We’ll learn today whether the Baseball Writers Association will name Colorado Rockies manager Jim Tracy the National League Manager of the Year. Troy Renck of The Denver Post believes it’s almost a foregone conclusion given Tracy’s accomplishments this year.

He was the bench coach when former manager Clint Hurdle was fired on May 29 and the Rockies were sitting at 18-28. At the time, it seemed like another wasted year for Denver baseball, but Tracy solidified the lineup, and the team went 74-42 under his command. The turnaround was one of the best course corrections in the history of baseball, and it earned Tracy and Rockies general manager Dan O’Dowd the Sporting News’ top manager- and executive-of-the-year honors, respectively.

Renck says both men are still working out deals with the team, but both are expected to sign three-year contracts.

Meanwhile, Purple Row predicts how well many of the returning players will play this season. The projections, while somewhat confusing, point to great depth for Rockies in 2010, but lowered expectations for Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki and outfielder Carlos Gonzales, which seems surprising, considering Tulowitzki’s borderline-dominant play last season and Gonzales’ ever-increasing contribution to the team. Either way, Tulowitzki and Gonzales will be the main horses in the Rockies’ stable for years to come.

In the meantime, the team will enjoy a brand-new training facility in Scottsdale, Arizona, at the beginning of the 2011 season, MLB.com reports, noting that the Rockies and the Arizona Diamondbacks, which will share the training facility, broke ground Monday on the project. It will try to re-create the fan-player interaction that was synonymous with the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Florida.

Posted 11/18/2009 at 9:04 am by AJ Vicens
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