He is Pepe Negro, the leader of a Rocky Mountain revolution

 

DENVER – A bat would crack while a ball screamed, fans belted out ohhhs and ahhhs as Trevor Story rounded the bases. The sounds of Story’s hot rookie start in 2016 may seem anecdotal one day—or even now—but those sounds were the first steps the occupiers of Major League Baseball’s penthouse heard as the Colorado Rockies ascended the stairs from the sport’s cellar.

Story’s stellar April was the Battles of Lexington and Concord, it was the first shot in what will be a long process for the Rockies in turning the heads and making people believe their cause is worthy. If anything is obvious at this date it’s that this is no longer a coup d’état, this is a full blown revolution in Colorado and it’s gaining momentum at a rapid pace.

The start of this movement was rambunctious and could be quieted by miscommunication or a concentrated effort from the opposition, this rebellion now has a leader and he goes by the name of Pepe Negro.

When Bud Black was hired to manage the Rockies, very few had any idea what kind of impact he would have on a young team sprinkled with veterans. Coupled with a movement of highly regarded prospects towards the top levels, some called for Colorado to keep the hire within the organization.

They looked outside the organization for the first time in recent memory by hiring Black. Yet they built a lot of their staff from within, keeping their pitching coaches of Steve Foster and Darren Holmes as they promoted Jeff Salazar, Tony Diaz and Ronnie Gideon from varying roles across the organization.

The Rockies feel that the origination craves for its players and culture was kept and the growth of the prospects jumping to the major league level was not going to be stunted by a new voice or philosophy.

As much credit as Black deserves for the club’s 29-17 start a lot of credit should be handed to Jeff Bridich for not only hiring the right head man but making sure his staff was populated by capable coaches. Without Black, there is no story and it’s Pepe Negro’s communication in handling his staff and players that has been most impressive compared to the prior regime.

“He was more of the pitching guy and he was very good at that,” 2016 World Series winning manager Joe Maddon recalled the two’s salad days in Anaheim. “I know Pepe has a really good feel for the pitching. Pepe is doing a great job, he’s got great relationship building skills, among his players he is probably very popular here, he communicates, he talks to you there is no BS, he’s straight up, I like that.”

That’s where it starts for Pepe Negro—at least as a coach—the nickname was given in part by a High School Spanish teacher in Longview, Wash., in 1973 and completed by Maddon in 1981 during the two’s time playing for the Caracas Leones in the Caribbean World Series in Hermosillo, Mexico. In his third season with the Angels out of total of seven he was the pitching coach for the 2002 World Champions.

“I’ve said it so often that my years in Anaheim with Mike Scioscia, Ron Roenicke and Joe Maddon that group of coaches I took a lot from all those coaches,” Black said. “But with Joe, his way with players, his dialog, his natural being how he is, I thought that was really great. He did such a good job with (Troy) Glaus, (Darin) Erstad, (Tim) Salmon, Mo Vaughn as the bench coach I really saw the value of what coaches can do.”

Many have compared the Rockies crop of talent to that of the Cubs, but the most striking comparison might be in skipper.

“Joe being himself, and his knowledge and the way he motivated. I learned that you have to be yourself to lead, you can’t be something that you’re not,” Black said. “Joe can be firm too, every head coach there are a lot of different sides. Strategically Joe was very creative, we tried guys in different positions and lineups and different pitches. He was instrumental, he is a great observer of the game.”

“Pepe Negro, we go way back,” Maddon said. “When he first began with the Angels I was already there and Pepe came in as the pitching coach and I was there as the bench coach. It began then and we have the same sense of humor, Pepe is a bit drier than I am, he enjoy the same music, we like going out at night. We had a good time together, we had fun, he’s wonderful.”

The two texted throughout the playoffs while Black was days away from signing a contract with Colorado and Maddon days from hoisting his first championship as a manager.

Maddon came close with Tampa Bay to accomplishing what he did last year in Chicago, Black however has never even reached a postseason as head man. In eight plus seasons in San Deigo Black only finished better than third in the NL West once. The difference for Maddon with the Rays compared to the Cubs is the same change the Rockies hope will benefit Black: added talent.

The Rockies roster currently features six former All-Stars, the potential MLB Comeback Player of the Year, eight others that were former top 100 prospects and the best may be yet to come. The club still has a top five to top ten farm system, depending on who you ask.

The Rockies’ prospects are still among the best even with a rotation that has been filled with seven starters under the age of 27.

The talent that the organization possesses  is either already in Denver or close and it’s elite.

“That’s what it’s all about, we feel good about it,” Black said. “To develop your own players to draft them and to get them to the big leagues that’s critical. And that’s critical for some organizations more than others because the free agent market at times isn’t for everyone. I like (Trevor) Story, the young pitchers and the few guys in Triple-A playing well, (Raimel) Tapia is off to a great start. We’re happy with our system, we like it.”

Through shrewd trades, economical signings and an investment in development the Rockies, a smaller market team—something Black hinted at above—, are in a position for the first time in franchise history for a contention window.

“We see a lot of this talent industry wide in spring training and from what I read in Baseball America and other publications, reading about farm system rankings whether they’re true or not I don’t know, but I do know that in Spring Training games you see a lot of younger players and the players that are written about,” Black continued. “As far as it relates to us, we feel good about our talent from Asheville to Albuquerque. But there are other teams that feel good about their farm systems too. Things change all the time and a team can quickly make a change based on a trade.”

Trades that have happened to bolster what was already a very strong system saw the Rockies add Jeff Hoffman and German Marquez in separate deals.

Similar to what the Cubs did in adding Addison Russell into an already loaded farm system in a deal for Jason Hammel and Jeff Samardzija.

“It’s pretty cool to see,” Russell said of coming through a system. “To see kids relatively close in age deliver against players we grew up watching, I think it’s a great movement.”

The moment for the Rockies is a bit different than that of the Cubs. Chicago used veteran pitchers and young position players to win their crown whereas Colorado is using young pitchers and a more veteran lineup to bolster them to the National League’s best record.

“I love it. It’s really fun working young talented players,” Maddon said. “We’re loaded with them. Last year we played with six or seven of them on the field at one time. It’s exciting, there is normally a lot of energy involved with that, mistakes, a lot of inexperience. But you have to fight through that and a lot of that is conversational but I’d prefer that method… they are going to keep improving and that’s what I’m looking at it. Their energy is good, their work ethic is spectacular, accountably can not be better. For all those different reasons I could not be more excited about this group.”

Pepe Negro, like his buddy in Maddon, will have an exciting young group to manage.

It will be up to 59-year-old second-run skip to capitalize on the window created by Bridch and his predecessor. The question is: Can Pepe Negro do what he hasn’t before, and take his club to the playoffs. Out of any of the seven managers in club history it may be Pepe that strays from the norm by turning the Rockies into a perennial contender.