Columnist Mark Kiszla answered your questions in a Lunch Special live chat on Monday. Here are the highlights:
With the MLB trade deadline coming up, what do you see the Rockies doing? We really need to shore up that bullpen…
Kiszla: Let’s start with the Rockies. And let’s give credit to Trevor Story, Nolan Arenado, Kyle Freeland, Bud Black and everyone on the roster for refusing to let that June swoon ruin the season. I’ve believed since early this month that general manager Jeff Bridich has no choice except to be a buyer at the trade deadline, because this could be the last best chance to get Arenado to the playoffs and have any chance to convince him Colorado is the place he wants to play long term. The recent winning streak only reinforced that opinion. And, as my colleague Patrick Saunders has been preaching, the main place the Rockies need help is in the seventh inning. So a reliever has to be on Bridich’s radar. The challenge? Every team in the playoff race could use a reliever. The shopping will be more intense than the line outside your favorite store on the morning of black Friday.
What’s your prediction for the Broncos record at this moment?
Kiszla: The Broncos have a whole lotta work to do and a whole lot to prove in training camp. So I’m excited to watch and report on how it all plays out, from Case Keenum to the impact of the rookies and if Vance Joseph can show signs this coaching staff is competent. It would be foolish to make a prediction until I see how some of that works out. Improving 3 games from 5-11 would be significant. Even with my weak math skills, I figure being a mediocre football team would be a significant improvement. And mediocre generally keeps you in the NFL playoff race well into December. So advancement to mediocrity is the first step for the Broncos to take. Can they take that step? I’m not certain at this point.
Hey Kiz, so who’s going to emerge as the third receiving option for the Broncos? I’ve heard good things about Courtland Sutton, but what about Jake Butt?
Kiszla: Jake Butt is great dude. Easy to root for. If he becomes the No. 3 target, Butt will become one of the most popular players on the team in this town. Will it happen? Maybe, maybe not. The more interesting answer to your question, however: Emmanuel Sanders might emerge as the third option. That would mean Courtland Sutton emerges as no worse than the second option. And for Broncomaniacs dreaming of a return to the playoffs, that’s the best dream to dream on the eve of training camp.
OK, Kiz. What’s your bold prediction for the Buffs’ football team? Do they make it back to a bowl game?
Kiszla: Never go bold on July 23. I’m stubborn that way with predictions. But if the Buffs are bowl eligible, that’s a good year. And if it’s not a good year, Mike MacIntyre will be squirming on a hot seat.
Are there any leading indicators you are watching for with Vance Joseph to judge his ability to be a successful head coach?
Kiszla: Now there’s a great question. Big kudos. Vance Joseph was not ready to move from defensive coordinator to head coach a year ago. And that’s not a criticism of him. If anything, it’s a criticism of John Elway for hiring Joseph. It’s a big jump from coordinator to head coach. And I thought Joseph stumbled in many predictable ways. Are they correctable? Yes. But he needs a good start or the players will start tuning him out, not out of disrespect, but because many at Dove Valley Headquarters will be more preoccupied with their own future job security. A year ago, I thought Joseph confused being a players’ coach with being the players’ friend. He worked too hard at earning trust without demanding respect. That’s all a simplification, I know. But enough with the T-shirts. I would like to see if Joseph has earned enough trust that he can demand more from Von Miller and Demaryius Thomas, chewing on them a little if necessary, with his star players responding positively instead of a whatevs shrug of the shoulders.
Just read Colorado Rockies have been scouting Kevin Gausman and Dylan Bundy, but are also looking at starting pitchers. What do you hear?
Kiszla: Kevin Gausman is a Colorado native. Pitched for Grandview, if I recall correctly (somebody please correct me if my memory fails). The Rockies have shown interest in him in the past. He has started 19 games for the Orioles this season. Dylan Bundy has also started 19 times for Baltimore in 2018. So they’re both starting pitchers by trade. The Orioles figure to be sellers. Here’s what I want to know: Could Bud Black’s long relationship with San Diego be of any benefit to prying an arm from the Padres, despite them residing in the same division as the Rockies? Kirby Yates, perhaps? Just throwing it out there.
OK, I get that it’s going to be the Warriors and then the rest of the NBA, but what’s your analysis on the Nuggets? They’ve done more than enough to get back to the playoffs. Can they make a little run?
Kiszla: If you can promise me Isaiah Thomas will be healthy, I’ll promise you the Nuggets will win at least 50 and be in position to avoid the Warriors in the first round on the playoffs. But there’s no guarantee Thomas will be healthy, which is how Denver got him at a bargain basement price. It was very much a worthy gamble. So I applaud Tim Connelly and the gang for making the wager. But I saw local cheerleading disguised as analysis giving the Nuggets kudos for bribing teams into taking Wilson Chandler and Kenneth Faried off their hands. That wasn’t good roster management. At best, it was obvious, belated admission of roster mismanagement.
Say it ain’t so, Kiz. Tim Tebow has a broken hand. Is this the end of the Tebow-MLB experiment?
Kiszla: Dang. I feel badly for Tim Tebow. Really do. Here’s why. I visited with Tebow last summer, in hours prior to his promotion to AA, at a ballpark in Columbia, South Carolina. He showed me his hands. They were a gnarly mess, from taking batting practice until those hands literally bled. Say what you want about Tebow. But nobody dreams bigger or chases those dreams harder than Tebow does. Would’ve I paid to take some cuts with the New York Mets, even if he struck out. Yes. So is the dream over because of the broken hamate bone? Or is it deferred? He’s thinking that Tebow will be highly reluctant to quit on his major-league dream, unless the Mets tell him to take his bat and go home forever.
Should punters be allowed to have celebratory dances? Asking for a friend.
Kiszla: Yes. Absolutely yes. Marquette King should be allowed to dance. With one proviso: Only if he lets Von Miller lead.
What do you think about the Rapids getting Kellyn Acosta?
Kiszla: Hate to see Dom go. He’s good people. But landing Kellyn Acosta is one of few good pieces of news for Rapids in a bleak season. Acosta is what? 22, maybe 23 years old? He’s a player on the rise. The Rapids paid a steep price for him. But there’s nowhere to go but up for Colorado.
Congrats on 35 years at the Post! Over that time, who are your favorite athletes and coaches you’ve covered?
Kiszla: It will be 35 years in September. So no counting chickens and all that. But thanks. Faves, to list just a few: Fat Lever, Patrick Roy, Carlos Gonzalez, Shannon Sharpe, Sonny Lubick …
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