While Halloween is a great day for horror movies and haunted houses, there isn’t much that’s scarier than how the Rockies have operated for the last few seasons.
It’s been 18 years since Rockies fans celebrated
Rocktober — nearly two decades since we were able to cheer the Rockies on to the World Series in one of the most magical Octobers of all time.
The Rockies haven’t played a meaningful game in October since 2018. That’s seven years since Tony Wolters hit the go-ahead RBI in the 13th inning to lift Colorado over the Cubs in the Wild Card, giving Rockies fans a chance to celebrate a postseason win.
In the seven seasons since, the Rockies have slid deeper and deeper into a losing funk of ineptitude. At least in 2026, there will be new faces, and hopefully new ideas, in the front office to provide a path forward out of this purple purgatory.
That is, unless the Rockies, with Dick Monfort as the ringleader, fail to awaken from the nightmare of doing the same thing and expecting different results. That’s led to the dystopia of 417 losses in the last four seasons, leading to a feeling of being trapped in the creepy and seemingly unescapable basement of the National League West Division.
To exit this hellscape and return to days when October isn’t a time of darkness and far, but a time of excitement and possibility, the Rockies need to start making moves and better choices. While there are lots of possibilities and directions the Rockies could pursue, the best thing Colorado can do is avoid repeating these five terrifying trends — similar to the blonde learning not to hide in the barn filled with sharp objects to escape the serial killer.
Don’t Just Stand There
You know that moment in scary movies and shows when the protagonist comes face-to-face with danger or the villain, and they just freeze? That’s what this offseason feels like so far. It’s more like the minion in Austin Powers who refuses to move out of the way of Austin Powers and his slow-moving steamroller.
That’s what it seems like the Rockies have been doing since they fired Bud Black in May. They made one choice, but then have just frozen, despite the overwhelming need to move out of their own way. It took until the season was over to fire general manager Bill Schmidt. It’s now been 33 days since the Rockies played their last game, and they still haven’t named the next GM or decided if Warren Schaeffer will remain as manager. When I wrote about their need to move faster last week, I figured we’d have an announcement by now. But no. The Rockies are the frozen minion, yelling stop but not doing anything to stop the losing.
Please, Rockies, just move. Or else, you will continue to be steamrolled.
Don’t Get Out
The time has come.
The Rockies have to cut Kris Bryant.
Yes, it’s scary to cut him as he’s owed $78 million over the next three seasons. It’s even worse to keep him on the roster.
The Rockies have already paid him $103 million to play in 170 games for a -1.6 rWAR. This is like staying in the haunted house because you don’t want to seem scared and you want to prove it’s not haunted. But it’s a haunted house, or a hypnotic “sunken place,” and you should just get out.
Schmidt’s legacy is Bryant’s contract and the most losses in franchise history. It’s time to move on from both.
If the Rockies don’t and are still telling themselves Bryant is going to miraculously heal and play DH next year, they are delusional.
Don’t Return to the Upside Down
Regardless of whether or not the Rockies actually move on from Bryant, they can’t afford to make another mistake by signing another past-their-prime former star who will never live up to a massive contract. The Rockies have shown they are willing to spend money. Unfortunately, they have also proven they don’t know how to do it well. They need to start making decisions that help in the short and long term.
While the Bryant contract is a mistake of gigantic proportions and is unlikely to be duplicated, the Rockies need to get smarter. If they don’t, it’s like working really hard and being incredibly resourceful and creative to leave a horrifying situation, only to go right back to the same place. Sure, it works in fiction, like when Eddie and Co. return to the Upside Down in Stranger Things, but in reality, it’s not as epically metal.
Don’t Make the Call
In 2025, the baseball world saw what the Rockies roster could do. It wasn’t pitch. It wasn’t hit. It wasn’t play good defense. It was lose 119 games.
The Rockies need help. They can’t just sit back and expect players to play better or find diamonds in the rough on the waiver wire. They need to call … some free agents.
Imagine a haunted hotel with guests being slimed by a ghost and the staff not knowing how to stop it. The staff has to bring in outside help to neutralize the problem. If the Rockies are the staff and the ghost is preventing them from winning, they need to bring in experts to deliver a strength the current staff doesn’t have. This could be free agents, but better than Kyle Farmer, Thairo Estrada and Orlando Arcia. It could help eliminate the problem faster than an internal fix.
Sure, it might cost some money. But if it’s done wisely and on a shorter-term basis that avoids a nine-figure salary, it could be worth the cost.
Don’t Break the Spell
Over the last few years, there have been countless reports from league sources, opposing front offices on background, former players and more who have criticized the Rockies for being insular, behind the times and out of touch with reality when it comes to their ability to find and develop talent.
As we’ve written countless times at Purple Row, it doesn’t matter if the Rockies don’t care about winning or don’t know how to win, they have to change. They need to care about fostering a winning organization and need to find a way to do it.
It’s like they went to a Halloween party, got hypnotized by witches into thinking there is nothing wrong and just kept dancing at the party.
It’s time to snap out of it. It’s time to face reality, find people who can deliver a better product, and then give them the tools and resources to do it.
The Rockies have a chance to break this nightmare of losing, but it’s going to mean learning from their mistakes and trying new things this offseason. In order for fall to look more like Rocktober and less like “The Rockies Horror Picture Show,” the Monforts have to stop making scary decisions.
Arizona Fall League
Mesa Solar Sox 6, Salt River Rafters 4
Rockies RHP prospect Jack Mahoney gave up two runs on five hits with one walk and one strikeout in four innings in Thursday’s start. When he left the game, the Rafters were up 3-2, but he ended up with a no decision as Mesa scored three runs in the eighth inning for the come-from-behind 6-4 win. Welinton Herrera pitched a scoreless ninth with two strikeouts, but Salt River (8-11) wasn’t able to rally in the bottom of the frame. Left fielder Jared Thomas (no. 8 PuRP) went 1-for-4, while third baseman Braylen Wimmer went 0-for-2 with a walk.
Twins hire Shelton, Nats plan to hire Butera (source); 3 managerial vacancies remain
Two fewer teams are looking for managers after making hires on Thursday. Washington is going in a new direction with an out-of-the-box hire. At 33, Blake Butera is the same age as Kris Bryant. Minnesota hired its former bench coach in Derek Shelton. Now only the Rockies, Padres and Braves are left. The Rockies have to hire a GM first.
Another feature on the Rockies prospects that are tearing up the AFL, but this time from Kevin Henry. Now, we all wait for the GM announcement.
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