Spilborghs: Rockies becoming destination for players who want to win

Feb 26, 2019, 8:01 PM Updated: Feb 27, 2019, 2:04 am

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Skeptics need not look any further than the views on a mid-summer night at Coors Field to understand why the Rockies might not have too tough of a sell in bringing free agents to Colorado.

On Tuesday, Rockies TV analyst Ryan Spilborghs told “The Drive” that “Colorado has always been attractive” for MLB free agents, as they love the “Colorado lifestyle.”

“You play a game at Coors Field in June, July, or August, there’s not a better atmosphere with the mountains and the downtown scenery. It’s unbelievable,” Spilborghs said. “We have literally one of the most beautiful stadiums in all of baseball.”

Walking through the Coors Field corridors after games, Spilborghs said, you’ll see the visitor’s family room “packed” because everyone wants to visit Colorado in the summer.

“They love it. It’s not a hard sell,” Spilborghs said.

But with a talented core of pitchers, youthful depth, and perhaps of the best players in the game in Nolan Arenado — who signed an eight-year, $260 million extension on Tuesday — at third base, Spilborghs said Colorado’s now a destination for players looking to win world championships.

“I think the Rockies are getting themselves into that spot of not being a destination because of the location of Colorado and the stadium but because they want to win,” Spilborghs said. “I want to win. I want to go to Colorado because I want to win.”

Spilborghs said he envisions more free agent pitchers wanting to land with the Rockies because of the recent success of Kyle Freeland, German Marquez, and Tyler Anderson.

And extending Arenado only “solidifies the Rockies in the eyes of a lot of free agents the next couple of years as a destination spot to win,” Spilborghs said.

“This place is becoming a destination where guys are not chasing the money, they’re chasing a chance to win a championship,” Spilborghs said.

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.