ESPN’s Pedro Gomez takes Rockies to win first NL West crown in 2019
Mar 26, 2019, 8:24 AM | Updated: 8:24 am
If the prognostication from ESPN’s Pedro Gomez comes to fruition, the Colorado Rockies are staring at the club’s first National League West divisional crown in 2019.
Gomez told “Schlereth and Evans” on Tuesday that in his ESPN prediction for the season he had the Rockies taking the NL West this season, ending the streak of six consecutive seasons with Los Angeles Dodgers on top.
“… They have made strides the past two years, and unlike any time in franchise history,” Gomez said. “Whenever they’ve made that jump forward to make the postseason, it’s always been then a step back. Well, last year, instead, when they made the postseason two years ago, last season they made a step forward for the first time.
“And that, to me, bodes that this is a clubhouse now that believes it can win.”
Gomez said the Dodgers probably still have overall the most talent in the division, which comes with a kind of “swagger,” but the Rockies “have the talent to finally be able to win that first division title and not have to play the wild card round and just be able to move on.”
Among the keys to a successful Rockies season, however, Gomez said is the resurgence of former ace Jon Gray.
“Gray needs to make another step. If Gray is able to make another step, then this Rockies club really can be very good. Because, offensively, we know they can score runs,” Gomez said.
But Gray, and the rest of the Colorado staff, appear to be in a position to continually succeed under manager Bud Black, a former pitcher himself, pitching coach Steve Foster, and bullpen coach Darren Holmes.
“They have three pitching coaches. They do. Darren Holmes, Foster, and Buddy,” Gomez said.
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.
