Last year, the Colorado Rockies appeared to be the toast of the baseball world. Picked by many to win the NL West, the Rockies fell apart during the last two weeks of the season. It's a storyline we already know. Entering the 2011 season, the excitement is as great, but at least one person is selecting the Rockies to represent the National League in the World Series.
CBS Sports' Larry Dobrow has his early spring training power rankings out, and he has the Rockies as his No. 4 team--you know, behind the Red Sox, the Phillies and the Yankees. He praises the offensive talent and acknowledges that the Rockies have pitching behind Ubaldo Jimenez. Because of that I can forgive him for making a crack about the Coors Field effect on hitters.
The best part of his write-up is:
Prediction: I will keep picking the Rockies as my NL World Series representative until they actually deliver on their promise.
Hopefully they won't wait too long to deliver on that promise.
Around the rest of the NL West, the defending World Series champions, the Giants, check in at No. 6, with the main concern being the young pitchers' arms. The Dodgers and the Diamondbacks come in at No. 15 and No. 23, respectively. The San Diego Padres, who surprised everyone in 2010, come in right after the D'Backs at No. 24, "showing up for a sword fight armed with a butter knife," as Dobrow puts it. Ouch.