Another One Bites the Dust

How The Rockies Blew It

By Howard Rothman, 9-20-05

It may not be earth shattering in the overall scheme of things, but as another September draws to a close it's depressing to -- once again -- see the Colorado Rockies at the bottom of the baseball barrel. Having grown up a huge fan of the game, and being the author of a 1994 book that described how the most eagerly awaited new sports franchise of its time opened with a record-setting bang, it's particularly sad to see this year's closing home games witnessed by so many empty seats. Just a few seasons ago fans from throughout the Rocky Mountain West clamored for a scarce unused ticket, knew the names and stats of everyone on the squad, and fervently believed their team had a realistic chance to compete for a playoff berth. Now, even ardent baseball fans lose interest long before the midpoint of another disappointing season. What happened? And what can be done to correct it?

I believe the Rockies have lost the heart of the Rockies because (a) management took fans for granted from Day One, and (b) now has neither the resources nor the vision to turn things around. Here are 5 suggestions for righting this sinking ship:

1) Require players be part of this community. There was a time when Rockies were seen everywhere in Denver and surrounding communities, and people got to know and like them. Many lived here year-round and most took part in numerous charitable events. In recent years the team's revolving door has prevented this interaction and the team has suffered for it. Get a mandatory involvement program underway, right away.

2) Start promoting the Rockies, not the visitors. Players and management express consternation when there are more fans cheering for the opposition than the home team. But what do they expect when for years they've hyped the upcoming schedule by focusing on the visitors? When you shout, Come out and see the Cubs, or the Cardinals, or the Yankees, don't be surprised when people do -- and cheer loudly for them.

3) Donate unused tickets to worthy organizations. There are more than 30,000 empty seats at many home games these days. Instead of letting them sit unused, why not offer hundreds of them for free (or at greatly reduced prices) to organizations like the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Denver, local youth teams, or other groups? Besides filling Coors Field and amping the atmosphere, this could build a whole new generation of fans that will happily pony up for tickets on their own in the future.

4) Lower ticket, parking and concession prices dramatically. Doesn't management realize all of these are more than a tad high for a team that is 27 games under .500 and 14 behind the leader in baseball's most pathetic division? I know the owners argue that they need the income to build a team for the future, but it ain't happening when just 18,000 pay for the privilege. A few years ago I bought 4 tickets for 8 to 10 games a season; this year I went once (and only then because the tickets were given to me). If I didn't have to shell out so much to take my family to a game, I would indeed take them more often.

5) Find new ownership that can get the job done. None of these ideas may be particularly novel, but they (and others equally worthy) have been ignored by ownership as fans throughout the region increasingly ignore the team. Those who were here from the team's inception remember how difficult it was to find local owners with deep enough pockets to fund the franchise long-term. As I said earlier this management group has neither the money nor the imagination to reverse the team's long slide. My advice: sell it and let someone else (like Avalanche/Nuggets owner Stan Kroenke) show you how it’s done.

When I was researching my book All That Once Was Good in the early '90s, I was astounded to find fans as far away as Whitefish, Montana, and Santa Fe, New Mexico, expressing genuine enthusiasm for a team that did not yet exist. Today, it's hard to find that same feeling in even the sports bars around Coors Field when the Rockies are playing. Denver is widely acknowledged as one of America's great sports communities. Imagine how great it would be if a great baseball team were here to entertain us.

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