Kyle Freeland is your Rockies archery champ after Darren Holmes missed at the end
— Nick Groke (@nickgroke)
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Spring training can drag to the finish, let’s be honest. It is possible to overdose on baseball. So the Rockies on Sunday whipped up another competition. An archery contest.
Outside the Colorado clubhouse at Salt River Fields, as the sun rose, a four-man tournament pitted second baseman DJ LeMahieu, catcher Tom Murphy, pitcher Kyle Freeland and bullpen coach Darren Holmes in a multi-round skill test to shoot standing dummy animal targets.
They sat at progressive distances, starting with a coyote at about 20 yards, stepping back to a bear, then a deer, then finally to a boar at about 60 yards.
Wagering ran heavy in the week before the contest. Holmes, an avid hunter, was the even-odds favorite. Murphy sat at 3-2. Freeland and LeMahieu were long-shots.
“Some of us came out here every few days, to get our sights locked in,” Freeland said.
Four attempts per round. Holmes took an early lead, tagging the coyote in the center-circle chops. Murphy shot steady, but he had only one arrow and Dustin Garneau had to shag it after each shot. The Rockies’ offices emptied. Owner Dick Monfort joined the crowd, then general manager Jeff Bridich. Clubbies, cooks, minor-league coaches.
Holmes held his lead. But the boar, at the farthest distance, allowed for a comeback. The potential point total in the final round provided a jackpot. Murphy whizzed a miss. LeMahieu connect on an outer rim. Freeland, though, hit three near-center targets for a massive rally. Holmes couldn’t hold him off. And Freeland, the pitcher, appropriately, proved the winner.
“Three Hail Mary’s with the boar at the end brought him back,” manager Bud Black said.
It was vs. vs. vs. Tom Murphy, shooting at targets placed at varying distances. 🏹🌵⚾️
— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies)
