There has been much ballyhoo about the skidding start for the middle of the Colorado Rockies’ lineup. Veterans Ryan McMahon (1.017 OPS) and Charlie Blackmon (.954 OPS) have excelled thus far while youngsters Brenton Doyle and Ezequiel Tovar have held their own with two HR apiece and OPS in the high-eights.
But the expected nucleus of the lineup – Kris Bryant, Nolan Jones and Brendan Rodgers – has scuffled. Jones entered the season with the highest offensive expectations of any Rockies’ hitter but hasn’t come close to meeting those lofty standards while Bryant…has developed a lot of baggage with Colorado fans since signing in March of 2022.