Offensively, not much has changed for the Rockies as far as ability is concerned. They added and subtracted a few names though. Todd Helton retired, Dexter Fowler is now in Houston and they are replaced by former all star Justin Morneau and veteran outfielder Drew Stubbs. While Morneau should be a slight upgrade from Helton, Stubbs will be a severe downgrade from Fowler. The mainstays are still there and the Rockies offense should be fine as long as Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez can stay healthy.
It seems like the Rockies are content to try to wait for the depth of their minor league system to develop before they really try to make a run in the NL West. After a sub-par season, their only real answers were essentially band aid solutions. The NL West is a tough division and the Rockies just don't strike me as a team that will compete very strongly this year. While they do have some interesting pitchers coming up through their system, they aren't ready yet and it should do little to benefit them this season.
Prediction: Hawkins will fail as closer and Rex Brothers will take over that role by June. Morneau will have a slight career revitalization, playing his home games at Coors Field, if he can stay healthy he could hit 25 homers and drive in 90. Anderson and Stubbs will likely do as they have their entire careers and prove to be unhealthy and ineffective. Even a healthy year from Tulo and CarGo won't be enough to keep the Rockies from another last place season. This will be one of the worst teams in the National League this year.
