The Burrall Blog – OK, That’s A Start

5/29/09 – 2:15 PM

Rockies fans have gotten one of their wishes.  Manager Clint Hurdle has been fired and replaced by bench coach and former Pirates and Dodgers manager Jim Tracy.

From all accounts, Hurdle’s a good guy and does deserve some credit for leading Colorado to the World Series in 2007.   That team was talented, and the talent level really hasn’t dropped off since then.  So, why did the Rockies win only 74 games last year?  Injuries did have something to do with that, but a well-run team would have again contended for a title in this weak division, even with the Dodgers’ surge and Manny “No, I Really Didn’t Know That Was a Fertility Drug” Ramirez.  Young pitchers have to be actually coached, not coddled, as the man who is somehow still the pitching coach, Bob Apodaca, seems to do.

And even with talent, there isn’t much depth still in the Rockies’ organization, and that falls at the feet of the man who is somehow still the general manager, Dan O’Dowd.  I’ve written before about the terrible trades and signings he’s made, and the Rockies are still recovering from them.

But still, as inept as O’Dowd and Apodaca are, the problem may still be at the top.  Charles and Dick Montfort, seeing the amazing attendance in the first years of the franchise, thought they would make huge amounts of money.  Well, the problem with that is that the team didn’t get any better and attendance dropped.  So, instead of making moves to help the team improve, the Montforts have instead aimed themselves upon improving their bottom line.  Therefore, with the notable exception of the last two months of 2007, the overall quality has suffered.

Sure, O’Dowd and Apodaca should have been gone lone ago.  But, I’m afraid to say that results may not change with the Rockies until the Montforts decide they’ve had enough and sell the team to someone who actually has an idea about making the team better, and consequentially, improving attendance and interest.