COLORADO ROCKIES

The Official History of the Colorado Rockies | Baseball Almanac

They may not win a lot, but no one can say the Colorado Rockies have been dull. Playing a distinctive "mile high style" of baseball in a pinball machine of a ballpark, they (and their opponents) have been lighting up scoreboards - and pitchers - for almost two decades.

Those who spent years (and in some cases decades) trying to lure a major league franchise to Denver argued that their city was hungry for Major League Baseball. Their vision became realty when Denver was awarded a franchise in 1991, and their arguments vindicated two years later when the Rockies played their first game in front of more than 80,000 fans, the largest opening day crowd in baseball history.

The Rockies won that game against Montreal 11-4, the franchise's first major league win. They had lost their first two games to the Mets at Shea Stadium, 3-0 on April 5 and 6-1 on April 7, 1993.

In their first two seasons the Rockies played to more than 7.7 million fans at Mile High Stadium. They had 52 crowds exceed 60,000 and 21 times exceeded 70,000. This was not lost on Rockies ownership, which had broken ground on Coors Field in 1991. Originally designed to accommodate 43,000, they quickly redesigned the park to accommodate more than 50,000 before its 1995 opening.

The Rockies won the first game at Coors on April 26, 1995, defeating the Mets 11-9 in an example of "mile high style" of baseball. Mile high is not an exaggeration at Coors Field — the 20th row of the upper deck is exactly one mile above sea level.

The "mile high style" of baseball comes courtesy of the thin air at Denver's altitude. According to the Coors Field web site, scientific studies show a baseball hit 400 feet in New York (sea level) will travel 10 percent farther in Denver, or 440 feet. The result? A "mile high style" of baseball where runs and home runs come cheaply, punch-and-Judy hitters become sluggers, no lead is safe, and final scores sound like the teams had field goal kickers instead of batters in their lineups.

The "mile high style" broke new ground in 1999 when a record 303 homes runs were launched at Coors Field and the average score was 8-7.

The Rockies have parlayed "mile high style" baseball into seven winning seasons. They have earned three wild card appearances, their first in 1995 in only their third season. Their lone National League pennant and World Series appearance came in 2007 when they lost to Boston. Their most recent postseason appearance came in 2009.

Their short history has not prevented the Rockies from setting some impressive offensive numbers. They have had eleven batting champions and six home runs champions in their first 30 years. The franchise record for home runs in a season is jointly held by Larry Walker and Todd Helton at 49, and Andres Galarraga holds the RBI mark at 150.

"Mile high style" baseball has taken a heavy toll on the Rockies pitching staff. Many years their staff earned run average has been above 5.00. However, hard throwing right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez has shown that pitchers can succeed in Coors, with a 19-8 record and a 2.88 ERA in 2010. With a 50-36 career record, Jimenez is quickly moving up the list among Rockies all-time victory leaders.

One reason pitchers struggle in Coors is the thin air that prevents breaking pitches from having their usual bite. This has also scared away potential free agent pitching talent, and made those free agents who did sign with Colorado regret it — see Mike Hampton and Denny Neagle.

The "mile high style" may be exciting and the Rockies may wind up setting every offensive record in the books, but it exacts a great toll on pitchers and the teams' overall ability to win. It's a classic case of dying by the same sword they live by.

Baseball Almanac Top Quote

"The attitude and the belief starts in Spring Training." - Colorado Rockies Manager Don Baylor

Colorado Rockies History

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Colorado Rockies Franchise Facts

      1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020 2021 2022 2023            
Bold Seasons : Uniform Numbers Worn
      1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020 2021 2022 2023            
Bold Seasons : Box Scores Online
Rockies 100-Win Seasons
Year Record Manager
None n/a n/a
Rockies 100-Loss Seasons
Year Record Manager
2023 59-103 Bud Black
Rockies No-Hitters
Name IP Date
Ubaldo Jimenez 9.0 04-17-2010
Bold = Perfect Game
Rockies Cycle Hitters
Name Inn. Date
Dante Bichette 9.0 06-10-1998
Neifi Perez 9.0 07-25-1998
Todd Helton 9.0 06-19-1999
Mike Lansing 9.0 06-18-2000
Troy Tulowitzki 9.0 08-10-2009
Carlos Gonzalez 9.0 07-31-2010
Michael Cuddyer 9.0 08-17-2014
Nolan Arenado 9.0 06-18-2017
Charlie Blackmon 9.0 09-30-2018
Bold = Natural Cycle
Rockies Cy Young Winners
Year Name Position
None n/a n/a
Rockies MVP Winners
Year Name Position
1997 Larry Walker OF
Rockies Rookies of the Year
Year Name Position
2002 Jason Jennings P
Rockies Retired Numbers
# Name Position
17 Todd Helton 1B
33 Larry Walker RF
42 Jackie Robinson 2B
Rockies Batting Champions
Year Name #
1993 Andres Galarraga .370
1998 Larry Walker .363
1999 Larry Walker .379
2000 Todd Helton .372
2001 Larry Walker .350
2007 Matt Holliday .340
2010 Carlos Gonzalez .336
2013 Michael Cuddyer .331
2014 Justin Morneau .319
2016 DJ LeMahieu .348
2017 DJ LeMahieu .331
Rockies ERA Champions
Year Name #
None n/a n/a
Rockies Home Run Champions
Year Name #
1995 Dante Bichette 40
1996 Andres Galarraga 47
1997 Larry Walker 49
2015 Nolan Arenado 42
2016 Nolan Arenado 41
2018 Nolan Arenado 38
Rockies Strikeout Champions
Year Name #
None n/a n/a
Rockies Wild Cards
Year Record Manager
1995 77-67 Don Baylor
2007 90-73 Clint Hurdle
2009 92-70 Clint Hurdle
" " Jim Tracy
2018 91-72 Bud Black
Rockies West Division Titles
Year Record Manager
None n/a n/a
Rockies N.L. Pennants
Year Record Manager
2007 90-73 Clint Hurdle
Rockies World Championships
W.S. Opponent M.V.P.
None n/a n/a
Colorado Rockies Team Statistics Tool
Includes Hitting, Pitching & Fielding Stats
Colorado Rockies Attendance Analysis
Colorado Rockies Forums
Colorado Rockies News
Colorado Rockies Standings & Managers
Team-vs-Team Wins & Losses
Colorado Rockies Encyclopedia | Research by Baseball Almanac
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baseball almanac fast facts

On May 3, 2000, the Colorado Rockies set a team record for hits during a game with twenty-four versus the Montreal Expos.

Colorado Rockies World Series
2007 World Series

The Colorado Rockies set a team record for runs scored during an inning with eleven in the seventh inning on July 12, 1996, versus the San Diego Padres.

Did you know that on April 9, 1993, the Colorado Rockies set a team record for attendance on an Opening Day game when 80,227 fans came to see the first game ever at Mile High Stadium?