History of the Colorado Rockies facts for kids
The History of the Colorado Rockies began in 1991 when a Major League Baseball (MLB) team was created for Denver, Colorado. In 1993, the Colorado Rockies started playing in the National League (NL) West division. Since then, the Rockies have reached the MLB postseason four times. Each time, they made it as the National League wild card team. In 2007, the Rockies made it all the way to the World Series, but they lost to the Boston Red Sox.
Contents
How the Rockies Team Was Created
Even though Denver has a long history of baseball since 1885, it took many tries to bring a Major League Baseball team to Colorado. In the late 1980s, it finally looked like Denver might get an MLB team.
The Colorado Baseball Commission helped Denver voters approve a small sales tax. This tax helped pay for a new baseball stadium. A group of owners was chosen, led by John Antonucci. On July 5, 1991, the National League agreed to add two new teams starting in 1993: one in Denver and one in South Florida. This meant MLB now had teams in all four time zones in the United States. The Rockies were the first team in the Mountain Time Zone.
The name "Rockies" was picked because Denver is close to the Rocky Mountains. The team's logo also shows the mountains. The name was used before by Denver's first NHL team, which is now the New Jersey Devils.
The Rockies' first player picked in the expansion draft was pitcher David Nied. He played for the Rockies for four seasons.
Changes in Team Ownership
After some problems with the original owners, John Antonucci and Michael I. Monus had to sell their shares in the team. For a while, it looked like the team might move to Tampa, Florida, before even playing a game!
Finally, a business executive named Jerry McMorris became the head of the ownership group. He was the main public face of the team's management at first.
In 2005, McMorris sold his part of the team to Charlie and Dick Monfort. The Monforts had been leaders in their family's meatpacking business. Charlie was the team's CEO starting in 2003, and Dick was vice chairman since 1997. In 2011, Dick took over as chairman and CEO.
The Rockies' First Season (1993)
The very first game in Rockies history was on April 5, 1993, against the New York Mets. The Rockies lost that game 3–0.
The team's first home game was four days later at Mile High Stadium. This was also their first win! They beat the Montreal Expos 11–4. One of the most exciting moments was in the first inning when Eric Young hit a leadoff home run. This game was played in front of 80,227 fans, which is still the largest crowd ever for a regular-season Major League Baseball game.
Like many new teams, the Rockies had a tough first year. But they still finished the season with 67 wins, which was a record for a new National League team. Also, a huge number of fans came to their home games: 4,483,350 people! This is a Major League record that still stands today. Rockies first baseman Andrés Galarraga won the batting title, hitting an amazing .370 for the season.
The Mid-1990s: "Blake Street Bombers"
In 1994, the Rockies had a winning record for the first time in team history, even if it was only for a short while. The season ended early because of a strike. Even with a tough record, several Rockies hitters became famous for hitting lots of home runs. This was helped by Denver's thin, dry air, which makes balls fly farther. Andrés Galarraga hit 31 home runs, and Dante Bichette hit 27.
1995: First Playoff Run and Coors Field
Before the 1995 season, the Rockies added outfielder Larry Walker. He joined Galarraga, Bichette, and third baseman Vinny Castilla to form a powerful hitting group known as the "Blake Street Bombers." They were named after the street where their new ballpark, Coors Field, was located. These four players combined to hit 139 home runs in the shorter 1995 season.
The team played its first game in the new Coors Field on April 26, 1995, winning 11–9. They finished the season with a 77–67 record, earning their first playoff spot as the Wild Card winner. The Rockies lost in the playoffs to the Atlanta Braves, who went on to win the World Series. The Rockies once again had the highest attendance in the league that season.
After 1995
In 1996, the "Blake Street Bombers" were back, but Larry Walker got injured. However, outfielder Ellis Burks had an amazing season, hitting .344 with 40 home runs. Three Rockies players (Burks, Galarraga, and Castilla) hit 40 or more home runs that year! The team set a Major League record for runs scored at home. But the team's pitchers struggled with injuries, and the Rockies finished in third place.
In 1997, a healthy Larry Walker became the first Rockies player to win the NL Most Valuable Player award. He hit .366 with 49 home runs. Walker almost won the Triple Crown, leading the league in home runs. He also won the first Gold Glove award in team history for his great defense. However, the team's pitchers still had a tough time.
The Todd Helton Era Begins
After the 1997 season, Andrés Galarraga left the team. His spot was taken by Todd Helton, who was the team's first-round draft pick in 1995. The team struggled in 1998, finishing with a 77–85 record. Pitchers continued to have a hard time playing in Colorado.
In 1999, the Rockies finished even worse, with a 72–90 record. Helton was becoming a great hitter, batting .320 with 35 home runs. Castilla, Walker, and Bichette also hit over 30 home runs each. But again, the team's pitching was a big problem.
On April 4, 1999, the Rockies made history by playing their Opening Day game in Monterrey, Mexico. This was the first time Major League Baseball started its regular season outside the United States or Canada. Colorado won the game 8–2.
New Leadership and Team Changes
In 1999, Dan O'Dowd became the Rockies' new general manager. He made many trades that changed the team. Popular outfielder Dante Bichette was traded, and Vinny Castilla was also traded. This left Larry Walker as the only "Blake Street Bomber" still with the team.
Despite these big changes, the team had its first winning season since 1997. Helton became a true superstar, winning the batting title with a .372 average and leading the league with 147 runs batted in (RBI), while hitting 42 home runs. He also made the All-Star Game for five years in a row. The team's pitching also got a bit better, helping the team to an 82–80 record.
After the 2000 season, O'Dowd signed two famous pitchers, Denny Neagle and Mike Hampton, hoping they would help the team win. However, both pitchers struggled while playing for the Rockies. This caused financial problems for the team for several years.
The Rockies started to focus more on developing young players from their own system instead of signing expensive free agents. In 1999, they drafted pitcher Jason Jennings. Three years later, Jennings won 16 games and became the first Rockies player to win the National League Rookie of the Year award.
In 2004, Vinny Castilla returned to the team and hit 35 home runs. However, Preston Wilson and Larry Walker were injured for much of the season. Walker, who was considered one of the best players in team history, was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in August.
"Generation-R" and the Rise of Young Talent
Trading Larry Walker led to many changes in the team. Many experienced players left, and the team brought up young players like Matt Holliday, Garrett Atkins, Brad Hawpe, and Clint Barmes. Most of the team's regular players were under 30 years old. The Rockies called this new group "Generation-R."
2005 Season
In 2005, the young team struggled, finishing with a 67–95 record, which was one of the worst in team history. Todd Helton also had a tough year and was injured for the first time in his career. However, the team started to play better later in the season as the young players gained more experience.
2006 Season
The 2006 season started with some hope. The Rockies played well in the first half of the season. They finished with a 76–86 record. Several young players showed great promise. Matt Holliday hit 34 home runs and was named to the All-Star Game. Garrett Atkins batted .329 and hit 29 home runs. The pitching staff also had its best ERA (Earned Run Average) in team history.
2007: "Rocktober" and the World Series
The Rockies were behind other teams for most of the 2007 Major League Baseball season. But in August and September, Colorado started winning a lot of games. They won 20 of their last 28 games in September, including 11 in a row! This was a team record. Their 90–73 regular season record was also a franchise record.
Because of their amazing September run, the Rockies ended the season tied with the San Diego Padres for a playoff spot. They played a special tie-breaker game at Coors Field on October 1. The game went 13 innings! The Padres scored two runs in the 13th inning, but the Rockies came back with three runs to win 9–8. Matt Holliday scored the winning run in a very exciting play at home plate.
Playoffs
With that win, the Rockies made the playoffs for the first time since 1995. They went on to play the Philadelphia Phillies. Colorado won all three games, sweeping the Phillies! This was the Rockies' first playoff series win ever.
Next, the Rockies played the Arizona Diamondbacks. Colorado won all four games, sweeping them too! This amazing winning streak became known as "Rocktober." The Rockies became the first team ever to sweep both the division series and the league championship series in the same postseason.
In the 2007 World Series, the Rockies faced the Boston Red Sox. Unfortunately, the Red Sox swept the Rockies in four games.
Baseball America magazine named the Colorado Rockies the "Organization of the Year" for their achievements in 2007. They said the Rockies won with players they developed themselves.
2008: Defending the National League Title
The Rockies started the 2008 season with few changes from their successful 2007 team. On April 17, 2008, Colorado beat the San Diego Padres 2–1 in a very long 22-inning game. It lasted over 6 hours and was the longest game in Rockies history.
On July 4, 2008, Colorado made the largest comeback win in team history. They were losing 13–4 to the Florida Marlins but came back to win 18–17!
The Rockies finished the season in third place and did not make the playoffs. After the season, the team traded Matt Holliday to the Oakland Athletics for other players, including Carlos González.
2009: Return to the Playoffs
After a slow start in 2009, Jim Tracy became the new manager. In June, the team played much better, winning 21 games in one month, a new franchise record! This helped them move from a losing record to a winning one. Two Rockies players, Brad Hawpe and Jason Marquis, were chosen for the All-Star Game. On August 10, Troy Tulowitzki hit the team's fifth "cycle" (hitting a single, double, triple, and home run in one game).
On August 24, the Rockies played a 14-inning game against the San Francisco Giants. The Giants scored three runs in the 14th inning. But then, Ryan Spilborghs hit the first "walk-off grand slam" in Rockies history, winning the game 6–4! This exciting play was called "SpillySlam."
The Rockies continued to play well and clinched their second playoff appearance in three years on October 1. They won 91 games, breaking their franchise record set in 2007. The Rockies entered the playoffs as the NL Wild Card team again. They lost to the Philadelphia Phillies 3–1 in the first round of the playoffs.
Recent Seasons
- 2010: On April 17, Ubaldo Jiménez pitched the first "no-hitter" in Rockies history. The team had an exciting comeback win on July 6, scoring 9 runs in the 9th inning to win. On July 30, the Rockies set an MLB record with 11 hits in a row against the Chicago Cubs. The team finished the season with 83 wins.
- 2011: The Rockies started strong but struggled later in the year, finishing in fourth place.
- 2012: Jamie Moyer became the oldest pitcher in MLB history to win a game. The Rockies had their worst record ever, with 64 wins.
- 2013: The team started well, and Michael Cuddyer had a franchise record 27-game hitting streak. Todd Helton announced his retirement after 17 years. Nolan Arenado won his first Gold Glove award.
- 2014: Nolan Arenado broke Cuddyer's hitting streak record with 28 straight games. The team struggled with injuries and finished in fourth place. Todd Helton's number was officially retired.
- 2015: The Rockies finished in last place. Troy Tulowitzki was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays.
- 2016: The team stayed close to a winning record for most of the season but faded at the end, finishing in third place.
- 2017: The Rockies had a great start, and finished with 87 wins, their first winning season since 2010. They made the playoffs as the Wild Card team but lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
- 2018: The team made the playoffs for the second year in a row, a first for the Rockies! They finished with 91 wins, their best record since 2009. They won a thrilling playoff game against the Chicago Cubs but were then swept by the Milwaukee Brewers.
- 2019: The Rockies had a tough start and finished in fourth place.
- 2020: In the shorter 2020 season, the Rockies finished fourth. After the season, All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals.
- 2021: The Rockies finished fourth in their division again.
- 2022: The Rockies finished last in their division for the first time since 2015.
- 2023: The Rockies had their worst record in franchise history, finishing with 59 wins.
|
