Anyone who knew Curtis Leskanic when he pitched for the Rockies would think it was a normal day for him to be up to his neck in alligators.
But the most mischievous member of the 1995 pitching staff has made progress. Now, when he’s contacted at his Florida home, he says the alligators all are in the backyard.
And really it’s just a baby alligator in a pond on a nearby golf course.
But being an extrovert wasn’t the most important quality Leskanic brought to the young Rockies franchise as it reached the postseason in 1995 in just its third season. The hard-throwing right-hander came to the Rockies in the expansion draft from the Minnesota Twins in late 1992.
After two lackluster years in the Colorado organization, Leskanic was 6-3 with 10 saves in 98 innings in 1995, with 107 strikeouts and 33 walks.
“Our bullpen pitched a lot of innings that year,” Leskanic said. “I just remember being exhausted as the season ended. I was worn out and I’m not speaking for myself but for the whole bullpen. Mentally and physically, I was done.”
But the postseason was rejuvenating.
“I was ecstatic about the whole postseason thing,” Leskanic said. “It was fascinating, and I was just soaking everything up. … I was a young player, and I thought that going to the postseason was going to happen again and again. But for some, the next time never comes.”
Leskanic pitched in three games, going 0-1 and allowing two runs in three innings. The Braves won the series 3-1 on their way to the World Series title.
After leaving the Rockies, his baseball path took him to Milwaukee, Kansas City and on to Boston, where he won a World Series ring in 2004.
What to do with the Rockies in their first World Series, and it’s against the Red Sox?
His wife, Susan, is rooting for the Rockies, but his son, Brandon, is pulling for the Red Sox. That leaves Leskanic as referee.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
