Power Pros Forum

August 6th to August 12th
8/6 @ PHI - W, 6-1 (Dustan Mohr returns to lineup)
8/7 @ PHI - L, 2-1
8/8 @ PHI - W, 4-0
8/9 @ PHI - L, 4-3
8/10 @ PIT - W, 11-0 (Joe Kennedy (W, 13-8) - 9.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 3.65)
8/11 @ PIT - L, 5-3
8/12 @ PIT - L, 12-6

New York Mets (50-67) @ Colorado Rockies (66-52)
August 14th-16th

Game One: Tyler Yates (4-9, 4.52) vs. Jeff Francis (12-6, 2.83)

1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9| |R| H|E
0|0|0|0|0|1|0|0|2| |3| 5|1|NYM
1|1|0|0|1|2|1|0|X| |6|13|1|COL

Notables:
Jose Reyes - RBI double in 6th
Mike Cameron - RBI triple in 9th
Tyler Yates (L, 4-10) - 4.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
Frank Maroth - 1.1 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, BB

Dustan Mohr - 2-5, 2B, RBI, R
Todd Helton - 2-3, HR (27), RBI, R, 2 BB
Marcus Davis - Pinch hit RBI single in 7th
Jeff Francis (W, 13-6) - 6.0 IP, 3 H, ER, 2 BB, 5 K
Rick Bauer - 2.0 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 3 K

Game Two: Kris Benson (6-7, 4.21) vs. Jason Jennings (9-6, 3.34)

1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9| | R| H |E
0|4|6|1|0|0|0|1|1| |13|22|0|NYM
0|2|2|0|0|3|0|0|1| | 8| 11|1|COL

Notables:
Michael Barrett - 4-6, RBI, 2 R
Carlos Beltran - 5-6, HR (20), 4 RBI, 2 R
Victor Diaz - 2-5, HR (10), 2 RBI, 2 R
Wil Mottola - 5-6, 2 2B, HR (5), RBI, 4 R
Kris Benson - 4.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
Mike Francisco (W, 3-2) - 1.0 IP 3 H 3 ER, 2 K
Steve Strickland (SV, 3) - 3.1 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, 2 K

Dustan Mohr - 2-5, 2B, RBI, 2 R
Todd Helton - 3-5, 3B, 2 HR (29), 4 RBI, 3 R
Jorge Piedra - 2-2, 2B, RBI, R, HBP
Jason Jennings (L, 9-7) - 1.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, BB, 2 K
Jason Young - 1.0 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 4 ER

Game Three: Gabriel Miller (4-12, 5.70) vs. Joe Kennedy (13-8, 3.65)

1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9| | R| H |E
3|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0| | 3| 7 |1|NYM
0|2|1|0|4|0|0|3|X| |10|15|0|COL

Notables:
Jose Reyes - 3-run HR in 1st
Gabriel Miller (L, 4-13) - 4.2 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 4 BB, 4 K
Yusmeiro Petit - 0.1 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, BB

Domingo Acosta - 2-4, 2B, RBI, R
Todd Helton - 3-run HR (30) in 8th
Joey Acaccia - 3-5, HR (26), 3 RBI, 2 R
J.D. Closser - 3-4, HR (13), 3 RBI, R
Joe Kennedy (W, 14-8) - 8.0 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 10 K

Rockies Record: 68-53 (Division: 6.0 games back; Wild Card: 5.5 games back)

August 17th to August 26th
8/17 vs. WAS - L, 11-9
8/18 vs. WAS - W, 4-3
8/19 vs. WAS - W, 6-4
8/21 @ ATL - L, 7-2
8/22 @ ATL - L, 8-0
8/23 @ ATL - L, 5-3
8/24 @ FLA - L, 7-4

Acosta Tears ACL; Tulowitzki Promoted
August 24th, 2007
Zachary Bluth

Things are not going well for Colorado, as, amidst a four-game losing skid, Domingo Acosta was injured sliding into second base. The star shortstop has been diagnosed with a torn ACL and will mess the rest of the season.

Acosta, 22, had career highs in batting average (.310), home runs (13), runs (89), and had tied his career high in stolen bases (19) before the injury, all while playing above average defensively. Replacing him will be fellow 22-year old Troy Tulowitzki, a highly regarded prospect that has been tearing up AAA (.308, 13 HR) on both sides of the ball. The rookie will soon, if not immediately, be slotted into the starting lineup.

Time will tell whether Tulowitzki can fill the shoes of Acosta, but it's hard to imagine him being any better than the incumbent.

August 25th to August 26th
8/25 @ FLA - W, 4-1
8/26 @ FLA - L, 2-1 (Troy Tulowitzki MLB debut - 1-4, K - First career hit a single off Al Leiter)

Bullpen Shuffled Around Again
August 27th, 2007
Zachary Bluth

After the bullpen blew today's game against the Marlins, Michael Cathaway optioned both Jason Young and Antonio Osuna to AAA.

Osuna, the Opening Day closer, has struggled all year and only gotten worse since Danys Baez took over his role, throwing 46.0 innings with a 32:20 K:BB ratio and a 5.67 ERA. He pitched in the 10th inning today, giving up a single and a walk-off triple without recording an out.

Young, who was called up on June 11th, was initially excellent for the big league club but has been awful of late, his ERA inflating to 5.77. He had no part in the loss last night, but Cathaway evidently decided it was time to clear house. He will return to AAA, where he possessed a 1.77 ERA before being promoted.

Returning to the Rockies' bullpen will be 30-year old Javier Lopez, who was demoted in June with a 6.06 ERA. Since then, he's allowed just one earned run in 24.1 innings for the Sky Sox, striking out 20 and walking 7, and Eddy Rodriguez, a 26-year old whose first year with the big league bullpen got off to a poor start (31.2 IP, 6.54 ERA) but has pitched exceptionally well in AAA (50.1 IP, 1.97 ERA). The two will both pitch in middle relief.

The Rockies are currently 71-59 and just 11-13 in August after an 18-9 July, and with a huge series against the wild card leading Giants coming up, the bullpen needs to get things in order quickly, or they could find themselves at home in October.

Rockies Record: 71-59 (Division: 10 games back; Wild Card: 5 games back)

August 28th to September 13th
8/28 @ SF - W, 4-2 (Troy Tulowitzki - First career double, first career RBI)
8/29 @ SF - L, 4-3 (15) (Troy Tulowitzki - First career HR off Noah Lowry in 2nd)
8/30 @ SF - W, 6-2
8/31 @ SD - L, 3-2
9/1 @ SD - L, 5-3
9/2 @ SD - L, 8-0
9/4 vs. SF - W, 7-4
9/5 vs. SF - W, 7-6

Rodriguez Placed On Waivers
September 6th, 2007
Zachary Bluth

Immediately following his 0.1 inning, 2 ER performance that allowed the Giants to tie last night's game in the 7th, Eddy Rodriguez was placed on unconditional release waivers by the Rockies. The other 29 teams will have the opportunity to claim him, otherwise he will be granted free agency. If he is not claimed, the Rockies are on the hook for the rest of this year's $900k salary.

Rodriguez was signed before 2006 as a minor league free agent and spent all of 2006 in AAA. He played well enough in Spring Training 2007 to earn a roster spot, but was dreadful and was demoted in late June. He then threw 50.1 innings with Colorado Springs to the tune of a stellar 1.97 ERA, but he has allowed 3 earned runs in 3.1 innings for the Rockies since being recalled on August 27th.

His replacement, for the time being, will be Dan Wheeler who pitched respectably in his last call-up (22.0 IP, 4.50 ERA) but was displaced following the acquisition of Danys Baez from Tampa Bay. He has a 2.49 ERA and 55:11 K:BB ratio in 68.2 AAA innings this season.

September 6th
9/6 vs. SD - W, 5-3

Francis Strains Forearm
September 7th, 2007
Zachary Bluth

In just the first inning of his start against the Padres last night, Jeff Francis complained of discomfort in his forearm and was removed from the game. Matt Cain replaced him and was able to go 6.1 innings, allowing just two hits and one run in the 5-3 win.

There is currently no timetable for Francis' return, but he has been placed on the 15-day DL. Francis is in the midst of a career year as he is holding onto a 14-7 record and 2.82 ERA. Michael Morgan (11-3, 2.05 ERA in AAA) will be called up to take his roster spot and may see a spot start or two, though that honor is likely to be given to Matt Cain (5.38 ERA in 80.1 innings).

September 7th to September 13th
9/7 vs. SD - L, 7-4 (12)
9/8 vs. SD - L, 5-4
9/9 vs. SD - L, 11-4
9/10 @ ARI - W, 3-2
9/11 @ ARI - L, 5-2
9/12 @ ARI - W, 11-1
9/13 @ ARI - W, 13-4

Rockies Record: 79-67 (Division: 8.0 games back; Wild Card: 2.5 games back)

sorry that I forgot, who did you have to give up to get Cain from the Giants? He's a top 100 prospect in the game, I think.

It'll be cool to see how Tulowitzki does in this game. And you're so close to the playoffs!

Some scrub named Blake Carter.

Really though, I'd already made the Owner Mode file before you posted Carter's abilities, so before I played any games I created him, signed him, and traded him to the Giants.


I was worried because we were already pretty far out and then shit the bed with a 13-15 August, but the Giants shat the bed even worse.

Los Angeles Dodgers (87-59) @ Colorado Rockies (79-67)
September 14th-16th

Game One: Odalis Perez (6-13, 4.34) vs. Chin-Hui Tsao (11-6, 3.58)

1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9| | R| H |E
0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0| | 0| 4 |1|LA
0|3|1|0|0|4|2|1|X| |11|17|0|COL

Notables:
Odalis Perez (L, 6-14) - 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 3 ER, BB, K
Chad Billingsley - 0.2 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, BB, K

Bret Nunez - Solo HR (9)
Todd Helton - 4-5, 2B, HR (35), 4 RBI, R
Joey Acaccia - 2-4, HR (31), RBI, R, BB
Mac Fraser - 3-5, HR (10), 2 RBI, 2 R
J.D. Closser - 2-5, 2 2B, 2 R
Chin-Hui Tsao (W, 12-6) - 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, BB, 4 K

Game Two: Derek Lowe (14-6, 3.42) vs. Dewon Brazelton (6-8, 4.13)

1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9| | R| H |E
4|3|0|5|0|0|0|0|0| |12|12|0|LA
0|1|0|1|0|0|0|0|0| | 2| 9 |0|COL

Notables:
Danny McKnight - 4-5, 3 R
J.D. Drew - Grand Slam in 1st (27)
Carlos Delgado - 2-4, HR (31), 5 RBI, 2 R
Terrmel Sledge -2-5, 2B, HR (19), 3 RBI, R
Derek Lowe (W, 15-6) - 5.2 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 8 K

Chris McMahon - Solo HR (3)
Dewon Brazelton (L, 6-9) - 1.2 IP, 6 H, 7 ER, BB, 2 K
Matt Cain - 7.1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 7 K

Game Three: Sean Burnett (8-8, 3.58) vs. Michael Morgan (0-0, 0.00)

1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9| |R| H|E
1|0|0|0|0|0|0|2|2| |5| 6|1|LA
0|0|0|0|1|0|0|0|0| |1|10|0|COL

Notables:
J.D. Drew - 2-run HR (28) in 8th
Terrmel Sledge - 2-run HR (20) in 9th
Sean Burnett - 6.0 IP, 9 H, ER, BB, 2 K
Chad Billingsley (W, 4-4) - 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, K

Michael Morgan - 6.0 IP, H, ER, 3 BB, 7 K
Rick Bauer (L, 5-4) - 0.2 IP, H, 2 ER, BB, 2 K
Justin Germano - 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER

Rockies Record: 80-69 (Division: 9.0 games back; Wild Card: 1.5 games back)

September 18th to September 23rd
9/18 vs. ARI - W, 1-0
9/19 vs. ARI - W, 4-1
9/20 vs. ARI - W, 8-4 (Jeff Francis off DL, Matt Cain [92.0 IP, 5.48 ERA, 66 K] demoted)
9/21 vs. STL - W, 9-4 (Rockies take Wild Card lead)
9/22 vs. STL - L, 13-6 (Rockies fall half game behind Giants)
9/23 vs. STL - W, 4-3 (Rockies tie Giants for Wild Card lead)

Helton Out for Final Stretch
September 23rd, 2007
Zachary Bluth

Disaster has struck the Mile High City.

Iron Man, All-Star, Batting Title and Gold Glove winner Todd Lynn Helton went down after swinging in the second inning of today's game against St. Louis. He walked off the field to a roaring crowd, but will not return this year. He has been diagnosed with a torn left shoulder.

It's an odd injury for a first baseman, but also less devastating than for a pitcher. The estimated time of return for Helton is about 9 months, placing his estimated return in June of 2008.

When reached for comment, Helton stated, "I feel okay, the shoulder's a little sore but I'm doing all right. I just want my guys to go out there against [Los Angeles] and take care of business... get into the playoffs."

Helton finishes the season with a batting average of .355 and just enough plate appearances to win the NL batting title, should he remain ahead of Scott Rolen (.354). He also had 35 home runs and 99 RBI to go along with a 1.083 OPS.

Pete Grossman of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox will be promoted to fill the roster spot and potentially first base duties, though Marcus Davis (.333 in 57 at-bats) is another candidate. Grossman is a switch hitter who batted .290 with 15 home runs in 138 games with AAA.

Rockies Look to Make Final Push
September 24th, 2007
Zachary Bluth

The MLB season is just 7 days from ending, and all but two divisions have been clinched (The Athletics and Dodgers, meanwhile, have respective magic numbers of 1 and 2). The Anaheim Angels, meanwhile are 7.5 games ahead of the Texas Rangers, the 5th best team in the American League, and have thus clinched playoff berth, most likely via the wild card. That leaves us with one playoff chase.

And boy, it is a good one.

Five teams remain in the hunt for the National League Wild Card, and the standings line up like this:

Colorado Rockies - 85-70
San Francisco Giants - 85-70
San Diego Padres - 84-71
Atlanta Braves - 80-75
Cincinnati Reds - 80-75

The Braves and Reds, at 5.0 games out each, are long shots. The Padres have been remarkably consistent, never truly being in contention for the division but always hanging around. The Giants who were a major league 57-33 at the All-Star break, have sputtered and nearly collapsed with a 28-37 second half record. And your hometown Rockies' have weathered a roller coaster of a season (they've alternated between winning and losing records each month) defined by fantastic offensive output, a reliable rotation, and an absolute dumpster fire of a bullpen and come out in position to clinch their second straight playoff berth for the first time in history.

The Rockies are on the road for this final stretch of games - four in Los Angeles followed by three in Houston. It'll be tough to do without Todd Helton, but Jeff Francis is back (and will make the start in game four against the Dodgers) and the Rockies are ready for action.

Joey Acaccia volunteered to move to first base

Pete Grossman volunteered to beat the heck out of Joey Acaccia

31 homeruns can't be denied along with a .300 average

It's probably going to be a combination of Holliday/Davis/dash of Grossman with Acaccia staying at third.

Dang it, Helton being out is definitely gonna hurt, even if you do manage to make the playoffs(which I'm sure you will ).

Literally our best player. Our batting rank dropped from 15th to 22nd or something, and fielding took a dive too.

Kind of funny though: both position players that got hurt for a long period of time opened up holes for created players (Agent's Grossman and PP27's Tulo). Though I guess since PP27 left I'll just treat Tulowitzki as an in-game prospect.