Back on June 2, I wrote an article about the Colorado Rockies then-record, but also rescored each game based on “Banana Ball” rules, inspired by the Savannah Bananas. At that time, the Rockies were 12-50
with a run differential of -181. Based on Banana Ball rules, they would’ve actually been 14-15-33 with a run differential of -65.
While we await the hire of a new general manager, I decided to run the experiment a second time to see how their final record would look. As a reminder, here are the Rules of Banana Ball:
The Methodology
As before, teams only earn one “point” per inning if they score more runs than their opponent, and only in the last inning does every run count. In theory, that should mean that teams wouldn’t really blow out their opponents like we saw many times in 2025. That proved true the first time, but would it continue to be true over 162 games instead of only 62?
Based on my original results, my hypothesis was once again this: The Rockies’ would win a few more games, but the games would be “closer.”
The exceptions also remained the same:
- If the two teams tied an inning, I gave each one point.
- If the game was tied at the end, I left it tied because that would’ve triggered Rule #11: Showdown Tiebreaker, and we don’t know how those would play out.
- If a game went to extra innings, I only took into account the first nine innings.
The New Results
If the 43-119 Colorado Rockies played by Banana Ball rules, they would be 46-28-89. So even if they lost all of their draws (46-116), they would still have won three more games under “Banana Ball” rules.
Once again, some of the results did change. Previously, three games turned from wins to losses, 14 games turned from losses to draws, and one turned from a win to a draw. Starting June 4th, four wins turned into losses, three wins turned into draws, nine losses turned into draws, and eight losses turned into wins.
Additionally, their run differential went from a record-breaking -424 to a significantly less bad -149. The only big innings they were tagged for were a seven-run ninth against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 9, a four-run ninth against the San Francisco Giants on June 10, a four-run ninth against the Washington Nationals on June 17, and an eight-run ninth against the Toronto Blue Jays on August 6.
However, they also had a few big innings of their own:
- A three-run ninth on June 12 against the Giants
- A three-run ninth on June 16 against the Nationals
- A four-run ninth on July 28 against the Guardians
- A five-run ninth on August 1 against the Pirates
- A three-run ninth on September 3 against the Giants
- A two-run ninth on September 16 against the Marlins (second run was the game-winner)
- A four-run ninth on September 18 against the Marlins (final run tied the game)
Some other observations:
- They only had one eight-game losing streak (September 7-14) instead of five.
- They had two five-game losing streaks (April 11-15 and June 6-11) and one six-gamer (August 3-9).
- They won their first back-to-back games in the doubleheader on April 20 instead of April 30 and May 1.
- Their longest win streak was four games from August 17-20, when they took three of four from the Dodgers at Coors Field.
- Their largest margin of victory was 8-1 against the Guardians on July 28 (10-1 in real life against the Braves on June 15), and their largest margin of defeat was 12-1 against the Blue Jays on August 6 (20-1 in real life in the same game).
- They never drew more than two games in a row (three times: April 4 and 5 against the Athletics, April 16 and 19 against the Dodgers and Nationals, and July 2 and 3 against the Astros). They won the next game twice, and lost the third time.
Final Thoughts
Just as before, my hypothesis was wrong, but still not horribly off base. The Rockies still only managed a handful more wins, but they cut their run differential by 2/3.
They continued to have long losing streaks, but they were shorter. Additionally, they only had two really long streaks of six or more games. All in all, the Rockies seemed to be “playing” better baseball under Banana Ball rules. They were more competitive, and I still would like to make the argument that this could be a good “mercy rule” for MLB.
What are your thoughts on Banana Ball? Were you able to see them at Coors Field? (If not, you can read Mac Wilcox’s experience here.) Will you try to see them next year? Do you think MLB could adopt a rule or two from Banana Ball? Let me know your thoughts!
Arizona Fall League
Peoria Javelinas 10, Salt River Rafters 1
It was a tough day at the yard for the Salt River Rafters, who were dismantled by the Peoria Javelinas. New Rockie Ben Shields made his AFL debut for the Rafters, allowing five runs on four hits with a walk in just 1/3 of an inning. He issued a leadoff walk to Orioles’ center fielder Enrique Bradfield Jr. (no relation), who then stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error by Angels’ catcher Juan Flores. Orioles’ catcher Ethan Anderson then doubled to score Bradfield. Mariners’ right fielder Jonny Farmelo flied out to right — the only out Shields recorded. Mariners’ second baseman Brock Rodden then hit a soft single and stole second, then Reds’ third baseman Leo Balcazar singled to score Rodden and run up the score 3-0. Reds’ first baseman Cam Collier then singled, and Shields’ night was over. But three walks and a sac fly later, and five earned runs were charged to Shields in the first inning. D-Backs’ right-hander Kyle Amendt came in to relieve him and then walked Anderson walked — the second bases-loaded walk issued by the Rafters — and finally struck out Farmelo on a foul tip to end the inning down 6-0.
On the hitting side, Charlie Condon went 1-for-3 and Braylen Wimmer went 0-for-2 with an RBI.
Rockies Potential Managerial Options Based on General Manager Hiring | Sports Illustrated
We still don’t know who the Rockies general manager will be. We’ve heard rumblings of two finalists, but there will be another question once someone is hired (one of these two or another person): who will be the manager in the dugout? One answer could be 2025 interim manager Warren Schaeffer, but it is likely that a new GM will want to bring in his own guy to helm the team. Matt Postins lays out two potential candidates for each GM finalist.
Colorado’s second biggest baseball team after the Rockies is leaving the state | 98.5 KYGO
It was announced yesterday that the Rocky Mountain Vibes — the former minor league team turned independent league team — will not return for the 2026 season in Colorado Springs. They aren’t relocating, but there’s no word in what might use the venue instead.
The Vibes were founded in 2019 when the Pioneer League turned independent, but were previously the Colorado Springs Sky Sox and served as a Triple-A affiliate of the Rockies, Brewers and Indians from 1988-2018.
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