Mile High Success for the Young Colorado Rockies
The Rocky Mountain Region finally has something to cheer for in the baseball world. In a city made famous by the world championships of the Colorado Avalanche and Denver Broncos, America’s pastime is starting pick up a notch.
The Colorado Rockies were picked to finish at the bottom of the National League West division and with good reason; they are a very young and unproven team. The Rockies have 15 players on the active roster who are under 30 years old and only two players that are over 35.
Young teams typically take time to blossom but the Colorado Rockies have decided to forgo that step to become one of the biggest early surprises in Major League Baseball. The core of the team is strong enough that the Rockies could become a serious threat in the next few years.
In order for this to happen, O’Dowd needs to avoid making moves that have haunted him in the past like signing free agent pitchers like Mike Hampton to monster deals only to have them fall apart. He will need to hang on to popular young players such as Clint Barmes, Cory Sullivan, and groom young pitchers like Jeff Francis to the task of pitching in Coors field.
Currently the Rockies sit in 3rd place just one game back of San Diego with a record 21 wins and 18 losses. The Rockies are 12 and 9 on the road this season but the most impressive statistics for us is the number of units won from a gambling perspective.
The Rockies are +5.97 units SU and +8.43 units on the run line. Compare those numbers to the heavily favored St Louis Cardinals who are +4.71 units SU and +3.56 units on the run line. Or the Boston Red Sox who are +4.38 SU and -2.23 on the run line. Both heavy favorites this year in their division.
Now don’t go out and bet on the Rockies every time they play. The odds makers are certainly catching up with the young Colorado team, but they are definitely a team that can be spot played to help pad your bankroll.
The Colorado Rockies have been playing good baseball thus far in the season, rudely waking up the rest of the NL West. The lethal combination of youth and skill are giving them rare success so far, which may be the confidence building lift the team needs to enhance their drive to continue its winning ways. With solid personnel moves and the ability to win on the road, the Rocks are a major future threat not only in the NL West, but in all of major league baseball.