Yesterday the Colorado Rockies made the Oregon junior pitcher the 20th selection in the draft, a marginal difference from three years ago when Anderson was taken as a high school senior in the 50th round, after 1,490 other players had been selected before him.

Anderson has had tremendous success in college, which is why the Rockies were elated to see him fall to them at the 20 spot. In three seasons with the Ducks, Anderson served primarily as the ace of the staff, and was twice named to the Pac-10’s first team. He finished his UO career with the school record in strikeouts (285), including a season-record 114 this season when he was 8-3 with a 2.17 earned run average.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pound Anderson was the ninth college pitcher taken in the first 20 selections, along with three high school prospects listed as pitchers. He was also the fourth pitcher from a Pac-10 team taken, and the fourth left-handed pitcher overall. You can look for Anderson to be in a Rockies uniform somewhat soon either as a back-of-the-rotation starter or a lefty specialit out of the bullpen.

Anderson may have Cliff Lee potential

Well the MLB Amatuer Draft is right around the corner and the Rockies have some decisions to make. The Rockies will pick 20th in this years draft. Here are, in my eyes, the best players that may be available:

1. Mikie Mahtook OF LSU

Mahtook is the best outfielder in the draft in my eyes and he would be a great upgrade to Seth Smith. Mikie is an outstanding prospect with power potential to all fields who thrives as the Tigers’ starting centerfielder in 2011; played in right field in 2010 after starting in center field in 2009 as a true freshman. He began the ’09 season as a reserve outfielder, but became a fixture in the LSU lineup beginning on March 25 versus Harvard. He helped lead the U.S. Collegiate National Team to the silver medal at the 2010 World University Championships in Tokyo. He also hit .271 during USA’s 19-game summer schedule with two doubles, one triple, one homer, 11 runs and 10 steals in 11 attempts.He is curently rated the No. 14 pro prospect on the 2010 Team USA squad by Baseball America magazine He was rated the No. 1 pro prospect in the 2009 Prospect League by Baseball America. His ups are that generates excellent bat speed and he is a superb runner that covers ground in the outfield with tremendous arm strength.

2. Tyler Anderson LHP Oregon
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Control is a huge issue with Rockies bullpen pitching. With one great pitch, Anderson could probably already step in as a left-handed specialist in a bullpen. His fastball is passable enough to get by with just those two pitches, which makes this his floor. However, his funky delivery and the way his arm has to play catchup to the rest of his delivery means he’s at an increased risk for injury. Anderson’s fastball velocity will limit his upside, but one thing that has to give Anderson’s supporters hope is Cliff Lee. Anderson’s control isn’t nearly as good as Lee, but that model is what’ll get him to the top of some rotation some day, if he develops

3. George Springer OF UCONN
This may be a long shot but, if he falls the Rockies would love to have him. Springer stepped right into the UConn Huskies lineup as a freshman appearing in 56 games as he hit .358 with 16 homers and driving in 57 runs. He was solid on the basepaths also swiping 12 bases in 15 attempts. The Big East Conference named him the Rookie of the Year as he was the first UConn player ever to receive the award. He was also named a Freshman All-American by Pro-Line Athletic and a Louisville Slugger.

4. C.J. Cron 1B Utah

Cron is a tremendous hitter that could be a great fit as Todd Heltons replacement. Cron certainly made his mark with the Utes. He leaves the program with school records in career batting average (.396) and RBIs (198). Last season, Cron led the nation with a slugging percentage of .803 and ranked in the top 10 in batting average (.434), doubles (26), on-base percentage (.571) and total bases (159).

5. Alex Meyer RHP Kentucky
  Alex Meyer would be an unbelievable compliment to Ubaldo Jiminez with his great stuff. Meyer has the upside scouts dream about. Meyer is a big 6-9, 220  right-hander out of the University of Kentucky. Meyer was drafted in the 20th round of the 2008 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox and he was offered 2 million dollars before elected to head to the University of Kentucky. The Red Sox realized his enormous potential, and were willing to make a 2 million dollar gamble to develop him and attempt to maximize his ability. As you would expect from his big frame, Meyers throws in the mid-90′s with his four-seam fastball with some nice late movement, but his fastball is not even his best pitch. He also features a nearly unhittable slider in the mid- to high-80′s that looks like a strike before suddenly breaking out of the zone and making hitters look bad as they flail and miss by a couple of feet with their swings.

 Yesterday, I made a post about the struggles of the Rockies and Ubaldo Jimenez. 

Ubaldo came back to pitch a four-hitter to win for the first time this season, Todd Helton homered and the Colorado Rockies defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-0 on Wednesday night, snapping a three-game losing streak.  Jimenez  struck out seven and walked none for the first time this season in his 10th start. He retired 14 in a row during one stretch.

 I obviously realize Ubaldo didn’t read my post but, he did pitch a lot better yesterday

The Colorado Rockies went from N.L Powerhouse to N.L Pushovers in a matter of a month. After their loss to the Dodgers on Tuesday, the 4-1/2 game lead they built up over the entire National League West when April ended is now a 4-1/2 game deficit with three teams ahead of  them in the standings.

After kicking off the 2011 season with a 17-8 April  good enough for the second best record in baseball  the Rockies concluded May with an 8-21 record which is dead last in baseball for the month. There is not much that has put a smile on Jim Tracy or any of the Rockies fans faces in the month.

Ace,  superstar, flamethrower, Cy Young candidate. Those were words said about the winless and possible “one-year wonder” Ubaldo Jimenez. I am a big fan of Ubaldo but his dismill performances and decreasing confidence is bringing the Rockies down. The biggest issue for Jimenez is his lack of velocity. He’s averaging 94 Miles Per Hour  with his fastball this year, down from 97 Miles Per Hour  in 2010.  Neither Apodaca nor Jimenez have a good explanation for it.

We need our ace to start shutting down teams like he did last year. No Ubaldo=No World Series thats what it comes down to.

Jason Giambi awoke from his 3-26 start yesterday in a big way. He smashed three homers and tied his career high with seven RBIs, leading the Colorado Rockies past the Phillies, 7-1, last night in Philadelphia.

Giambi was making a rare start because first baseman Todd Helton had a back issues, Giambi went deep in his first three at-bats. The 40-year-old former AL MVP entered hitting .115 this season with one home run and four RBIs.

Jhoulys Chacin was winning pitcher in Giambi’s turn-back-the-clock display. Chacin improved his record to 5-2 allowed one run and four hits, striking out a season-high nine in seven innings.

There was a scray moment in the 3^rd inning when superstar outfielder Carlos Gonzalez came up limp after fielding a bloop hit. Gonzalez was 1-for-2 with a double. The Rockies had a 5-0 lead at the time of his depature.

Following the game, Tracy said that Gonzalez’s injury was “nothing serious.”"We did the right thing to get him out of there,” Tracy said. “There’s a chance he could play Friday.” A deep sigh of relief passes through all of us as we enjoy watching the 1^st place Rockies start the season 23-19!

Another good outing by lefty Jorge De La Rosa was wasted on Wednesday Night as Millions of fan watched the Phillies defeat the Rockies by a score of 2-1 on ESPN’s Wednesday Night Baseball.

The only team in a worse hitting slump then the Rockies right now is the Phillies yet, the Phillies capitalized on a wild pitch and timely hitting by scrappy infielder Wilson Valdez.

The Rockies wasted an opportunity to tie it against Ryan Madson in the ninth after pinch-hitter Seth Smith led off with a double and the middle of the order was coming up. Madson struck out Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki swinging on offspeed pitches. He carefully pitched around Todd Helton before intentionally walking him on a 3-0 count. Madson then struck out pinch-hitter Jason Giambi for his seventh save in as many tries.

“He made some really good pitches to Tulo and me in the ninth,” Gonzalez said. “He had a good fastball and his change kept us off-balance.”

De La Rosa fell to 0-4 against the Phillies. He entered with an 11.34 ERA in four career starts against them.

“Everything was working tonight,” he said. “I’ve been working on my pitches since spring training. I have to keep pitching like that.”

ON A BRIGHTER NOTE: Aaron Cook, who has been on the disabled list all season with a broken ring finger on his throwing hand, had an impressive rehab outing for Double-A Tulsa. He threw gave up one earned run and three hits, striking out six in five innings

The Rockies activated infielder Ty Wigginton from the disabled list on Friday and optioned third baseman Ian Stewart to Triple-A Colorado Springs.

Ian Stewart was claimed to be one of the best young 3rd Basemen in the National League. Stewart hit 10 HR’s in 2008,   25 in 2009, and 18 in 2010.

“I’m just going to try to go down there and have fun,” Stewart said on Friday, shortly after learning of his demotion. “I felt pretty good. Obviously the hits weren’t there, but I felt pretty good in the box since I got back. I’m just going to go down there and try to do well like I did before and get back.”

“We are searching for offense, and he is struggling mightily offensively,” Tracy said. “For Ian Stewart to be a part-time player, that isn’t going to work. … It’s going to be a period of time until he convinces himself and we are convinced of the fact that it’s something that he has a complete handle on.”

Although Ian is now a ” Minor-leaguer”, He still has great potential since he is only 26 years old. I personally think the Rockies are missing out, I an only had 50 At-Bats in the MLB. 50! Ryan Howard, David Ortiz, and Mark Texiera have all gotten of to slow starts in their careers but were never sent down. I am not saying that the Ian(Stewart) is on the same level as those other players, but he definitely deserves a chance for redemption.

The young shortstop from Fremont High School in Sunnyvale, California, who was named an all state shortstop and a team MVP 3-times in his 4 years there, is now flexing his muscles on the biggest stage of his life: the MLB.  Being named rookie of the year in 2007 and having break-out 2008-2010 seasons has led many to believe that Troy is one of the best in the majors. Tulowitzki, often called “ Tulo “ is the centerfold in the Rockies dynamic offense. Although he is only batting .248, he has hit the most homeruns of any shortstop in the MLB and has also driven in 18 runs. The most crucial part of Troy’s game is his amazing optimism and the ability to be the leader of his team at the age of 26.

On November 29, 2010, Tulowitzki agreed to sign a six-year extension on top of the three years, with a fourth option year, remaining on his contract. The contract will keep Tulowitzki a member of the Rockies’ organization through the 2020 season. The six-year extension was worth around $120 million, making it the second-largest contract ever signed by a Rockies player (behind Todd Helton’s nine-year $141.5 million contract). This had many pessimistic fans saying this the end for his career, saying “he got the big bucks, now he’s gonna lose the big bat”. I, along with the real die-hards of Colorado know that Troy will receive at least one MVP award by the end of his career.

As play starts today the Rockies are leading the N.L. West and will be as long as number 2 is on the field for our beloved team.

The Rockies traded catcher Miguel Olivo to the Blue Jays on Thursday night for a player to be named or cash considerations.

The deal occurred just before Thursday night’s deadline for picking up Olivo’s 2011 option for $2.5 million. Olivo, 32, hit  a career.269 with 14 home runs and 58 RBIs as the Rockies’ No. 1 catcher for much of last season. The Jays then declined the option, allowing Olivo to become a free agent, and will receive a pick between the first and second rounds of the 2011 First-Year Player Draft.

The trade leaves Chris Iannetta, 27, as the lone catcher on the Rockies’ roster with significant Major League experience. Iannetta played in only 61 games last year batting a career-low .197 with 9 home runs and 20 RBI’s.

Also, there is an outside chance that Olivo could be back on the Rockies by opening day. Think about it, the Blue Jays turned down Olivo’s option for 2011 which makes him a free agent. On the open market, there is a chance Olivo might end up the best fit for the Rockies. There’s nothing to stop the team and player from reaching that conclusion.

The Rockies, like Olivo, will be looking at various options through trades and free agency. But if there’s a match, there’s no reason the Rockies can’t head into 2011 with Olivo as part of the catching plan.

Of course, the scenario of Olivo being available to the Rockies might not play out. If the Jays offer Olivo arbitration, he has the right to accept it and officially become a member of the Jays with his salary being set through the arbitration process. But that’s not expected. The Jays don’t have a role for Olivo, plus they paid his $500,000 buyout for the contract he signed with the Rockies.

The Colorado Rockies have declined their $7 million option on left-hander Jeff Francis, one of the top pitchers in franchise history.Francis led the Rockies to their only World Series appearance in 2007 when he won a then franchise record-tying 17 games.He missed 2009 after shoulder surgery and didn’t make his debut last season until May. The 29-year-old was 4-6 in 20 games.Francis was the ninth overall pick by Colorado in the 2002 amateur draft. He was 55-50 with a 4.77 ERA in his career with the Rockies.

Sources say that Francis may end up back on the Rockies if they find a more reasonable salary for the 2011 season.