Peyton Manning visits the Colorado Rockies

DENVER – During yesterday’s rained out game that was supposed to take place between the Colorado Rockies and defending World Series Champion Chicago Cubs, the home team got a surprise visitor.

The delay and eventual postponement meant that the Rockies would get a chance to interact with local sports legend, former quarterback of the Denver Broncos, Peyton Manning.

The surefireHall-of-Famer swung by to take in a game, instead, he spent some time in the clubhouse and in the batting cages.

“Talked to Peyton Manning today,” manager Bud Black told the press before Tuesday’s scheduled doubleheader. “He was here, he popped in my offense. We took him down to the cage. He said hello to CarGo and Nolan, met Trevor Story, met Dustin Garneau Mike Redmond. He met a lot of guys, he was great. Hey, he’s a Rockies fan!”

But he stopped just short of exercising (pun intended) his physical prowess.

“He did not hit,” Black says. “We offered that to him. He asked a lot about the team, talked about the mindset. That was the first time I met him, I mean really nice guy. Wonderful. He lives here, travels a lot, but he loves Denver. Hopefully, we will see him out here more often.”

If the Colorado Rockies stay a first-place team, visits like this are likely to continue and it would be absolutely fascinating to hear what Manning has to say about whether or not this club is championship caliber. He knows a little something about winning the big game.

But he also knows the pain of going so long in his career without winning the big one, meaning that his advice to Carlos Gonzalez and Nolan Arenado must resonate immensely. Now, they work toward cementing a legacy similar to the football great.