The Numbers
	2002 record: 73-89, .451 (21st overall) Runs scored: 778, 4th in NL Runs allowed: 898, 16th in NL Run differential: -120 (25th overall) Starters' ERA: 5.24, 16th in NL Bullpen ERA: 5.14, 16th in NL Payroll (Opening Day): $56.9 million (19th overall) Attendance: 2.74 million (8th overall) 3-year record: 228-258, .469 (20th overall)

2002 in review
What went right?
The Rockies continued to play well at home. They finished with the NL's fifth-worst record, but 47 of the team's 73 wins came at Coors Field. Only five NL teams won more home games. For once, most of the team's bright spots came from the mound. Jason Jennings did the unthinkable, earning NL Rookie-of-the-Year honors despite making more than half his starts at Coors Field. Jennings' road numbers (3.35 ERA in 15 starts) suggest Colorado's farm system has finally produced a top-of-the-rotation starter.

Denny Stark, acquired from Seattle in the Jeff Cirillo trade, came within a third on an inning of becoming the first Colorado pitcher to make at least 20 starts and finish the season with an ERA less than 4.00. In the bullpen, closer Jose Jimenez enjoyed his best season, saving 41 games with a 3.56 ERA. On offense, Larry Walker (1.023) and Todd Helton (1.006) continued to tear up opposing pitching, again ranking among the top 10 in OPS.

What went wrong?
A change in philosophy continued steering the Rockies in the wrong direction. An emphasis on speed, only three NL teams attempted more stolen bases than Colorado, didn't lead to more runs. The Rockies ranked fourth in the NL in runs scored, but with 778 runs, down 145 from the previous season, were their fewest in a full season since the inaugural 1993 campaign. Adding to the misery, Colorado's young prospects failed miserably at the plate.

The keystone combination of Juan Uribe and Jose Ortiz lasted barely a month before Ortiz was farmed out to Triple-A. Uribe lasted the full season at shortstop, but hit just six home runs in 566 at-bats after hitting eight home runs in 273 at-bats the previous season. His defense was a little better. The team's shortstops combined for 16 errors in 2001, 11 fewer than Uribe committed on his own last season. And Ben Petrick, once thought to be a future cornerstone at catcher, hit just .211 in 38 games, eventually finding a new home in the outfield.

In retrospect, the critical decisions were:
1. Sticking with young pitching. The Rockies used their first-round pick in last year's draft on pitcher Jeff Francis, meaning they've used their top pick on pitching in nine of the 11 drafts in which they've participated. Last year, their patience finally paid off in the form of Jennings. A first-round pick in 1999, Jennings pitched well enough to help justify the departures of Mike Hampton and John Thomson.

	Jason Jennings Starting pitcher Colorado Rockies Profile
	2002 SEASON STATISTICS GM IP W-L BB SO ERA 32 185.1 16-8 70 127 4.52

2. Firing Buddy Bell. The third-year manager might not have been the team's biggest problem, although his teams in Detroit and Colorado finished better than fourth just once, but dumping Bell early in the season was a sign the front office recognized major changes were in order. Clint Hurdle still isn't a proven commodity, but the rookie skipper did have the Rockies playing .500 ball until a season-ending five-game losing streak.

3. Accepting that the old "Blake Street Bombers" strategy gives the Rockies the best chance of succeeding at Coors Field. What began with Bell's termination continued with a roster purge that spilled over into the offseason. Gone are Hampton (high-priced pitching), Juan Pierre, Todd Zeile (whose power never resurfaced in Colorado) and Todd Hollandsworth, replaced by proven power threats Preston Wilson, Jose Hernandez and Charles Johnson.

Looking ahead to 2003
Three key questions
1. Will the team break up the dynamic duo of Walker and Helton? Talk on the trade front appears to have cooled after Walker helped kill the deal which would have sent him to Arizona. The Rockies have a surplus of outfielders should they opt to move his salary, but it's not clear if either Gabe Kapler or Jack Cust can make it as everyday players, let alone make a dent in replacing Walker's production. As good as he still is when healthy, Walker may not make sense for a team in a rebuilding mode.

2. How soon will prospects Chin-Hui Tsao, Jason Young and Francis be ready to join the rotation? The Rockies have to hope it's soon, because the projected starting rotation isn't intimidating. Even if Denny Neagle sticks around most of the season, he was the subject of numerous offseason trade rumors, Colorado's bullpen could be far too busy. Stark's numbers were better as a reliever than as a starter, and he hardly dominated hitters, striking out 64 and walking 64 in 128 innings. Shawn Chacon has yet to post an ERA less than 4.83, either at Coors or on the road, and rookie Aaron Cook is unproven.

3. Who plays where in the infield? The Rockies couldn't resist adding Jose Hernandez for the bargain-basement price of $800,000, but they had already penciled in Uribe at shortstop and Chris Stynes at third base. Expect Hernandez to push aside Stynes, giving the Rockies the most power they've had at third base since Vinny Castilla left town. Another struggle is shaping up at second base, where Brent Butler played well last season but could be challenged by veteran Ron Belliard.

Can expect to play better
Despite finishing with the eighth-best OPS in baseball, Helton is a good bet to post better numbers in 2003. After collecting 103 extra-base hits in 2001 and 105 extra-base hits in 2001, Helton slumped to just 73 last season. And that, as much as the poor on-base percentages of the hitters at the top of Colorado's order, explains why his RBI total slipped from 146 to 109. Helton was still very good last season, but he can be better.

Stats Corner
Todd Helton (above) led the Rockies with 109 RBI, the fourth straight season he's driven in 100 or more. Mike Hampton (7-15, 6.15) finished with more walks (91) than strikeouts (74). Despite having 592 at-bats, Juan Pierre had just one home run. Jose Jimenez converted his first 15 save opportunities, during which time he compiled a 2.28 ERA.

Can expect to play worse
Jimenez lost 10 games last season, but he may have also saved the Rockies from matching a franchise low in wins. Rumored to be on the block last spring, Jimenez stuck around and doubled his career save total. Credit much of the improvement to better command: Jimenez walked just 11 batters in 73 innings last season, or 1.3 batters per nine innings. His previous career best was 3.6 walks per nine innings. He'd better maintain that newfound control, because he's unlikely to repeat a 2.90 home ERA (compared to 4.36 on the road).

Projected lineup
2B Ron Belliard
CF Preston Wilson
RF Larry Walker
1B Todd Helton
3B Jose Hernandez
LF Jay Payton
C Charles Johnson
SS Juan Uribe

Rotation
Jason Jennings
Denny Neagle
Shawn Chacon
Denny Stark
Aaron Cook

Closer
Jose Jimenez

A closer look
What's the easiest way to keep hitters from taking advantage of the thin air and spacious dimensions at Coors Field? Don't let them hit the ball. Sounds like a simple plan, but it could be a major issue for the Rockies this season.

Colorado pitchers don't strike out nearly enough hitters. Only Kansas City and Detroit's pitching staffs totaled fewer strikeouts than Colorado last season, and that's not an aberration. In their 10 years of play, the Rockies have never finished better than eighth in the NL in strikeouts, three times finishing last. There's little reason to think their prospects improve with Aaron Cook and Denny Stark essentially replacing Mike Hampton and John Thomson in the rotation. Stark fanned 130 in 151.2 innings for Triple-A Tacoma in 2001, but his strikeout rate last season in Colorado was below average. Cook's strikeout rate wasn't great at Triple-A Colorado Springs, and it didn't improve in the majors. Is there a correlation between good pitching and abundant strikeouts? Consider the relative performance of pitching staffs that led the league in runs allowed and those that led the league in strikeouts, over the last 10 seasons.

Fewest Runs Allowed
Year	Team	SO	Rank (NL)
2002	Atlanta	1,058	10
2001	Atlanta	1,039	6
2000	Atlanta	1,093	7
1999	Atlanta	1,197	2
1998	Atlanta	1,232	1
1997	Atlanta	1,196	3
1996	Atlanta	1,245	1
1995	Atlanta	1,087	1
1994	Atlanta	865	1
1993	Atlanta	1,036	4

Most Strikeouts
Year	Team	RA	Rank (NL)
2002	Chicago	759	12
2001	Chicago	701	4
2000	Arizona	754	6
1999	Houston	675	3
1998	Atlanta	581	1
1997	Los Angeles	645	2
1996	Atlanta	648	1
1995	Atlanta	540	1
1994	Atlanta	448	1
1993	Philadelphia	740	6

The first table is somewhat skewed by Atlanta's dominance. It's tough to gauge the importance of the numbers with such homogeneity of pitchers. But with exception of last year's Cubs team, buoyed by flamethrowers Kerry Wood and Mark Prior, the strikeout leaders consistently allowed among the fewest runs in baseball. The Rockies will likely never lead the league in fewest runs allowed, no matter who they have in the rotation, but placing an organizational emphasis on strikeout pitchers (i.e. not the Hamptons and Neagles of the world) might help.

Any lineup featuring Preston Wilson and Jose Hernandez, two players who have come close to Bobby Bonds' single-season strikeout record, is in danger of recording a lot of empty outs. Throw in Juan Uribe, who whiffed a staggering 120 times for a guy who hit just six home runs, and the results could be something new for the Rockies. With Uribe, the Rockies struck out 1,043 times last season. That ranked them just 11th in the NL, but the additions of Wilson and Hernandez, who combined for 328 strikeouts last season, gives the team a shot at 1,200 strikeouts, potentially enough to lead the league.

There's little doubt the new arrivals will help return the Rockies to a power-conscious offensive approach. After leading the NL in home runs four times between 1995-99, the Rockies finished 13th in 2000 and 12th in 2002. But are more home runs enough? Given their pitching, the Rockies need to not only lead the league in runs scored, something they've managed in two of the last three seasons, but do so by a considerable margin. That's what happened in 1996 and 1997, seasons in which the Rockies won a franchise-high 83 games. But the old crew of Walker, Castilla, Dante Bichette, Ellis Burks and Andres Galarraga wasn't a collection of swing-from-the-heels sluggers. In that 1995-99 span when they led the league in home runs four times, the Rockies twice finished with the fewest strikeouts in the NL and ranked above eighth just once.

Why does it matter how a team makes their outs? Many observers would argue it doesn't matter, but even if that's true in general, Coors Field might be an exception to the rule. In a venue where every ball put in play has a greater chance of falling for a hit and every plate appearance comes with a greater probability of runners on base, the number of scoring opportunities lost by not putting the ball in play must also increase. There's a good chance a lineup led by Helton, Walker, Wilson, Hernandez and Jay Payton will lead the league in runs scored. But that doesn't guarantee they'll be as productive as they need to be for Colorado to finish with a winning record.

Graham Hays is an editor for ESPN Fantasy Games.