Is Arenado a ‘must-sign’ for Rockies after Padres inked Machado?

Feb 25, 2019, 7:50 PM Updated: Feb 26, 2019, 12:54 am

Watch: The good, the bad and the UGLY from Broncos Preseason Game No. 2 | 11 mins

With the San Diego Padres signing Manny Machado to a 10-year, $300 million deal last week and the Los Angeles Dodgers reportedly having met with prized free agent Bryce Harper, things appear to be heating up in the National League West.

And with one star in the division already and another potentially on his way, the Colorado Rockies seem to be in the pressure cooker with regard to retaining star third baseman Nolan Arenado, said “Stokley and Zach” co-host Brandon Stokley on Monday.

“I think it’s a must-sign. It’s a must-sign, especially with what the Padres are doing,” Stokley said of the Rockies retaining Arenado.

The Padres are “all-in,” Stokley said, and have perhaps the best farm system in all of baseball. And the Dodgers will always be “ultra-aggressive.”

But “what does it signal to fans,” Stokley said, if the Rockies don’t take steps to keep Arenado, especially with the team being so “close” to a deep playoff run?

“I realize people show up down there regardless of when the team’s losing or winning. But I think, in this situation, if you let Nolan walk and then, all of a sudden, your team starts going in the wrong direction, people will stop showing up in a big way. In a big way,” Stokley said.

“Because that signals to them that you’re not willing to take that next step. You let one of the best ever to play that position walk away and you weren’t willing to spend the money to keep him? You’re not that interested in winning, well, then why should I be that interested in watching you? And paying good money?”

On Thursday, championing a similar argument, “Schlereth and Evans” co-host Mark Schlereth said he was “encouraged” about the prospects of the Rockies keeping the five-time All-Star in Colorado because of the pressure put on the team by the Padres signing Machado.

“Why wouldn’t you spend the money on a generational player that is homegrown right here in Colorado?” Schlereth said.

ESPN’s Pedro Gomez told “Schlereth and Evans” the Rockies can’t point to the Yankees or Red Sox or Dodgers as the only teams who can afford players like Machado or Arenado anymore, and he too believes the Colorado ownership group won’t let the once-in-a-generation play walk.

“I think Rockies ownership realizes we have a once in a generation-type player here who we drafted, who’s come up through our system, who’s done great things, and we need to do everything we can to keep him,” Gomez said.

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