As a lifelong, tortured Rockies fan this has to be our happiest moment since winning the NL pennant in 2007, right? The image of Todd Helton raising his fists to the sky after the final out in game 4 of the NLCS is seared in my brain and, I’m sure with other Rockies fans, is my favorite baseball moment of all time.
The Retirement
I was fortunate enough to go to Rockies games throughout my life and have many Todd Helton memories, but one of my favorites was a game he didn’t even play in. I umpired for an adult softball league (10/10 don’t recommend) and was gifted tickets to behind home plate for the Reds@Rockies baseball game on August 16, 2014. Fortunately–though unfortunate at the time– when we got to the game, there was a water line break that postponed the game until the next day which happened to be the day Todd Helton’s number was retired at Coors Field. My buddies and I got cheap rooftop tickets and stayed with some friends to catch the doubleheader the next day not knowing it would be the greatest day of baseball in our lives.
The Walk-off
The ceremony was incredible and brought a tear to this young man’s eye, but the baseball that ensued was vintage Coors Field. Down 9-5 in the bottom of the 9th and facing Aroldis Chapman, who was routinely hitting triple digit fastballs at the time, the Rockies needed a miracle to pull off a comeback. Enter Rally Guy. I had been to many Rockies games prior to this one and had never seen “Rally Guy”, but I had seen him at every game since. I could’ve swore when I came back for a game in 2018 “Rally Guy” made an appearance when Charlie Blackmon hit a walk-off homerun to beat the Phillies. If you’ve never seen him, he’s the quintessential Denver bro with longer hair, stylish sunglasses and an affinity for craft beer because he had about 10 cans stacked in front of him. He was the in-stadium cameraman’s prized possession and kept him on the jumbotron for (spoiler alert) both rallies that day as he danced, sang and drank his way to victory.
Back to the 9-5 game, the Rockies managed to load the bases on Chapman, we walked in a run and scored on a sac fly the next at bat before Drew Stubbs stepped to the plate with 2 outs and 2 on. We were starting our walk from the rooftop to the exit of the stadium when Stubbie hit a tater over the fence in left center. We were able to watch the mobbing at home plate, but were forced to leave the stadium before coming back for the night game. Not a chance it could top the first game, right?
The Cycle
This was the rescheduled game, so we got to sit behind home plate for the second game of the doubleheader. A year after a 27 game hitting streak Michael Cuddyer was on the 60 day disabled list during the 2014 season, but returned for the doubleheader that day. After falling behind 1-0 in the top of the first, the Rockies had a few hard hit balls including a triple from Michael Cuddyer. After watching a rally earlier in the game, your boy already believed in miracles.
However, after a strikeout in the 3rd, my optimism for a Cuddy cycle waned as the Rockies fell behind 4-1 in the top of the 6th. My baseball math knew we needed to make some magic happen in order to give our guy Cuddy the best shot at the cycle. Luckily he was the first at bat and hit a bomb into the atrium in left field. We’re halfway to a cycle, but we need some dudes to start getting on base to get back around to Cuddy. What ensued were some of the most quality, professional at bats I’ve seen in the MLB. Even when we were down 5-2, guys are fighting off pitches and spitting on a couple tough ones to give their guy a shot at history.
We scored again to make it 5-3 in the bottom of the 7th, Cuddy steps up to the plate and hit an easy single into center field back where it was pitched, how ya doin’, keep it movin. After a boneheaded error on the next AB, the Rockies tied it up at 5 a pieces, so as long as we can hold on our guys should have a shot. You know he knew he needed a double to get the cycle, but being the consummate pro he is, Cuddy stepped up to the plate, didn’t swing out of his shoes, hit the ball where it was pitched down the 3rd base line and was rewarded with a double to cap the cycle. The Rocks would hold on to win 10-5. Rally guy was in attendance for that game too with an even taller castle of Leinenkugel’s.
What’s that have to do with 17?
Besides it being on the day Helton’s number was retired, the games felt reminiscent of classic Rockies games. It didn’t matter if the Toddfather was 0-4 against an all-star closer with a 1.40 ERA; you could count on him to put together a quality at bat and often it would result in magic like this.
Regardless of how you feel about his numbers or the “Coors Field” effect, you can’t tell the story of the Colorado Rockies without Todd Helton. He is everything to us Rockies fans. My friends and I often joke about how we are forced to root for Rockies players after they’re shipped away to another team, but Todd is ours and we get to celebrate him and his countless Rockies moments forever in Cooperstown.
The Morning Flush 