"We need to embrace this. This is who we are. DePodesta wants the Rockies to view playing baseball at 5,280 feet above sea level as an advantage, not a hindrance. Everything else should flow off that. He spent the past four months obsessing over ways to succeed at mile-high altitude, building out an army of pitching coaches and empowering innovation through a more robust analytics department."
"For three decades, baseball at altitude has bruised ERAs and egos. The Rockies are coming off three consecutive 100-loss seasons, the last of which saw them challenge for the lowest winning percentage in baseball history and finish with a minus-424 run-differential, the worst since the 19th century. They have reeled off three consecutive winning seasons only once, from 1995 to 1997, during their 33-year existence."
"Fair or not, we needed a change. We needed to go in a new direction. Kyle Freeland, the Rockies' longest-tenured starting pitcher, acknowledged the necessity for organizational transformation. DePodesta, 53, represents that new direction, bringing fresh perspective and ingenuity to address the franchise's persistent struggles with pitching performance at high altitude."
Paul DePodesta, who left the NFL's Cleveland Browns after a decade, became the Colorado Rockies' president of baseball operations in November. He is implementing significant organizational changes to address the franchise's struggles at high altitude. DePodesta is building an expanded pitching coaching staff to provide individualized training and strengthening the analytics department to drive innovation. His core philosophy centers on reframing the Rockies' 5,280-foot elevation as an advantage rather than a hindrance. The Rockies have endured three consecutive 100-loss seasons and historically struggle with pitching performance at altitude. DePodesta's appointment signals a new direction for the franchise, which has won consecutive seasons only once in its 33-year history.
#colorado-rockies #baseball-analytics #high-altitude-performance #organizational-leadership #pitching-development
Read at ESPN.com
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