MLB SHOWDOWN 2018 SET -- Colorado Rockies

The final 2018 National League playoff team -- the Colorado Rockies! The Rockies found themselves in the wild card game for a second straight season after tying for the NL West crown through 162 games.  Although they lost game 163 in LA, the Rockies triumphed in an absolute classic over the Cubs in the wild card game and were in the NLDS for the fourth time in franchise history.

The Rockies are going to be led by their stars: Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story, and Charlie Blackmon.  Colorado also brings an incredible bullpen to the 2018 set too, with three tier 2 pitchers plus Wade Davis.  I know this is going to be one of Bob's favorite teams in the set, as he's a big fan of the Rockies.  As a fellow fan who grew up with Dante Bichette jersey-shirts and a Todd Helton fanatic, I have to say I'm super pleased with how these cards turned out.  The podcast about this team is at the link!

Without further ado, let's look at the team!

Lineup:

Trevor Story may be the prettiest card in the set, and I'm going to have to fight Bob hard for him in the 16 team draft.  Arenado and Blackmon are sure to go early too, and bring fantastic hitting cards to bear.  DJ LeMahieu had a down year, and the Yankees are betting he'll bounce back, but he also has the best fielding card in the set at 2B.  Parra has a decent card with speed and on-base, but no real power.  Ianetta has good pop at catcher with his on-base 8 card, but his +2 arm is why they've got Wolters ready to come in off the bench.  David Dahl should be a monster against low control pitchers, but will go through some cold spells.  The bench has CarGo, who's going to move into the 5 slot with the 2018 card season, and I love his double at 12.  Overall, it's a fun lineup and the bench should come into play often in the 2018 set's season!

Rotation:  The Rockies rotation is led by Kyle Freeland, probably the best Tier 3 in the set.  He brings a great control with no doubles to the table, and definitely qualifies as an ace.  Marquez brings a Tier 3 card to the #2 slot of the rotation, but his lower control makes him risky to draft.  Jon Gray unfortunately had a down year in 2018.  I'm optimistic he'll bounce back in 2019, but until then, he's got a mediocre tier 5 card.  Tyler Anderson also had a downtrodden 2018, and he's one of the unfortunate few who gives up a HR off his own chart. 

Bullpen:  The Rockies may have the best bullpen in the set!! There's extremely quality depth here, and it really should've been more of a discussion point during the NLDS.  The "Triple Os" are a buzzsaw for any of the Rockies opponents, with Davis providing solid closer skills to boot!  Whoever signs Ottavino this offseason is going to get a real stud, I really hope he doesn't end up on the Red Sox or Yankees.  It's super unfortunate that Jake McGee had such a rough season, as his card is one of my favorite looking relievers in the entire set.