Rockies icon Charlie Blackmon on sticking it out with Colorado
Outfielder climbing charts within the franchise
Charlie Blackmon, with his gnarly mountain-man beard, sing-along walk-up song, and Chuck Nazty hustle, has become a Rockies icon.
He’s had a remarkable career since making his debut on June 7, 2011, just shy of his 25th birthday. But he’s only been to the playoffs twice, in 2017 and ’18, and another trip to the postseason seems light years away.
The 36-year-old Blackmon has watched some of his closest friends leave Colorado for greener baseball pastures; places where winning is not just a wish, but an expectation. Nolan Arenado is in St. Louis, Trevor Story is in Boston, and D.J. LeMahieu, Blackmon’s former roommate, plays for the mighty Yankees.
How does Blackmon feel about that?
He paused for a long moment before answering.
“Baseball careers are fragile,” Blackmon said. “You just don’t know what one bad season, one injury, one change in the clubhouse — you just don’t know what that’s going to bring. There is uncertainty with that.
“So I certainly enjoy being here and really enjoy being around the people here.”
Blackmon paused for another moment before continuing.
“There are different reasons those other guys left. It doesn’t mean they didn’t like playing here. They were certainly making what they thought was the best decision at the time, and I did the same thing. I certainly don’t regret any part of that.”
But what about the Rockies’ lack of success? They’re mired in a fourth consecutive losing season and entered the weekend in last place in the National League West with a 4555 record.
“Never tell me the odds,” Blackmon said. “If I had worried about the odds, I probably wouldn’t have even played college baseball.
“So I think it would be much more fulfilling for me to be successful with the Rockies than it would be to do it somewhere else, after what I’ve been through and the commitment from both sides.
“So, I would much rather try my hardest to make the Rockies successful than to wish I had gone somewhere else and been a supplemental part of the equation. Here, I’m very much involved and have a prominent role. Any success we have here would be much more fulfilling for me.”
In 2018, Blackmon signed a six-year, $108 million contract extension that takes him through the 2023 season. He had a $21.3 million player option this season, which he exercised. He has a $10 million player option next season that could end up being worth as much as $18 million if Blackmon meets contract escalators based on plate appearances and performance.
He plans to be in Rockies purple next season.
“I don’t like to look too far ahead and I don’t like to take things for granted,” he said. “There is still a lot that could happen this year. I could get hurt, and any number of things could happen.
“But as I sit here right now, I want to play next year. I’d like to play for the Rockies.”
Blackmon, who this season accrued 10 years of major league service time, can veto any trade the Rockies might propose. Plus, the Rockies have received no inquiries about Blackmon, general manager Bill Schmidt said, despite a solid season that has him slashing .274/ .325/.478 with 16 home runs and 59 RBIs entering the weekend. After a slow start, he slashed .311/ .351/.531 with 10 home runs, nine doubles, three triples and 41 RBIs over his last 52 games, since May 2.
Blackmon, who won the 2017 National League batting title when he hit .331, has become a fan favorite and one of the best players in Rockies history. All things considered, he might rank in the top four.
Three icons are already chiseled into the Rockies’ Mount Rushmore: Potential Hall of Famer Todd Helton, Hall of Famer Larry Walker and likely Hall of Famer Nolan Arenado.
The fourth face is up for debate. Troy Tulowitzki? Dante Bichette? Matt Holliday? Carlos González? Vinny Castilla? Andres Galarraga? Trevor Story?
Or Blackmon, who continues climbing the franchise’s all-time statistical charts? On Wednesday, for example, Blackmon hit the 39th leadoff home run of his career, the ninth-most in major league history. What’s more, the homer was his 544th career extrabase hit, passing Gonzalez for the third-most in franchise history.
Blackmon entered the weekend with the most triples in franchise history (56) and ranked second in games played (1,358), career hits (1,548) and stolen bases (136). The outfielder is humbled by the company he keeps.
“It’s cool to be around those guys and in the conversations with those guys,” Blackmon said. “You’re talking about CarGo, you’re talking about Tulo. Well, you’re not going to talk about Todd, because he’s at another level with this franchise.”
Blackmon leaves it to others to debate his place in the Rockies’ pantheon.
“I’ll just say that the cool thing is that it’s nice to be around for a long time and be something of a productive player and have an important role for a long period of time,” he said. “But you have to keep it in perspective and realize that I’m not going to break Todd’s records until I’m 62.”