One has to wonder if 35-year old lefty swinging Todd Helton is near the end of the line or not. He has had back issues the last couple of seasons that have seemed to sap his power. He played in only 83 games for the Rockies last season and he was 79 for 299 (.264 avg, .779 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 7 homers and 29 RBIs. Helton has played in 1,661 games in his career with the Rockies and he has a .328 batting averaged with a 1.002 OPS. The Rockies are likely dreaming if they think he can put up numbers like that again. At least Helton is still a good defender as he only made 3 errors in 81 games for the Rockies last season.

If Helton misses a chunk of the 2009 season the Rockies can either shift Garrett Atkins to 1B and play Ian Stewart at 3B, or, they could played Joe Koshansky at 1B and leave Atkins at 3B. 26-year old lefty swinging Joe Koshansky played in 18 games for the Rockies last season and he was 8 for 38 (.211 avg, .776 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 3 homers and 8 RBIs. Koshansky only made 1 error in 11 games at 1B last season but he’s not known for his defense. He also played in 122 games in AAA-ball last season in which he was 137 for 457 (.300 avg, .980 OPS) with 90 runs scored, 31 homers and 121 RBIs. Garrett Atkins played in 61 games at 1B and he made 6 errors so he is probably the weakest defensive option for the Rockies.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: C+

28-year old lefty starting pitcher Jeff Francis will have exploratory surgery on his left shoulder soon and he’s anticipating the worst telling people close to him that he’s likely out for the season. Francis pitched in 24 games (all starts) last season for the Rockies and he was 4-10 with a 5.01 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. He has now pitched in 130 games (all starts) in his career with the Rockies and he is 51-44 with a 4.74 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. This explains why the Rockies were stockpiling starting pitchers over the winter.

The Colorado Rockies are looking solid for the 2009 season at catcher. 25-year old righty swinging Chris Iannetta took over the starting job last season and he never looked back. He played in 104 games for the Rockies last season and he was 88 for 333 (.264 avg, .895 OPS) with 50 runs scored, 18 homers and 65 RBIs. Iannetta will need to improve on defense as he only threw out 8 of 49 (16%) basestealers last season and pitchers had a 4.61 ERA throwing to him. The job looks like it will belong to Iannetta for a while now.

30-year old righty swinging Yorvit Torrealba had a bum shoulder last season and it cost him his starting job with the Rockies. He played in 70 games for the Rockies last year and he was 58 for 236 (.246 avg, .687 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 6 homers and 31 RBIs. He threw out 12 of 57 (21%) basestealers last season but Rockies’ pitchers had a 5.13 ERA with him behind the dish. It will be very hard for him to get his starting job back in 2009.

27-year old righty swinging Edwin Bellorin is back on a minor league contract and he will likely be the starter at AAA. He played in 3 games for the Rockies last season and he was 1 for 3 (.333 avg). Bellorin also played in 87 games in AAA-ball last year in which he was 98 for 335 (.293 avg, .764 OPS) with 28 runs scored, 5 homers and 65 RBIs.

31-year old righty swinging Paul Phillips was brought in as organizational depth. He played in 4 games for the White Sox last season and he was 0 for 2 (.000 avg). Phillips also played in 73 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 68 for 253 (.269 avg, .669 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 2 homers and 17 RBIs.

37-year old righty swinging Sal Fasano was all brought on board to provide depth behind the plate. He played in 15 games for the Indians last season and he was 12 for 46 (.263 avg, .688 OPS) with 5 runs scored and 6 RBIs. Fasano also played in 26 games in AAA-ball last season in which he was 16 for 83 (.193 avg, .597 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 2 homers and 9 RBIs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: C+

The Rockies have signed 33-year old lefty reliever Randy Flores to a minor league deal. Flores pitched in 43 games (0 starts) for the Cardinals last season and he was 1-0 with 1 save, a 5.26 ERA and a 2.10 WHIP. He has now pitched in 265 games (3 starts) in his major league career and he is 9-4 with 4 saves, a 4.78 ERA and a 1.61 WHIP. Flores will compete to be the second lefty out of the bullpen in 2009 for the Rockies.

The Rockies have signed 37-year old righty swinging catcher Sal Fasano to a minor league deal. He played in 15 games for the Indians last year and he was 12 for 46 (.261 avg, .688 OPS) with 5 runs scored and 6 RBIs. Fasano has now played in 427 games in his major league career and he is 245 for 1,109 (.221 avg, .687 OPS) with 136 runs scored, 47 homers and 140 RBIs. But, he has also whiffed 327 times in his career so far. This was a signing for organizational depth as Fasano will likely start the season in AAA.