EVENTS
 Sportsman of the Year
 Heisman Trophy
 Swimsuit 2001

	COLORADO ROCKIES
	2000 Spring Training Schedule
	2000 Regular Season Schedule

1999 Record: 72-90 (5th place, NL West)

1999 Payroll: $54.4 million (12th)

1999 Team Statistics (NL rank) Batting Avg. .288 (1st)         Opp. Average .301 (16th) Runs Scored 906 (2nd) ERA 5.09 (14th) Home Runs 223 (1st) Fielding Pct. .981 (8th)

1999 Recap: Jim Leyland never really fit the bill in Colorado, as his brand of baseball did not suit the core group of veteran Rockies who had been used to bashing the ball into Coors Field's enormous gaps in the outfield and playing double-digit games as often as not. Leyland was burned out on his new team by August, and the club was lost from that point on. The Rockies offense was potent as usual, setting major league records with 567 extra-base hits and 2,693 total bases for the season. But the pitching staff was typically brutal, posting a mile-high 6.01 ERA.

1999 Highlight: Brian Bohanon pitched the best game at Coors by a Rockies pitcher on Aug. 28, shutting out the Phillies 4-0 in a four-hit, 10-strikeout performance. Bohanon allowed only eight baserunners and Larry Walker's 4-for-4 effort appreciated.

1999 Lowlight: A June 24 loss to the Cubs at home by the margin of 12-10 sent the Rockies into a tailspin. Colorado entered that game with a 34-33 record, but went on a nine-game losing streak afterwards that pushed them well back in the divisional race.

Manager: Buddy Bell (first season with Colorado; 184-277 overall)

Coaches: Clint Hurdle (hitting), Marcel Lachemann (pitching), Dallas Williams (first base), Rich Donnelly (third base), Fred Kendall (bullpen), Toby Harrah (bench)

Camp Site: Hi Corbett Field, Tucson, Ariz.

Reporting Dates: Pitchers and catchers on Feb. 17; full squad on Feb. 22.

Additions RHP Rolando Arrojo, RHP Manny Aybar, RHP Stan Belinda, LHP Rigo Beltran, OF Darren Bragg, 3B Jeff Cirillo, RHP Rick Croushore, CF Tom Goodwin, OF Chris Latham, LF Jeffrey Hammonds, LHP Butch Henry, RHP Jose Jimenez, LHP Scott Karl, IF Aaron Ledesma, C Brent Mayne, C Scott Servais, RHP Julian Tavarez, RHP Billy Taylor, RHP Masato Yoshii

Subtractions: IF Kurt Abbott, LF Dante Bichette, C Henry Blanco, 3B Vinny Castilla, LHP Lariel Gonzalez, RHP Luther Hackman, LHP Bobby M. Jones, RHP Darryl Kile, RHP Curtis Leskanic, C Kirt Manwaring, LHP Roberto Ramirez, RHP Dave Veres

Spring Cleaning: The Rockies have finally overhauled the organization in their eighth year, with none of the original Rockies left from the inaugural 1993 team. New GM Dan O'Dowd came from the Cleveland Indians organization with a mission to rid the Rockies of slow, high-priced veterans, and bring in talented younger players whose strengths include speed and defense. New faces like Jeff Cirillo and Jeffrey Hammonds are players that O'Dowd identified as the types of hitters who could benefit most from playing in Coors Field -- line-drive hitters who find the gaps often and run the bases well.

The Air Up There Colorado Rockies home/road splits 1999  Home  Road  Record  39-42  33-48  Runs/game  10.8  4.1  HR  144  79  ERA  7.11  4.84

Rockies originals like Bichette and Castilla will be missed, but the fans are more interested in seeing winning baseball, after only one playoff appearance in the seven-year history of the franchise. So the "Blake Street Bombers" are officially dead, replaced by the "LoDo Contact Hitters." OK, so the nickname needs some work, but Buddy Bell has a much more fundamentally sound club to work with than Jim Leyland did last season. The roster is stocked with young pitchers who may be too naive yet to be affected by the Coors Field curse like Darryl Kile was in his two disastrous seasons (21-30, 5.86 ERA) there. RHP Pedro Astacio is coming off a career-best 17-win season, and he will front a rotation that features righties Rolando Arrojo and Masato Yoshii behind him, followed by lefties Brian Bohanon and Scott Karl. The staff should be aided by working with new pitching coach Marcel Lachemann, who is in for the toughest challenge of his career. The Rockies have upgraded their talent level, but everyone else in the NL West looks better on paper too, so finishing above the middle of the division may be a lot to ask in 2000.

Key Acquisition: Jeff Cirillo was one of the most-talked about acquisitions of the offseason, as the Rockies are going to place him in the cleanup spot between Larry Walker and Todd Helton. Cirillo doesn't have the natural power of a traditional basher that most teams like to occupy the No. 4 hole. But O'Dowd and Bell believe that he will make contact with runners on base and still manage to hit a career high total of home runs, if only because of the rarefied air in Colorado. Cirillo's career average of .307 should be no problem to match, and his career bests of 15 home runs and 88 RBIs should eclipsed this season.

The Future is Now: Derrick Gibson is on the verge of becoming the Rockies' latest version of the prospect who didn't make it. Gibson has been touted by the organization for the last five years as a star-in-waiting with 50-homer potential playing in Coors Field, but his inability to cut down his strikeout totals in the minors have stalled him as a AAA power hitter for the time being. At age 25, it isn't too late yet for Gibson, but the likelihood of him blossoming into a major league power hitter has decreased significantly based on his poor plate discipline.

Opportunity Knocks: Jeffrey Hammonds has shown flashes of brilliance his career, but he has never been given enough at-bats in a season to showcase his considerable tools. With the Rockies this year, Hammonds will be the starting left fielder from Opening Day, and his power-speed potential could produce a 25-25 year if he is able to stay off of the disabled list.

Prospects to Watch: C Ben Petrick, OF Choo Freeman, LHP Josh Kalinowski, OF Jody Gerut, OF Derrick Gibson, SS Juan Uribe

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