I'm used to the negativity. I've been a Colorado Rockies fan all my life, which means I've spent more than three decades hearing it from the haters. That's fine, though. I've always just rolled with it. I've been patient. I've been biding my time.
But where are the haters now, hmm? For years I had to listen to them flap their lips, saying the same shit over and over again: The Rockies will never develop a mid-rotation starter who will eventually leave the team and then pitch three shutout innings of relief for a different team in the World Series. How are those fools feeling this morning, I wonder?
Let me say it loud for the haters in the back: On Monday night, during Game 3 of the World Series, Rangers starter Max Scherzer had to leave the game after the third inning due to back spasms. Rangers manager Bruce Bochy had to call starter Jon Gray, who had missed the previous rounds of the postseason with injuries of his own, out of the bullpen for an emergency relief appearance. Gray, who struck out four of the six batters he faced during a relief appearance in Game 1, sparkled once again in Game 3, shutting down the Diamondbacks for three innings while striking out three and allowing just one hit.
The "Jon Gray will never throw multiple innings of high-quality relief in the World Series" crew can spend the morning deleting all those years-old tweets in which they specifically stated that Jon Gray would never be called upon as an emergency reliever in Game 3 of the World Series for the Texas Rangers, and answer that call with three scoreless innings, but it won't do them any good. I have all the screenshots. I won't let them forget.
Is this petty of me? Maybe, but I consider it a just reward for always believing in my team, despite what the haters had to say. When the Rockies selected Gray in the first round of the 2013 draft and spent the next few seasons turning him into a guy who could semi-reliably throw 150 innings per year and keep his ERA in the ballpark of 5.00, I saw the vision. When Gray became the first starting pitcher in the history of baseball to actually express a desire to continue his career in Colorado, only to see the team not even bother to extend him a qualifying offer, I knew that the Rockies were operating 10 steps ahead of everyone else. And while the Rockies were busy finishing 35 games back of the division lead every year, I kept my faith in a process that was bold enough to create a one-person analytics department and make the owner's 32-year-old son the director of pro scouting. I knew that one day everything would pay off.
So what do you have to say now, haters? What's the matter, lost your voice? Wait, what's that? Were you about to say, "Well, there's no chance that one of the random guys the Rockies traded Troy Tulowitzki for will ever throw more than 10 pitches in a World Series"? You sure you wanna go with that one, bud? Are you maybe forgetting that Miguel Castro plays for the Diamondbacks, and that he recorded two outs in the sixth inning last night?
I don't even know why I'm talking to you.
