ESPN.com - Major League Baseball - Colorado Rockies preview


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Thursday, April 5
Colorado Rockies preview

ESPN.com

POWER RANKINGS


	Mike Hampton is a clear No. 1, but what will Coors do to his numbers?

Strength of schedule
.511, 2nd in NL
Lineup ranking
8th in NL
Pitching ranking
8th in NL
Prediction
3rd in NL West

The lowdown
2000 record: 82-80 (4th in NL West)
Runs scored: 968, 1st in NL
Runs allowed: 897, 13th in NL

Three key issues for 2001
1. How will Mike Hampton and Denny Neagle adjust to pitching in Coors Field?

2. Will the bullpen -- particularly Jose Jimenez and Gabe White -- be able to repeat last year's amazing performance?

3. As always: Will the Rockies score enough runs away from Coors Field to be competitive?

Three key facts
1. Todd Helton was no doubt helped by playing at Coors Field, but he was also third in the NL with a .353 road batting average.

2. Brian Bohanon epitomized the impact playing at Coors can have on a pitcher. He went 6-5 both at home and on the road, but posted a 2.79 ERA on the road and 6.65 at home.

3. The Rockies were in first place in the NL West on July 3, but a 7-22 record that month dropped them to fourth and 8½ games behind at the beginning of August.

RETURNING 2000 STATISTICAL LEADERS

AVG	T. Helton	.372
HR	T. Helton	42
RBI	T. Helton	147
RUN	T. Helton	138
SB	T. Shumpert	8
WIN	B. Bohanon P. Astacio	12
SV	J. Jimenez	24
ERA	B. Bohanon	4.68
Complete 2000 Statistics: Batting \| Pitching

Dave Campbell's scenarios
Best case: Rockies need Walker.
When Larry is healthy, he's an MVP-type of player.

Worst case: Larry needs a Walker.
Unfortunately for Colorado, he's only been healthy for two of his six years in Denver.

ESPN.com's lineup analysis
Player	Comment	Pos. rank*
J. Pierre, CF	Burner, has less power than Eddie Gaedel	15
T. Walker, 2B	Going to Coors is best way to rescue a career	11
L. Walker, RF	Has hit .406 last five years at home, .283 on road	5
T. Helton, 1B	Was hitting .397 on Aug. 28, but hit .267 in Sept.	1
J. Cirillo, 3B	Raise your hand if you thought he'd do better	6
R. Gant, LF	Hollandsworth will play more, but won't add much more	15
B. Petrick, C	Good hitter, defense will dictate how much he plays	6
N. Perez, SS	Deserving Gold Glove winner	6
ESPN.com's pitching staff analysis
M. Hampton, LHP	Remember, has pitched in great pitcher's parks	6
P. Astacio, RHP	Road ERA past 5 years is same as Hampton (4.04)	26
D. Neagle, LHP	How many guys go 15-9 and get criticized?	33
B. Bohanon, LHP	Guess who led NL in road ERA? (2.79)	54
Middle relief	Gabe White (11-2, 2.36) had one of great relief years ever	9
J. Jimenez, CL	Sinkerballer was part of pen that went 36-20	12

	Position average (NL rank):	8.00 (8th)
	Pitching index (NL rank):	8.25 (8th)

* Position rank, compiled by ESPN.com's baseball staff, compares each NL team's strength at that position, including platoons, based on players' total projected value (offense, defense, durability) for the 2001 season.

NL position players and bullpens ranked on a 1-16 basis, with 1 being best.
NL starting pitchers ranked on 1-64 basis, with 1 being best. Cumulative rankings of starting pitchers are combined with bullpen and closer for overall pitching index, with more weight given to starters.
In both rankings, 1.00 is the best possible score, 16.00 the worst.

Click here for position-by-position NL rankings.

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