Big brother is watching, and helping off the field

The Rockies’ resident grinder has been hanging out with an experienced grinder. That could be a good thing as the club begins its uphill climb toward a postseason berth.

Matt Holliday is a seventime allstar, has played in 73 postseason games and has been to the World Series three times. He won a ring with the Cardinals in 2011. In 2007, he was runnerup for National League MVP, when he led the Rockies through Rocktober and into their only Fall Classic appearance.

Now, at age 38, a parttime player in the twilight of his career, Holliday is passing on what he has learned to Nolan Arenado, the allstar third baseman who’s trying to work his way out of a lateseason slump just when the Rockies need him most.

“Nolan kind of reminds me of myself in some ways,” said Holliday, who’s been friends with Arenado for years but has become a closer confidant since rejoining the Rockies a month ago. “Nolan grinds it really hard, so I wanted to talk to him. Because when I look at him now, it’s almost like looking at a younger version of myself.”

Holliday and Arenado, 27, have been sitting together on the team plane and playing cards together in the clubhouse.

“I’m trying to pass on a few things I’ve learned through the years, trying to get Nolan to enjoy it a little bit more,” Holliday said. “I’m trying to get him to enjoy the ride. I know that as competitors, we grind a little too hard sometimes.”

Indeed, Holliday has tried to impart that wisdom to several younger Rockies.

“I think we have a bunch of guys who are very, very serious about baseball, which is awesome,” Holliday said. “But I think as you get further down the line, you wish you had enjoyed it more when you were in the mid dle of it.

“That’s one thing I try to tell the guys. ‘Enjoy that playoff atmosphere, and don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Don’t try to carry the whole team.”

It’s no secret that Arenado pushes himself hard — sometimes too hard. At times, that can be counterproductive, as it has been for much of September. Arenado hit just .171 (6for35) as the Rockies went 45 on a road trip through San Francisco, Los Angeles and Arizona. Had Arenado or one of his teammates delivered more key hits in key moments, the Rockies might very well lead the National League West as the season enters its final week.

As it stands, they entered Monday night’s game vs. Philadelphia trailing the Dodgers by 1½ games in the NL West and trailing St. Louis by 1K games for the second wildcard spot.

Arenado is acutely aware that he did not deliver on the road trip.

“At times, I feel it — I think you feel it more when you’re not doing anything,” Arenado said. “I think there are times where there are guys in scoring position and I don’t get the job done, and I feel it. I feel I should have got the job done. I can’t rely on everyone else. I do rely on this team to pick me up, just as we pick each other up. But I’ve got to get the job done, like I always have.

“I feel very confident in those situations. But this game’s hard. Sometimes it doesn’t work out the way you planned it. But I’m going to continue to work hard and continue to find a way.”

Here are some facts: Arenado’s .332 career batting average with runners in scoring position ranks fourth among active bigleague players. He entered Monday’s game tied for fourth in the NL with 27 goahead RBIs this season and leads the league with 18 on the road. His 120 goahead RBIs lead the majors since 2015.

Still, Arenado is soaking up Holliday’s wisdom. He knows he’s got things to learn, and relieving some selfinduced pressure is part of his education.

“I’ve always just wanted to be a good player. That’s all I’ve wanted to do,” he said. “I’ve learned a lot about myself this year. I have a lot of room to get better, from the mental part of the game — from atbat to atbat, and the adjustments of the game.

“If anything, that gives me a little more excitement, because I’m still having a pretty darn good year. I know it feels like I’m not, but I am. I think that’s an exciting thing that gives me excitement, gives me confidence going into the offseason. But until then, I can still do something here — and in the postseason.”