Will the Rockies actually lose 100 games?
After last night’s ridiculous ninth inning collapse versus the Phillies, the Colorado Rockies are on a 100 loss pace in 2012. Can they accomplish something no team has since 2009?
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On their morning show on Mile High Sports Radio, the Mile High Club, Mark Kiszla, Eric Goodman and Peter Burns have been tracking the Rockies daily progress on what the trio has dubbed the “Road to 100” losses. It’s not exactly typical for local Sports Radio personalities to root for a Denver team to lose – but the hosts realize that there isn’t really much else to hope for. At the very, least 100 losses carries a certain amount of historical significance in that it is, mercifully unusual for a team to be so unbelievably inept.
It’s almost as though one has to get “lucky” to drop that many – much like the Rockies got “lucky” last night, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in the bottom of the ninth against Philly. The Rox had a one run lead, the Phillies had two outs and nobody on base and still managed to treat their fans to a walk-off win.
An almost impossible Rockies loss was another mile marker along the Road to 100.
No team has lost 100 games in a season since the Nationals did it in 2009. Both they and the Mariners did it in 2008. Kansas City pulled it off in 2004, 2005 and in 2006 when they were joined by Tampa Bay.
There have been nineteen 100 loss seasons in Major League Baseball since 1993, the Rockies inaugural season. Most of these have been suffered by teams that are noted for their organizational incompetence – like the Tigers, the Royals, the Nationals and the Devil Rays.
The Colorado Rockies have never had a 100 loss season. The closest they have ever come was in ’93 when they dropped 95 games. They have had over 90 losses only three times.
So will this be the year?
It feels that way … but I doubt it. I feel as though these Rockies will somehow manage even to fuck that up.
After 67 games they are on pace. At their current win percentage of .373 (only the second worst in their division) they would narrowly eclipse a 100 loss season with 101.58 losses.
If you assume that things are getting worse for the Rockies rather than better – and that their win percentage will slide rather than increase – then 100 losses is a no-brainer. All it will take for them to avoid that fate, however, is a couple of small winning streaks. Just a month of .500 baseball would push their ultimate loss total down into the 90’s.
I think they will stop just short of fulfilling the Mile High Club’s dream. The Road to 100 Losses will end at 99 – one loss shy of valhala.
Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Goodman, Kiszla and Burns.
