Opening Day 2013

Baseball is back and so are the Rockies.

Personnel-wise the team has not changed much.   New Manager Walt Weiss and new hitting coach Dante Bichette brings back history as they make their coaching debut, with much of the same team that lost a team record 98 games last year.

So why should there be optimism?  In two words Health and Experience.

A lot of kids like Pacheco, Rosario, and Rutledge got major experience last season due to key injuries to Tulowitzki, Helton, Hernandez, and Cuddyer among others.

Tulo of course needs to stay healthy for the entire year to give the Rockies a chance.

And then there is the age old problem--pitching.  The Rockies had to work with a makeshift rotation after their entire rotation went down for one reason or another.  Guthrie, Chacin, Moyer, Nicasio, and Pomeranz were the initial starting rotation last year.  Moyer was released, Guthrie first hurt then traded.   Chacin and Nicasio hurt, and Pomeranz wasn't quite ready.  By June the Rockies had reaquired Jeff Francis and was using a makeshift piggyback system, that wasn't quite successful, because the pitchers couldn't throw strikes and keep the pitch counts down.

Chacin had a rough spring, Francis is back, De La Rosa and Nicasio are making comebacks.  The fifth starter is Journeyman Jon Garland, who most recently was with the Dodgers in 2011.   Chris Volstad is another starter acquired over the winter waits in the Bullpen if one of the five falter.

But for now the Rockies are 0-0.  Play Ball!