Last night was supposed to be an exciting night for all Colorado Rockies fans. After a horrific 2023 season that featured the Rockies recording a franchise record of 103 losses, the 2024 Opening Day game for this team did not go as planned. Colorado was down 2-1 heading into the bottom of the third inning. Last year’s National League champions, the Arizona Diamondbacks, recorded multiple MLB records, as they scored 14 runs in that inning and would eventually take a 16-1 win over the Rockies. The D-Backs batted around twice in the inning, and Rockies Opening Day pitcher Kyle Freeland threw 59 pitches and gave up 10 runs. If this is a sign of things to come for this Rockies franchise, the 2024 regular season will be horrendous.
The @DBacks score 16 runs and are slitherin’ away with an #OpeningDay win! pic.twitter.com/GlqoJLWDN2
— MLB (@MLB) March 29, 2024
Takeaways from the Rockies’ Embarrassing Opening Day Loss
Kyle Freeland Must Step Up On the Mound
This start was quite possibly the worst in Kyle Freeland’s eight-year career. During the 2023 season, Freeland had 29 starts. In 12 of those starts, he gave up two runs or less. He has not pitched a shutout since May 14th, 2023, when he pitched a six-inning shutout during a 4-0 win over the Phillies. Last season, the eight-year veteran gave up seven runs on two different occasions. But last night’s performance was the most runs Freeland has given up in a single start. Colorado needed to show last night they were a much different team than a season ago.
However, this was not the case. Yes, the offense struggled a ton. Yet, Freeland let the D-Backs bat around twice in that third inning, and could not stop Arizona’s rally. The Rockies must have Freeland be more precise, accurate, and aggressive on the mound during his next start. If the eight-year pitcher can not find his composure on the mound, the Rockies will experience more blowout losses like the one they suffered last night.
The Rockies Offense Needs to Find a Rhythm Quickly
Last night, the Rockies only scattered across one run on four hits. Third baseman Ryan McMahon led the team with two hits. McMahon brought home the Rockies’ only run of the game, while also being walked twice. Colorado’s offense needs to take a big step forward during the next 161 games. The team’s most solid hitters, Ezequiel Tovar, Nolan Jones, and Kris Bryant, went a combined 0-10 at the plate. Now assuming that the Opening Day nerves are gone, the Rockies must even the series at one game apiece, or even show the Diamondbacks during their next three games of the series that they’re capable of being a completely different team than we saw last season.
Colorado Could Be the Worst Team in the NL for a Second Straight Season
After an embarrassing performance like the Rockies displayed last night, one question for baseball, especially Rockies fans is if this team will have the worst record in the National League for a second season in a row. We know this Rockies team has a ways to go before we see them return to the postseason. That should give them all the more reason to be determined and motivated not to be the worst team in Major League Baseball for a second straight season. They have the capabilities to compete in a loaded NL West division. However, if they continue to suffer these ugly losses, the confidence of the players on this Rockies team will sink dramatically.
Photo Credit: © Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
