The Grand Junction Rockies are the Rookie affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They will begin their fourth season in Grand Junction on Thursday, playing in the Pioneer League. This is where Major League Baseball dreams start.
Most of the Grand Junction Rockies are drafted in the MLB Draft by the Colorado Rockies. They are sent to Grand Junction for rookie ball while others could be sent to Single-A. It gives them a chance to start their development into possibly becoming a future player for the Colorado Rockies. This is the only Rockies minor league team in Colorado.
The Pioneer League has 8 teams including Grand Junction, the Billings Mustangs, Great Falls Voyagers, Helena Brewers, Idaho Falls Chukars, Missoula Osprey, Ogden Raptors, and Orem Owlz. Billings is the rookie team for the Cincinnati Reds. They are the defending Pioneer League champions. Great Falls represents the Chicago White Sox. Helena is affiliated with Milwaukee Brewers. Idaho Falls are the Kansas City Royals rookie team. The Diamondbacks rookie team is the Missoula Osprey. Ogden is the L.A. Dodgers and Orem is the Anaheim Angels.
Minor League teams usually travel by bus. The only time in their career they trek by plane is when they reach the Major Leagues. Pioneer League players have home stays, with host families. The schedule is 76 games with 38 home games. The league has two divisions, the North and the South. The North includes Billings, Great Falls, Helena, and Missoula. The South is made up of Grand Junction, Idaho Falls, Ogden, and Orem. Four teams make the playoffs. After 38 games which marks the half waypoint of the season, the teams who are leading the division at that point clinch the first two-playoff births. The teams who are leading at the end of the season also make the playoffs to form four. If one team leads the division the whole season, it’s the second place finisher who will receive that playoff spot. Both rounds are the best two out of three.
The Grand Junction Rockies have seen their fair share of Major League players. In 2012, Todd Helton had a rehab start. He played in two games. In the same year Jorge De La Rosa also made a stop to play for the Grand Junction Rockies. Grand Junction could see more Colorado Rockies this summer.
Several players who started in Grand Junction made it all the way to the big leagues. Scott Oberg played in Grand Junction in 2012. He had 13 saves in 15 opportunities. He is now playing for the Colorado Rockies this year where he is 2-1 with a 4.84 era. Eddie Butler appeared in the Major Leagues. He pitched in Grand Junction in 2012 and had a record of 7-1 with a 2.13 ERA. He struggled with the Colorado Rockies. Last year he went 1-1 with an ERA of 6.75. This year he is 3-6 with a 4.80 ERA.
The Grand Junction Rockies are entertaining to watch. These are young athletes learning how to play the game of professional baseball. They hope to make it into the Majors. The prices are family friendly. A ticket to the Grand Junction Rockies costs $9. They will have fireworks after every Friday night home game this season. Head out to Suplizio Field to watch the Grand Junction Rockies compete in Pioneer League action. You never know if you are watching a big league athlete of the future.
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