In Game No. 157 of this crazy-tense baseball season, when the odds of Colorado making the playoffs can flip on a single pitch, the National League’s best manager leaned on the top railing of the dugout. Bud Black stared intently at the diamond as a Rockies pitcher tried to work his way out of a bases-loaded jam.
So I had to ask: In the heat of the action, does Black ever sneak a peek with his right eye at the giant scoreboard in right field?
“No,” replied Black, grinning mischievously. “Not at all.”
Liar, liar. Purple-pinstripped pants on fire.
“Are you kidding me?” Black said, fessing up. “I’m like this the whole game.”
By way of demonstration, Black bobbed his head to the right. Once, twice, three times.
The rhythmic twitching of Black’s neck, sneaking obsessive peeks at the board to check out-of-town scores, reminded me of the beat of a dance song from the 1990s: “What is Love” by Haddaway. You know the tune. It was the soundtrack of the classic Roxbury guys skit on “Saturday Night Live,” featuring Will Ferrell and Jim Carrey. Black could be sitting in the back seat of their car, bobbing his head to music.
On a Tuesday night when regular Colorado starting pitcher was too slow to go, Black mixed and matched arms from his bullpen, while hit a clutch three-run popup that was declared a home run when it barely cleared the left-field fence, as the Rockies beat Philadelphia 10-3
Scoreboard watching: With five games remaining on the schedule, Colorado is back in control of its destiny for a wild-card berth, edging past St. Louis, which lost 12-4 to Milwaukee.
What is love? The sweet agony of September’s final week, when stat goblins are constantly forced to recalculate who’s in and who’s out of the playoffs.
“Don’t you love it?” Black said. “It swings every day. We want this every year.”
I’ve argued the case for Rockies shortstop as most valuable player. I’m an unpaid volunteer, canvassing Cy Young voters for Colorado pitcher . But, the reality is, neither Story nor Freeland will be rewarded by my media brethren, who view baseball at 5,280 feet above sea level as blasphemy against the game’s poetry.
If the Rockies qualify for the playoffs in back-to-back seasons for the first time in franchise history, shouldn’t somebody be rewarded? Maybe itap Black. The postseason dream of this team was declared dead at least twice earlier this year. Remember when Colorado was trapped in a June swoon with a 38-42 record? Worse: After dropping a 3-2 heartbreaker to the Dodgers barely a week ago, it felt like time to drain the pool and start raking leaves.
Players win. Managers watch. Thatap my story. But I’m deviating from it, to acknowledge Black has demonstrated, time and again, that a 162-game season is way too long to ever let panic seep into the clubhouse.
“You don’t have a map from Game 1 through Game 162,” Black said. “But I think I know how to navigate.”
He insists the real heroes are , Freeland, Story and , to name a few. Problems? You mean other than reliever , the $27 million, free-agent bust so bad he can’t possibly be on the Rockies’ 25-man playoff roster? Maybe this says it all: In the heat of a playoff race, pitcher D.J. Johnson earned his first major-league victory.
Downplaying his role, Black lauds the resiliency that oozes from his roster.
Here’s the attitude the manager has instilled in this Colorado team, as described by outfielder Carlos Gonzalez: “No one has to try to be a hero. We can pass the baton, and always believe in the guy next to you. When the situation comes to you, try to take advantage. And if it doesn’t work out, you’re not going to get shot.”
Don’t worry about the swings and misses. Keep aiming for the moon.
“We didn’t have to make a big midseason trade,” said Black, subtly tweaking the Dodgers. “We didn’t have to go out and get (Manny) Machado or (Brian) Dozier.”
If the Rockies rise twice from the dead, pull this off and qualify for the playoffs, who’s your Buddy?
The National League manager of the year.
