hook foul late, bouncing off the side of the Western Metal Supply Building. Colorado reliever Justin Miller eventually struck him out to preserve a 6-4 lead.

"That typified what the game was about today," Padres interim manager Pat Murphy said of the Myers' near-miss and the missed opportunities throughout the game (4-for-11 with runners in scoring position).

QUOTABLE

"It's the worst. You don't expect it, especially the pitcher in that lineup. He did a pretty good job of letting us know." --

Kennedy, on allowing a home run to Kendrick, and his displeasure with how Kendrick reacted to the home run.

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

When Padres catcher Austin Hedges cut down Nolan Arenado trying to steal second base in the fifth inning Monday, it marked the 49th CCS (catcher caught stealing) for the Padres this season -- that's the most in the big leagues. Derek

Norris has 35 of them and Hedges has 14.

ARENADO OUT

Arenado left Monday's game in the eighth inning with a chest contusion. X-rays were negative and he'll be re-evaluated

Tuesday. Arenado went into the stands trying to grab a foul ball hit by Myers in the sixth inning and then swung awkwardly during his final at-bat, a strikeout in the seventh inning. Arenado was replaced at third base by Rafael Ynoa.

"It was hurting and it kind of got tight a little bit and every time I threw it kind of hurt and that last at-bat it was feeling sore,"

Arenado said. "But I will be ok, I got an X-ray and everything looked good. Hopefully tomorrow I feel good and I expect to be in the lineup tomorrow."

UPTON JR. EJECTED

San Diego outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. was ejected in the ninth inning by home-plate umpire Mike Muchlinski -- but only after he grounded out for the first out of the inning. Based on replays, Upton appeared to take exception with a called strike earlier in the count.

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DOUBLE TROUBLE

The Padres had already scored a run and had runners on the corners, trailing 6-3, in the fourth inning when Hedges lined a ball up the middle that Kendrick snagged, saving a run. He then alertly threw to first base to double off Norris to end the inning.

WHAT'S NEXT

Rockies: The Rockies will send Jon Gray to the mound, as the right-hander makes his seventh career start on Tuesday for a 8:10 p.m. MT game. Gray last faced the Padres on Aug. 15, when he allowed five hits and one run in five innings.

Gray is still looking for his first Major League win.

Padres: Rookie Colin Rea (2-2, 5.47 ERA) will make his sixth big league start, but his first against the Rockies on

Tuesday at 7:10 p.m. PT. He pitched well the last time out against the Dodgers, allowing two earned runs over five innings in a no-decision.

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Gray to go for win No. 1 as Rockies face Padres

By Beth Maiman / MLB.com | September 7, 2015

Rookies Colin Rea and and John Gray will face off as the Padres and Rockies play their second game of a four-game series at Petco Park on Tuesday.

Rea showed poise pitching in his last outing against the National League West-leading Dodgers in just the fifth start of his career. The right-hander allowed two runs on four hits, struck out four and walked two. He was done after five innings, throwing 76 pitches and taking a hard comebacker off his right shoulder. Tuesday marks Rea's first time facing the

Rockies.

Gray will face the Padres for the second time this season. He last faced San Diego on Aug. 15, when he allowed five hits and one run in five innings. The right-hander is still looking for his first Major League win.

Three things you need to know about this game

• Rockies' catcher Nick Hundley was out of the lineup for Colorado on Monday. He is suffering neck stiffness. Manager

Walt Weiss said that they hope Hundley will be ready to go on Tuesday, but are not sure yet as he is day-to-day.

• Reliever Joaquin Benoit was unavailable Monday against the Rockies due to back spasms that he encountered on

Sunday. San Diego interim manager Pat Murphy said Benoit, who handles the eighth inning for the Padres, is day to day.

• Matt Kemp drove in the only run off of Gray the last time the Padres faced the Rockies' right-hander with a sac fly in the first inning. The Padres rallied for a 7-5 win with three runs in the ninth that night.

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Hundley remains out with neck stiffness

By Beth Maiman / MLB.com | September 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO -- Nick Hundley was out of the Rockies' lineup on Monday, as Colorado begins a four-game series with San

Diego at Petco Park.

Hundley left Sunday's 7-4 loss to the Giants with neck stiffness. The catcher said his neck locked up after fouling off a pitch during his at-bat in the fourth inning and Dustin Garneau came in to replace him in the sixth inning.

"They called it a cervical strain," Hundley said after Sunday's game. "My neck's been good. Just one of those things where I maybe took a weird swing or something. Not exactly sure how or why it happened."

Garneau started at catcher on Monday and went 0-for-3 in the Rockies' 6-4 win over the Padres.

"I knew [Hundley] was going to be down [Monday], he's pretty sore," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "Hopefully he will be ready to go again [Tuesday]. But we will have to see. We got Garneau that can run back there and protect us, but Nick will be day to day."

Weiss added that he didn't think Hundley's neck was anything too serious, more that the catcher tweaked it and it locked up on him.

Garneau was called up from -A Albuquerque on Aug. 19, when backup catcher Michael McKenry went on the 60- day disabled list with a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee.

Garneau will be making his sixth start at catcher for the Rockies this season. He recorded his first Major League hit on

Aug. 20, hitting a double in his first career at-bat.

"[Garneau has] been great. We have always loved the makeup, he is intelligent and tough," Weiss said. "He's done a nice job so far handling the position. He's getting an opportunity. And he's always had the reputation of a real solid catch-and- throw guy and he's shown that. But he's also shown a good feel back there for calling the game and not afraid to command the staff too."

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Nolan Arenado takes his chances after diving into stands “He went into the seats and almost made another incredible play,” Weiss said.

By Kirk Kenney / Special to The Denver Post | September 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO — Walt Weiss has seen third baseman Nolan Arenado make some amazing plays going into the stands, but it makes the Rockies manager nervous nonetheless.

Arenado leaped into the second row of the field-level seats at Petco Park in the sixth inning of Monday's game against the

San Diego Padres trying to make a play on a ball hit by outfielder Wil Myers.

"He went into the seats and almost made another incredible play," Weiss said. "Nolan, we've seen him pull off the impossible, and he almost did it again. He came really close to catching that ball well into the seats. Anytime a guy goes into the stands, you worry about him."

The ball fell just beyond the reach of Arenado's outstretched glove. Arenado suffered a chest contusion when he hit himself on either a seat or an arm rest, and he left the game in the eighth inning. X-rays after the game were negative, and Arenado said he expects to be in the lineup for Tuesday's game.

"It was hurting and, as the game went on, it got tight a little bit every time I threw," Arenado said. "It kind of hurt. and my last at-bat (in the seventh inning) it was feeling a little sore.

"I'll be OK. ... I thought if I dived, I would land on some people, but there was nobody sitting there. I saw the ball. It almost hit my glove, so it was right there. I just didn't jump far enough. It was worth it. We won, and that's all that matters."

Arenado said it was one of those instances in which a player just goes after the ball and doesn't have time to think about the consequences.

"It's just instinct," Arenado said. "I don't have an explanation for it. If I feel like I have a chance to make a play, then I'm going to go for it. That's all I'm trying to do. I'm not thinking about myself. I'm just thinking about making that play and hopefully get the out."

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Kyle Kendrick leads Rockies past Padres, hitting his first home run “Was that his first hit?” Kennedy said. “He did a pretty good job of letting us know.”

By Kirk Kenney / Special to The Denver Post | September 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO — Kyle Kendrick had not won a baseball game in six weeks. And Kendrick had never hit a home run in a game.

It was easy to see which made him more excited in the Rockies' 6-4 over the on Monday at Petco

Park.

Kendrick hammered a 1-0 fastball from Padres starting pitcher Ian Kennedy in the fourth inning and sent it into the left- field seats — after bouncing off the second level of the Western Metal supply building — for his first career homer.

Kendrick did a couple of hops coming out the batter's box and clapped his hands as he watched the ball fly out of the ballpark.

"I just ran into one, I guess," Kendrick said. "I was looking for a fastball and ran into it. That's fine. I enjoyed it."

He enjoyed it a little too much as far as Kennedy was concerned.

"Was that his first?" Kennedy said. "He did a pretty good job of letting us know."

Kennedy said he was more subdued when he hit his first — and only — home run last year against Miami.

"You saw me," Kennedy said. "I've never done that.”

"It's the worst feeling giving up one because you don't expect it, especially a pitcher in that lineup."

The 362-foot homer landed in the left-field seats, providing the Rockies with a 6-2 lead. A fan was kind enough to throw the ball back on the field, although the gesture was probably more out of frustration than friendship.

It will go in Kendrick's trophy case regardless.

"I'm going to keep that," Kendrick said. "First big-league homer, that's pretty special."

It was the first victory for Kendrick (5-12), who spent a month on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation, since beating Cincinnati on July 26.

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"It was a good day for K.K.," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "He gets a W, hits a home run. He's working his way back. It's only his second start after being out for a long time. Still trying to build him back up.

"He did a great job and put us in position to win that game."

Kendrick mostly kept the ball down to keep it from flying out, getting inning-ending double plays in the third, fourth and fifth innings before turning things over to the bullpen.

The Rockies got things started quickly against Kennedy, with Charlie Blackmon and D.J. LeMahieu going double, triple to open the game. When Justin Morneau followed with a one-out single, the Rockies had themselves a 2-0 advantage.

It was a short-lived lead. Kendrick allowed a two-run homer to Matt Kemp in the bottom of the first.

The Rockies were gifted two runs in a three-run third when Kemp dropped Daniel Descalso's high fly at the warning track in right field, allowing LeMahieu and Nolan Arenado to score on what would have been an inning-ending out.

The Padres rallied for runs in the fourth and sixth innings to make it 6-4.

San Diego had the bases loaded with two outs in the sixth when Wil Myers came to the plate. Myers hit a long flyball off reliever Justin Miller that was 10 feet foul of being a grand slam.

Myers followed with a high fly foul off third base that just eluded Arenado, who leaped into the second row of the field-level seats trying to make the play.

Miller finally struck out Myers to end the threat.

John Axford, the last of six Rockies relievers, came on to get the final three outs for his 20th save.

Arenado left the game in the eighth inning with a chest contusion. X-rays were negative, and he said he doesn't expect to miss any playing time.

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Jon Gray aims to limit mistakes while looking for first win “Rockies rookie right-hander Jon Gray is eager for his first major-league victory

By Kirk Kenney / Special to The Denver Post | September 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO — Rockies rookie right-hander Jon Gray is eager for his first major-league victory, but he isn't anxious about it.

Gray makes his seventh career start Tuesday night against the San Diego Padres in search of that first win. He had a shot at it three weeks ago against the Padres. He left the game in the fifth inning at Coors Field with a 3-1 lead, but the

Padres came back for a 7-5 win.

Gray knows wins will come. He seems to be taking things in stride since his call-up five weeks ago. Gray said his promotion from Triple-A Albuquerque to the major leagues hasn't come with any major surprises.

"It's been all about getting my feet wet and getting experience," said Gray, a first-round pick two years ago out of the

University of Oklahoma. "That's really what I'm looking at. I want to be able to pick up stuff real quick from start to start and make adjustments."

Gray said the most important thing he has learned these past few weeks is "just limiting your mistakes. If you limit your mistakes, they can't take advantage of you so much. That's my main focus."

Hundley update. Nick Hundley missed the series opener, although manager Walt Weiss hopes the catcher is ready to return for Tuesday's game.

Hundley left Sunday's game against San Francisco in the sixth inning with a stiff neck, an ailment that surfaced two innings earlier during an at-bat.

"I knew he was going to be down today," Weiss said before Monday's game. "He's pretty sore. ... I don't think it's anything long term or anything serious."

Day off for Cargo, Reyes. Outfielder Carlos Gonzalez and shortstop Jose Reyes also were out of the starting lineup against the Padres.

"I planned this day for them to be down," Weiss said. "No issues there. They'll be back out there (Tuesday)."

Gonzalez was a late substitution, entering in the eighth inning to play right field.

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Makeup game. The series has been extended to four games, with Thursday's afternoon game added to make up the July

19 game that was rained out in San Diego. That was just the second rainout in Petco Park's 11-year history. The other one was in 2006.

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Watching Nolan Arenado and Carlos Gonzalez has been really fun

By Mitch Hahn / Purple Row | September 8, 2015

Welcome to the 21st Purple Row edition (and 126th overall) of Tuesdays With Mitch, where Labor Day is behind us, but we're happy to remind you that there are still two weeks of summer left. Let's get into it...

The fun, long holiday weekend means I don't have much time on the blogging schedule this week. So today will be a shorter post and we're jumping straight into the weekly departments...

Stud(s) of the week:

It's easy to get caught up in the big picture. Being the educated and enlightened Rockies fans that we are, it's easy to focus on what each game, each homer, or each strikeout means for the organization on the whole. This is especially true during a season as dismal as this one. The games don't matter. We need to focus on the future. I agree with all this, of course. It's natural to play the "If I were GM" game as the Rockies head toward a rebuild.

But you know what? Sometimes it's awesome to simply watch a couple of your favorite players on your favorite team in your favorite sport perform at an incredibly high level. And for the past week or so, Nolan Arenado and Carlos

Gonzalez have been two of the best baseball players on the planet. For me, it's been a pleasure to put aside the murky future of CarGo in Colorado and the concerns about the possibilities of building around Arenado and simply watch those two dudes play baseball.

I'm sure you've seen plenty of the mind-boggling numbers that have come out of their recent performances. Arenado had a six-game stretch from September 1st through September 5th when he went 14-26 with a homer in each game. Cargo had a five at-bat stretch when he went homer, homer, homer, double, homer. It was the second time this year CarGo has hit multiple homers in consecutive games. He's only the eighth player ever to accomplish such a feat.

CarGo is going all-out in the outfield again, which can also be a joy to watch.

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Rockies’ Kyle Kendrick counters HR allowed by hitting his own in 6-4 win over Padres Kendrick did his best Carlton Fisk impression in hitting his first homer as professional.

By Bryan Kilpatrick / Purple Row | September 8, 2015

Colorado Rockies starter Kyle Kendrick on Monday experienced undoubtedly one of the coolest moments of his career in an otherwise dreary season.

The struggling right-hander, who has allowed 28 home runs and owns a 6.25 ERA in 23 starts this year, countered a home run allowed Matt Kemp in the bottom of the first inning by crushing his first career dinger in the top of the fourth to propel the Rockies to a 6-4 win over the San Diego Padres.

Not many homers hit at Petco Park can be described as cheap, and Kendrick's was no different. The veteran starter took a big swing at a 1-0 fastball from Padres hurler Ian Kennedy and deposited it into the second deck of the old Western

Metal Supply Co. building down the left field line. Even better, Kendrick did his best Carlton Fisk impression out of the batter's box, as if to guide the ball inside the foul pole.

It took Kendrick 433 big league plate appearances to hit his first homer. The 31-year-old righty never had one in the minors, either.

Kendrick was credited with the victory in Colorado's win, allowing three runs on seven hits in five innings. He walked two and struck out four. Charlie Blackmon and DJ LeMahieu paced the Rockies' offense, contributing two hits and scoring two runs apiece.

MLB.com's Beth Maiman has quotes from the Rockies' newest slugger. On the flip side, the pitcher who served up the homer wasn't exactly thrilled with Kendrick's reaction, writes Kirk Kenney in a special to The Denver Post

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Even in a lost season, September matters

By Nick Tremaroli / Rockies Zingers | September 8, 2015

Listen, the 2015 Rockies are bad. Like really, really bad. But let’s be honest, what did we expect to see from this team this year? Playoff contention? No. Improvement? Maybe. To exist? Sure, that’s probably more realistic.

Let’s take a trip back to April for a moment. Kyle Kendrick and Nick Hundley were this team’s biggest off-season signings. At first glance, to be frank, that’s pathetic. For a team with loyal fans who have stood by 4 straight losing seasons, and no playoff appearances in the last 5 years, the Rockies should have made a splash in the free agency market.

In hindsight (it’s always 20/20 right?), that was a bit of an overreaction. Jeff Bridich likely looked at 2015 as a bit of a gap year between what the Rockies are right now and what they will be in a year or two. To some fans, it isn’t immediately evident that the Rockies have a fairly loaded farm system ( has them listed at no. 8 out of all 30 teams, which is among the lowest in most relevant rankings).

Prior to and during April, the prevailing feeling among bloggers and the Rockies alike seemed to be that most of these guys were about a year away from the big club. Guys like Jon Gray, Cristhian Adames, Trevor Story, and Tom

Murphy all were considered guys who should make big contributions to the 2016 and 2017 Rockies, but not the 2015

Rockies.

Fast forward to September 1, the day teams can expand their rosters to the extent of their 40-man rosters. The Rockies had obviously called up Gray a few weeks prior and announced that they would call up Adames to Denver for September.

The team did not call up all of the prospects that many expect to contribute next year. They opted to send

Murphy, Jordan Patterson (OF who made huge steps forward in High-A Modesto and AA New Britain), and a few other highly regarded prospects to the Arizona Fall League. You can read more about them here. They also chose to not call up

Story, who turned many heads this year in both AA and AAA Albuquerque, likely for service time reasons (pure speculation).

Also, because many are wondering about Story, Jeff Bridich said during his appearance on the Root Sports Rockies broadcast on the 3rd that they are going to wait until the AAA season ends on the 7th before making a decision on whether they’d call him up. 16

Great, the Rockies are giving some of their everyday players some playing time relief. So what? Why do these call ups matter?

It matters because September gives these prospects an early audition for a 2016 roster spot and it gives the Rockies’ coaching staff and front office an opportunity to start piecing together the plan for 2016 and beyond.

This is perhaps the most important aspect of September for a losing team. Fans have already begun looking ahead to the future and guessing when this team is going to contend again. September is the first step in that process.

The Rockies seem to have made it clear that they want to build their next contending team from inside the organization.

That makes sense. For whatever reason, and I refuse to speculate on this topic, Colorado has always been a tough place to attract top-tier free agents. And when they do land a mediocre to above average free agent, they have to overpay, especially for pitching (see: Logan, Boone; Hampton, Mike; Neagle, Denny).

So it stands to reason that building from within is the way to go. There is much less financial risk. While September may not be the first step in the rebuilding process (the draft is), it might be one of the most important steps.

Take Adames for example. This is a guy who has a bit of ML time under his belt (7 games played in 2014) who figures to be a part of the Rockies plans in the next few years. So far, since being called up as a part of the annual September roster expansion, he already has played in four games and is likely going to appear in a number of games through the end of the season.

The point is, both prospects and the Rockies alike can use September as a kind of litmus test, if you will, to see what the

Rockies have going forward. It is an important development step for the players and a great evaluation tool for the

Rockies.

So September matters for the prospects and the Rockies. Awesome. Why should you care? If the whole point is to just get to 2016, you should just be pointed in the direction of Sports Authority at Mile High until , right? Why should you continue watching this team play “meaningless baseball?”

Two names: Nolan Arenado and Carlos Gonzalez.

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These two guys are making what would be otherwise meaningless baseball a ton of fun to watch. The Rockies are all but out of contention, but Nolan and CarGo are treating September as if the Rockies are in the middle of the pennant race of their lives.

Both have hit 5 HR and are hitting above .500 since September started a few days ago. Sure the monthly sample size is small as both have under 20 ABs, but both have more home runs than there have been days in the month.

Who wouldn’t want to watch that? Through September 4th, Nolan had 35 HR and CarGo had 36 HR (there is a good chance by the time you read this, those numbers are no longer even close to accurate) and they are sitting at #1 and #2 in the NL HR race.

Oh you want more? Ok. They are both elite defensive players. Nolan is likely all but a lock for the NL 3B Gold Glove and

CarGo can dazzle crowds with plays like this:

September is an important month for Rockies baseball. It is a big first step for a few prospects into their future and a great first look at the future for the Rockies. It can also be a fun month of baseball to watch when you have players like Nolan

Arenado and Carlos Gonzalez playing for your team.

So fellow fans, I implore you to treat September baseball with the respect it deserves. September baseball in Colorado may not be like it was in 2007 or 2009, but it can still be a good time to be a Rockies fan.

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