Here are the final stats for those Rockies who were on rosters at the conclusion of AFL and HWL play. First the position players:

* - Second in the league
! - First in the league
# - First in the league

The pitchers:

An aesthetic question: Do you prefer the purple highlight when your pointer goes over the table or would a different color be better?

Also, either click into the post or go to wide view for the complete table (since the tables are cut off in the narrow view).

In his latest blog entry at All Things Rockies, Troy Renck suggests a possible return to Coors for Josh Fogg:

–The Rockies have yet to express interest in free agent starter Josh Fogg. He makes a lot of sense as a late winter signing given that the team always need depth and Fogg is a great clubhouse presence.

I actually like this idea. Bringing him in to offer competition for the back end of the rotation is a good idea. With Cook, Jimenez, and Francis already the beginning and middle of the rotation and Jorge De La Rosa the likely fourth starter, Greg Smith needs to know that he isn't guaranteed that fifth spot. I want him to work during Spring Training; he can't just go out and coast through his starts. There are worse depth signings than Josh Fogg. [cough]Mark Redman[/cough] But I'm not going to be sentimental about Fogg--I was never a big fan of his when he was with the Rockies.

Also, Renck offers his view on signing Orlando Hudson:

–There’s been some chatter that the Rockies will make a play for free agent second baseman Orlando Hudson. He would fit based on his energy, personality and production. But I don’t see it. Hudson is going to command a hefty contract in years and dollars, a commitment that’s hard to see the Rockies making given their strong devotion to prospects.

Is that to mean we're going to see Chris Nelson take second base when/if he makes the majors? Because right now, there is no standout second base prospect ready to make the jump to the majors. Clint Barmes and Jeff Baker are already here; Eric Young, Jr. is becoming more of a utility player; and Ian Stewart's future is not at second base. So, if years on a contract is one reason why the Rockies won't pursue Hudson, I'd expect to see Nelson make his debut for the Rockies in a season or two.

Last week, the Chicago White Sox offered $5M to break their lease and leave Tucson. The offer was accepted yesterday. The Rockies are now looking at what to do after their lease expires in 2011.

Back when SB Nation's Driveline Mechanics went live, Rox Girl mentioned that it's probably better for a player not to be written about over there since those pieces highlight problems. Well, if anyone is holding out hope that Stephen Strasburg could fall from the top of the draft to the Rockies, take a gander at this. It might temper some thoughts about him.

Three of the four positions on the Rockies' coaching staff have been filled, though they'll all be announced at the same time. The bench coach will be:

via webzoom.freewebs.com

The bullpen coach will be:

via www.baseball-reference.com

The third base coach will be:

via www.baseball-almanac.com

The hitting coach, according to the article, has two candidates remaining: Don Baylor and Greg Colbrunn. Former bullpen coach Rick Mathews recently became a special assistant to Marc Gustafson, the Rockies' player development director.

Thomas Harding has a new mailbag up at the Official Site. One of the questions Harding answers is whether the Rockies should look into trading for the Florida Marlins' Dan Uggla. Harding doesn't think too much of it, and says the Rockies believe they have enough depth at the position with Barmes, Baker, Stewart, and possibly Chris Nelson. I'd also throw in Eric Young, Jr. as another part of possible 2009 depth at the position. But until we learn of Garrett Atkins' fate, Ian Stewart is floating around the diamond. Here he's still a possible candidate to play second base in some capacity, and straight  from the mouth of Dan O'Dowd, Ian Stewart is a "very viable" candidate to take over the Matt Holliday-vacated spot in left field.

Arizona Fall League:

The Phoeneix Desert Dogs captured the National Division title back on November 13, so the six Rockies on the roster will play for a chance to win the Arizona Fall League title once the regulate season ends on November 20.

• Shane Lindsay did not take part in the decision on November 11, but he struck out seven batters and allowed three runs in four innings.
• David Patton allowed four runs on four hits in 1/3 IP on November 10.
• Chaz Roe hasn't pitched since November 6.
• Michael McKenry went 3-for-5 with a double, a homer, and three RBI on November 10. The next day, he hit his ninth homer. Then the day after, he went 3-for-5 but did not hit a homer. Atlanta prospect Tyler Flowers, 17 homers for Myrtle Beach (Carolina League) in 2008, took the lead in AFL homers after having a three homer, seven RBI game on November 12.
• Chris Nelson hit a homer on November 11, his fourth. On November 13, he went 4-for-5 with a triple, two homers, and five RBI.
• As Rox Girl posted a few days ago, Eric Young, Jr. missed this past week of AFL action.

Hawaii Winter League:

The Hawaii Winter League concluded yesterday, as the Waikiki Beach Boys took home the championship. Giants' 2008 first round pick Buster Posey smacked a three-run homer in the seventh inning during the 5-1 victory.

The Honolulu Sharks finished second (17-18) behind Waikiki in the two-team divsion.

• Austin Chambliss allowed two runs on two hits and two walks in 1/3 IP on November 11.
• Still don't know what happened to Andy Graham after his October 24 appearance.
• On November 11, Connor Graham struck out eight and walked three in four innings. He allowed no runs.
• Lars Davis had five hits in his last nine at-bats (that's over three games). On November 15, he hit his first homer, a solo shot, in HWL action.
• Darin Holcomb finished the HWL hitting .163/.291/.239.
• Mike Mitchell did nothing of in the final week of HWL play.

"On The Periphery" will look at the news around the majors. We start with yesterday's trade between the New York Yankees and the Chicago White Sox.

The major players involved were:

Nick Swisher

#0 / First Base / New York Yankees

Height: 6-0

Weight: 215

Bats: B

Throws: L

Born: Nov 25, 1980

and

Wilson Betemit

#0 / Short Stop / Chicago White Sox

Height: 6-3

Weight: 230

Bats: B

Throws: R

Born: Nov 02, 1981

Also heading to Chicago were RHPs Jeff Marquez and Jhonny Nunez. RHP Kaneoka Teixeira was sent to New York with Swisher.

Swisher's stay with the White Sox lasted only a year after being traded back in January by the Oakland Athletics. The A's received left-handed pitcher Gio Gonzalez, righty Fautino De Los Santos, and outfielder Ryan Sweeney. Both Gonzalez and Sweeney played for the A's in 2008 (Gonzalez for the last two months and Sweeney spending the entire year with the A's). De Los Santos had Tommy John surgery back in May.

The White Sox, however, could not get a return similar to that. But then, maybe the White Sox don't believe 2008 was an aberration for Swisher. His BA and SLG were career lows and his OBP was the second worst of his career. Still, he knocked 24 balls out of the park. Swisher's a .244 career hitter with this past season included, but if he can get back to the mid-.250s or low-.260s, the Yankees surely get an even better deal.

Swisher offers versatility for the Yankees, as he can play all the outfield positions and first base. But the Yankees likely won't have him penciled in for much, or any, time in center field, where he played 70 games for the White Sox in 2008. Though if the they do want Mark Teixeira, the Yankees could easily push Swisher off first base and into the outfield.

As for the White Sox, Wilson Betemit will compete with Josh Fields for the starting job at third base.

Marquez and the other guys swapped in the deal are nothing to get excited about. They're all likely to reach the potential of an adequate middle reliever.

This looks to be a poor trade on the part of the White Sox. The Yankees received a guy who is in his prime years, has power, and is looking to rebound from a disappointing 2008 campaign. The White Sox took back a piece of the Yankees' detritus and had to throw in a minor league reliever to get the deal done.

South Side Sox says there have been whispers that Swisher wasn't well-liked in the clubhouse. Still. . . .

Somehow I neglected to give out the Purple Row Batter of the Year Award. But first a recap:

Back in September, we voted on the Rockies' reliever of the year. The three candidates were Taylor Buchholz, Brian Fuentes,and Jason Grilli. Taylor Buchholz won the award, garnering 74 of the 151 votes cast.

A week later, Aaron Cook took home Purple Row's Starter of the Year Award. He was a shining light in an otherwise abysmal pit of despair.

In the middle of October, Ian Stewart won the non-existent hardware for Purple Row's Rookie of the Year Award.

At the end of October, we had a close vote for the game of the year. Of the 98 votes cast, 54 of them went to the July 4 comeback win against the Marlins.

Now we turn to the Batter of the Year Award. The winner is:

via i2.cdn.turner.com

Join me after the jump as we look at Matt Holliday's 2008 season.

Continue reading this post »

Because this has moved David's examination of the trade down a bit, click here to go there and continue the discussion.

via mlb.mlb.com

His slide on 1 October 2007 will forever be the most cherished memory Rockies fans have of Matt Holliday. As Dave Krieger puts it (in his piece on why Holliday was traded):

He became an indelible part of our collective memory late on the night of Oct. 1, 2007, bloodying his chin while sliding across home plate (or not) to put the Rockies into the postseason.

Now Rockies fans won't be lucky enough to watch Matt Holliday take left field in Coors Field. But to Mark Kiszla (predictably):

Slugger Matt Holliday was the lucky one.

He took his bat and got out of town.

With a .319 career average, Holliday has departed in a trade to Oakland. He waved goodbye with customary quiet grace, despite being trashed by ownership in his final weeks as a member of the Rockies.

For a franchise that prides itself on high character and a low payroll, the Rockies again proved in this deal it is far easier to be cheap than classy.

Matt Holliday had this to say:

"I can't tell you how much I appreciated how me and my family were treated in Denver by the fan and the people behind the scenes in the organization. They were so important. And that's the saddest thing."

Garrett Atkins is sad to see his friend go, but thinks this might be a positive for his chances to stay with the Rockies:

"I don't know if it means I am next," Atkins said. "I think they might want to keep me more now. At least that is what I am hoping."

And today is Veterans Day, or Remembrance Day and Armistice Day elsewhere. Take a moment to thank all those who have served.