It is hard to believe some players in baseball are worth the money teams are paying them. But Todd Helton is the only star the Rockies' farm system has developed, and he is a legitimate offensive player. He not only had a great year in Coors Field in 2000, but he also put up astronomical numbers on the road.
A couple years ago everyone was going ballistic over Larry Walker's contract, but Helton's contract doubles those numbers. It's a longer contract, so the average is close to what Walker makes, but Helton's huge number is a simply a sign of the times.
Colorado has a terrific fan base and they have obviously decided to loosen the purse strings. Around their third year, the Rockies thought they could win with a mid-range payroll, but it became obvious that to attract big-time players there they needed to pay big-time salaries. Helton's numbers are only surprising because it's hard to believe a team would have to give an offensive player a ton of money to play in Coors Field.
Mike Hampton, Denny Neagle, Walker and now Helton are all under contract for big money. The only guy they have to work on keeping now is Neifi Perez, with whom they've been discussing a long-term deal. They are in a wait-and-see mode with Pedro Astacio, depending on how he comes back from his injury.
They Rockies had a terrible year in '99 but they were able to bounce back and be representative in 2000. With the core of their team now locked up in multi-year deals, the Rockies could be the team to beat in the coming years, including 2001.
Former major leaguer Dave Campbell works as an analyst for ESPN and ESPN Radio.
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