[Quack Attack]

Rockies bloom under Tracy





(08-20) 21:05 PDT -- It has become common knowledge that all National League teams are flawed in some way, even the Phillies, with storied closer Brad Lidge on the verge of losing his job. Every club has its problems, right?

If you can detect such vulnerability in Colorado, where the Giants open a four-game series tonight, you're using a high-powered microscope. The Rockies have reached that enviable stage at which a team has speed, power, defense, leadership, situational hitting, a solid rotation and a deep, reliable bullpen. Perhaps their bullpen coach's arm is a bit sore. That could be it.

The start of the Rockies' season matched up with the preseason forecasts - an average club at best - but they didn't wait around for the unsettling residue. They fired manager Clint Hurdle in the last week of May, less than two years after Hurdle had led them into the World Series.

The results were no less startling than their autumnal hot streak in 2007. Not long after Jim Tracy took over, the Rockies went on a 17-1 run. For the most part, they haven't looked back. Tracy is a disciple of Felipe Alou, that distinguished gentleman of a few choice words, having served as Alou's bench coach for four years in Montreal during the late 1990s. The Rockies were used to the fire and bluster of Hurdle, an old-school rowdy, and suddenly they had a cerebral, mild-mannered type in charge.

"Jim is the exact opposite of Hurdle," shortstop Troy Tulowitzki told the Denver Post. "You had a guy who was very loud, very intimidating, and sometimes you didn't know what you were going to get with your lineup. Tracy is low-maintenance, very even-tempered, and he'll let you know if you aren't playing. Both ways can be very effective. But we needed the change."

"As soon as Jim stepped in," Todd Helton said, "it was like he'd been here before. It was so apparent he knew what he was doing." He had an awful lot to work with. Each of the four pitchers who will face the Giants this weekend - Aaron Cook, Jorge De La Rosa, Ubaldo Jimenez and Jason Marquis - has a double-figures win total, Marquis leading the way at 14-8. Huston Street is every bit the closer he was during his salad days in Oakland, going 32-for-33 in save opportunities and riding a streak of 24 in a row. He has all kinds of setup help, from the explosive fastballs of lefty Franklin Morales to the more conventional stylings of Rafael Betancourt, who has yet to allow a run in 12 games since being acquired from Cleveland last month.

Rest of the story here:

Rockies bloom under Tracy