Rockies’ five main speedsters plan on stealing lots of bases in 2021
Story: ‘(Steals) are a big part of my game, and I think it could be a big part of our game as a team’
With speed at their disposal, the Rockies are aiming to be men of steal this summer.
The fleet-footed quintet of Trevor Story, Garrett Hampson, Sam Hilliard, Raimel Tapia and Brendan Rodgers could lead to the resurrection of a dying art form, the stolen base, in LoDo. Colorado plans to use its speed to steal more
bases and be aggressive on the basepaths.
In 2020, Stor y was the game’s four th-fastest shor tstop with a 28.9 feet/ second sprint speed on the bases, while Hampson was MLB’s fastest second baseman (29.6 ft/s) and outfielders Hilliard (29.4) and Tapia (28.2) can also burn well above the league average of 27 ft/s.
“(Steals) are a big part of my game, and I think it could be a big par t of our game as a team,” Stor y said. “We have a lot of great team speed with ‘Hampy’, Hilliard, Rodgers, Tapia. These guys can fly and we need to use that.”
Yes, steals have fallen out of trend in the major leagues thanks to the modern premium placed on conser ving outs as well as the high risk/reward associated with the stat. Even so, basestealing was one area of notable improvement for Colorado in 2020, and the team’s speed can be utilized for much more than static thefts.
The Rockies ranked seventh in the majors in steals last year with 42, and were fourth in steal percentage at 82.4%. Both marks are significant jumps from 2019 — when Colorado was 14th with 71 steals and 19th in steal percentage at 69.6% — and reflects the growing confidence of the team’s young, potent baserunners.
Stor y, who led the National League with 15 steals in the condensed 2020 schedule, racked up 50 steals across his all-star seasons in 2018 and ’19. His stated goal for 2021 is to join the 30/30 club (30 homers and 30 steals), which he was on pace for at the end of last year’s 60game season. Stor y said his approach on the bases is now on par with his speed.
“Younger in my career, I was a little more timid (to steal) and not so sure of myself,” Story said. “With experience, I got more comfor table. I saw the patterns and the (details) I was looking for that gave me more confidence in stealing bags. It’s really just a mindset — it has to be an aggressive mindset. It can’t be a timid one.”
That aggressive mindset is clearly trickling down to the team’s other four players most likely to steal. A now-healthy Rodgers (27.5 f/s) said his goal for this year is 20 stolen bases, while Tapia and Hilliard — who were both stolen base machines in the minors, where they accumulated 153 and 124 steals, respectively — still have plenty of room for growth. Hilliard has only five MLB steals to his name, and Tapia has just 25.
Hampson, like Tapia and Hilliard, isn’t yet an experienced MLB base-stealer (he has 23 in 182 games) but the utilityman had 130 steals in the minors.
As manager Bud Black explained, the Rockies plan on using their speed to press the issue in all phases of baserunning. Outside of the aforementioned quintet, first baseman Josh Fuentes also has above-grade speed at 27.7 f/s.
“They can use their legs to steal bases, to go firstto-third, and to present pressure to the opposing defense,” Black said. “Running the bases hard, and running the bases aggressively, will help us.”
But first the Rockies need to improve upon a .311 on-base percentage in 2020 that was the worst mark in franchise histor y and the second-worst in the NL behind the Pirates at .284.
“We have to get on base to be able to utilize the stolen base, the hit-and-run, the potential of a doublesteal,” Black said.
Footnotes. Black said the team is “pumped up” about Coors Field being at 42.6% capacity for opening day April 1 against the Dodgers. “I’m happy for the fans to be able to watch baseball,” Black said…. Black isn’t ready to give any indication who is ahead in the competition for the starting first base job. Black said Fuentes, C.J. Cron and Greg Bird, as well as nonroster invite Connor Joe, are still all warranting serious consideration. “I wouldn’t pigeonhole it to just one guy becoming the first baseman,” Black said. “All those guys will be looked at to make the team.”