Why the Rockies Won't Win the 2007 World Series

The Colorado Rockies may very well be the best story in baseball right now. Left for dead by most, the Rockies surged in the last two weeks of the season to force a one game playoff with the San Diego Padres for the National League Wild Card. The Rockies won the game in 13 innings when they came back from a two-run deficit against the greatest closer in the history of the game.

Would they have had it any other way?

The Rockies will be playing playoff baseball in 2007. Can they realistically win the World Series this year? The Rockies are the best story in baseball at the moment. Don't expect this story to have a happy ending. It's going to be very difficult for this team to win the World Series in 2007. Here are the reasons why they won't get the job done.

First reason why the Rockies won't win the 2007 World Series: Pitching

Pitching and the Colorado Rockies have never really been two things that went together. In 2007 the Colorado pitching staff was led by 17-game winner Jeff Francis. 17 wins is nice but Francis also had an ERA of 4.22. He is joined by Josh Fogg (10-9, 4.94 ERA) and Aaron Cook (8-7, 4.12 ERA). Needless to say the Rockies do not have a playoff pitching rotation that is going to be sending opposing teams running for the hills. If the Rockies give up five runs per playoff game, something that I think is a very realistic possibility, they won't be going very far in October.

Second reason why the Rockies won't win the 2007 World Series: Fatigue

The Rockies won 13 out of their last 14 regular season games to force a one game playoff against the Padres. They then won that game in a thirteen-inning shootout last Monday. Following that emotional game the team had to hop on a plane for a Wednesday afternoon game at Philadelphia. To imply that the Rockies are going to be fatigued emotionally and physically heading into the playoffs would be a large understatement.

Third reason why the Rockies won't win the 2007 World Series: They'll be playing on the road