Busy Monday in Colorado

The Colorado Rockies have had a busy off season, and that continued on Monday with another surprising re-signing and a new deal for a reliever they acquired last month.

The Rockies official Twitter feed reported a little after noon that the Rockies were bringing back 1B Jason Giambi on a minor league deal. Jon Heyman added that if Giambi makes the Rockies opening day roster, he'll be guaranteed $1 million.

Before people get too excited, that's a very unlikely scenario. Barring a Todd Helton injury in spring training, this is simply an insurance move and a favor to Giambi, who was nothing short of outstanding in his role as a pinch-hitter and mentor for the Rockies the past season and one month.

However, this move could benefit Colorado a little more if Giambi performs well in the spring and allows them to move him to the American League for a minor piece that helps their 2011 cause or a low-end prospect.

It's really a low risk move with absolutely zero downside. If he doesn't fit (most likely scenario) or doesn't play well, you let him walk and lose nothing.

The other reported signing, a two-year deal with reliever Matt Lindstrom with an option for 2013, has a little more risk involved. Lindstrom was acquired from Houston last month to improve the bullpen depth and give them another experienced late inning option.

The new deal covers Lindstrom's final two arbitration years, along with the option to retain him in his first free agent year.

This is obviously an attempt by the Rockies to achieve stability in their bullpen the next two years. The risk there is the possibility for chaos if one or two of these guys locked in beyond 2011 falter this season.

We'll see what happens in this particular case. Lindstrom is coming off a down year and there a number of concerns surrounding his health and his command.

Who knows, we may have more Rockies news by the end of the day. Stay tuned.

No Rockies on Sunday Night Baseball? No problem!

-- Was I surprised to see the Colorado Rockies weren't included in the initial Sunday Night Baseball scheduled released by ESPN?

Honestly, yes. They may not come from a big market, but there is finally some legitimate star power on the team that the entire country seems interested in seeing. Match them up with the Giants or Cardinals (Gonzalez vs Holliday), and I could easily see fans tuning in for that.

Was I disappointed they weren't included?

Hell. No. The more I can avoid ESPN the better!

Early ESPN Sunday Night Baseball Schedule

-- In reference to the Rockies recent signing of reliever Sean White -- in addition to their earlier trade for Jose Lopez -- I read a comment on Twitter that said the Rockies will soon acquire every player from the Seattle Mariners that their fan base hates.

That's impossible. There's not enough room in the Rockies organization to fit 90% of Seattle's 40-man roster. Seriously. That's a mess up there in Seattle. Aside from that, ever heard the phrase one team's trash is another team's treasure?

Maybe it doesn't go exactly like that, but Dan O'Dowd has made treasures out of trash before. I'm sure there's not a day that goes by where he doesn't thank the Kansas City Royals for Jorge De La Rosa. Or the Cincinnati Reds for giving up on Matt Belisle. Maybe he'll be thanking the Mariners times two in a few months.

-- The Rockies also signed Claudio Vargas to a minor league contract with an invite to spring training. You won't find a better male figure skating name than Claudio Vargas. I think I'll judge his ST outings on a corrupt points system.

-- Congratulations to Jeff Francis on landing in Kansas City with a guaranteed one-year/$2 million deal. Not a bad deal at all for him considering what he's gone through.

I read on Rotoworld right after that Francis will immediately become the Royals ace. I LOLed for a few seconds before the realization set in that that wasn't a joke. I wish him well regardless.

-- Dexter Fowler tweeted on Tuesday that he was hanging out with Andruw Jones and talking to Jones about playing outfield with the Rockies. Okie. Does this mean Dexter isn't a big fan of Ryan Spilborghs, who would likely be moved to make room for Jones if he were pegged to make the roster?

Not likely, but I honestly wouldn't mind an upgrade over Spilly as the Rockies 4.5ish outfielder. Andruw Jones, however, wouldn't be that upgrade at this stage of his career. I actually wanted Cody Ross way back in August, before he turned into Andruw Jones circa 2005 in the postseason.

That version of Jones I would gladly take... or Ross for that matter.

-- I was so happy going into the Carlos Gonzalez press conference I could have hugged a Scott Boras. Then Scott Boras started talking and wouldn't stop talking so that feeling quickly passed.

Like I said last week, though, feel free to hug a Monfort or an O'Dowd.

-- Good piece by Rox Girl over at Purple Row on the Rockies Rocky Mountain Way of doing business.

-- And finally this week, congratulations to Drew Goodman for being named the Colorado Sportscaster of the Year for the 8th time! He beat out another tough field that included... we'll get back to you on that.

In the meantime, we're awaiting word on the Montana Sportscaster of the Year.

RSR: Carlos Gonazalez New Contract Edition

A special off season Rock Solid Recap a day after Carlos Gonzalez reportedly agrees to a 7 year/$80 million contract. Includes random thoughts on things other than baseball.

-- I'm blown away by how calmly, smoothly and easily the Rockies have taken a potentially chaotic and disastrous off season and turned it into an overwhelming success. All those questions we feared we'd be asking when spring training rolled around have not only been answered, but answered with a resounding "relax, we know what the **** we're doing".

-- Is Scott Boras getting soft, or is Carlos Gonzalez proving to be another of those rare superstar athletes that can think for himself?

Knowing the answer to that question, how much more do you love and respect CarGo?

And how much quicker do you want to be rid of the Carmelo Anthony headache?

-- Here's CarGo with a Chihuahua on his lap.

-- Sorry Teboners, little Timmy is never going to own the city of Denver the way John Elway did. That has more to do with the prolonged presence of Mr. Tulowitzki and Mr. Gonzalez than it does Tebow's shortcomings as a pure NFL Quarterback, but both are factors to be sure.

-- The next time you see a Monfort in public or at the ballpark, please resist the temptation to take a running leap into their arms, but do shake his or her hand.

-- The Tulowitzki and Gonzalez contracts do not guarantee success or championships. What they do is promise relevance on a national scale - something Colorado has yet to experience in nearly two decades despite a World Series appearance - more appeal to future free agents, and a good foundation to build upon for over half a decade.

That works for me.

-- I'm talking directly to Ian Stewart right now.

How much are you worth?

How good can you be?

I'm dying to find out.

-- That aside, I really enjoy following Stewart, Dexter Fowler and Eric Young Jr. on Twitter. They all seem like really good guys and I hope all three cement themselves as Rockies in 2011 and beyond.

-- There's a girl with fangs on The Bachelor. So the answer is yes, that show can get worse.

-- Things I learned reading Bleacher Report yesterday...

Carlos Gonzalez doesn't have great speed and he isn't all that great a defender.

Apparently he's a rich man's Brad Hawpe.

-- I look at the Denver Nuggets roster and can only identify one player I believe San Antonio Spurs coach Greg Popovich would take on his team. That one guy is Aaron Afflalo. The only problem is San Antonio already has a better version of Affalo in 2nd year guard George Hill.

-- I'm still worried about Jim Tracy's ability to manage a bullpen. And by worried I mean positively frightened.

Why Franklin Morales deserves a chance

Saw the name Franklin Morales a lot on Twitter again yesterday. Not sure why. It shouldn't come as news to anyone that he's getting another opportunity to make the Rockies squad. And quite honestly, he deserves that chance.

Yeah, he was a complete train wreck last season. Got that.

The Rockies were foolish to keep running him out there time after time when it was obvious he didn't have any answers. Got that too. No one could possibly deny it.

That said, why not allow him to come to camp to see if he's figured something out? Why is that such a crime? The release Morales sentiment I often hear from fans drives me crazy. It's nonsense. Nobody seems to remember that this kid saved the Rockies ass in two different playoff seasons.

In 2007: The Rockies went 6-2 in his 8 starts. All of them coming in August and September. I'd say that was pretty important... right or wrong?

In 2009: Morales converted all 7 of his save opportunities. Each of them coming when Huston Street was injured in the month of September. He saved the Rockies ass one more time. No one could possibly deny that either.

To me that earns him at least one more chance. If he struggles and somehow clears waivers, I'd be willing to give him one more chance after that. What the heck does it hurt?

I'm not saying you hand him a roster spot in 2011 or force feed him down our throats. I'm not telling you he's going to be good again in a Rockies uniform. I'm saying he's twenty-freaking-four, he made a major impact at the big league level in the two most successful seasons the Rockies have ever had, and he did so at the age of 21 and 23. Why would you even consider pulling the plug now? That's a kid you give chances to.

Just imagine if the Cleveland Indians had pulled the plug on Cliff Lee after his dreadful 2007 season. That would have lost their opportunity to restock their minor leagues after the 2009. I'm not putting Morales on Lee's level. Please don't twist my words to say that. It's just an example of a situation where a talented guy completely lost it for a whole season but managed to recover it and became an elite player.

It happens.

A thought or two on Tebow

Don't worry, this is still a baseball blog. I just realize 90% of the readers here are Denver Broncos fans and have thoughts on Tim Tebow. 

I also have thoughts on Tim Tebow.

As does Brandon Lloyd, who was quoted as saying...

"I don't want to be a lab rat for a guy learning to play...going across the middle"

That says all you really need to know. There has to be a reason the Broncos aren't willing to run Tebow on the field, and not having the trust of his receivers would be a very valid one. I don't think Lloyd says that unless he's witnessed some serious accuracy issues with Tebow in practice.

"Oh but you have to see what you have in Tebow" you might be saying.

You don't HAVE to. It would be really nice if you could, but if the guy isn't ready, he's not ready.

It's really not as easy as it sounds to throw a young QB into the fire. Tebow has to first learn the basics of running an NFL offense against an NFL defense. Sorry, that's a huge leap from running a gimmick college offense surrounded by elite weapons against overmatched college defenses.

That's why you don't see option QBs succeed in the NFL. That's why Troy Smith is a third stringer on a bad San Francisco team. They have to learn the very basics of running an NFL offense before they can even be considered in a game. To put Tebow in there when he's not prepared just isn't realistic, smart, or even necessary.

And who knows, he may never be prepared to do it. If he doesn't show the accuracy or arm strength necessary to make the receivers or coaches comfortable, he can't play. If he can't read defenses, he can't play. Plain and simple.

I have to believe that's the reason he's not slated to start this week. Maybe I'm giving the coaches too much credit. Maybe they're all complete fools. That's not out of the realm of possibly here. Maybe they'll eventually give in and let him start at home against Houston. And maybe he'll be just fine after all.

Maybe.

Or maybe this Broncos are already admitting they spent a first round pick on a goal-line running back.

PS: The name Brady Quinn should be removed from everyone's mind immediately. He's Brett Favre without the talent. What a waste of a precious roster spot.