2009 NL West Division Championship

Lore & Background

In 2009, the Rockies arrived at the home stretch of the regular season locked in a tight three-way race with the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks for the NL West pennant. What separated Denver from its rivals was a combination of pitching depth and the kind of clutch hitting that Coors Field's thin air seems to breed. The rotation—anchored by veterans like Jeff Francis, Jason Greene, and Jorge de la Rosa—gave the club the reliability it had lacked in earlier seasons, while Jaret Wright locked down late innings with a confidence that steadied the entire lineup. On the other side of the ball, Troy Tulowitz was entering the prime of his career, turning double plays and launching fly balls into the upper deck with an ease that made Coors Field feel like a smaller place. Carlos Gonzalez, in his second season in Colorado, was developing into the power-hitting outfielder the front office had envisioned when they signed him. Matt Holliday, already a two-time All-Star, provided the steady, every-inning production at the top of the order that made the lineup feel unbreakable. Garrett Atkins at third base was the glue, the veteran presence who ground out the tough at-bats and set the tone in the dugout. The postseason, however, reminded the Rockies of the gap between a strong regular season and a deep October run. The Philadelphia Phillies, led by their own constellation of stars, proved too much in the NLDS. But for the fans who packed Coors Field through September and into the first October weekend, 2009 left a lasting imprint—the feeling that this team, this core, this ballgame, could carry them further than anyone expected.

In Their Own Story

The September night air over the Mile High City carried a thin, cold bite that made the stadium lights look almost unreal against the darkening sky. A Rockies hitter stepped into the box, dug his cleats into the dirt, and swung. The ball left the bat with a crack that seemed to echo off the flat plains beyond the outfield wall, and for a moment the whole stadium held its breath as the ball climbed, climbed, and disappeared into the black. The roar that followed was not just sound—it was pressure, altitude, a thousand voices stacked on top of each other in the upper deck. In the dugout, a young shortstop wiped dirt from his glove and looked up at the scoreboard, knowing one more win kept the division alive. One more win. That was all it took, and that was all it ever was.

Reader's Guide

The 2009 Rockies arrived in the summer stretch with a rotation that finally clicked. Jeff Francis, Jason Greene, and Jorge de la Rosa formed a front line that could pitch deep into games, while Jaret Wright's late-inning command gave the bullpen a spine it had lacked in prior years. The pitching staff's reliability meant the offense could play with a freedom that showed up in the box score week after week. By August, the NL West race had become a three-team slugfest with San Diego and Arizona. The Rockies' edge was consistency: Troy Tulowitz at shortstop was hitting, fielding, and making the kind of plays that turned close games into wins. Carlos Gonzalez was finding his range in the outfield, and Matt Holliday was doing what Matt Holliday does—getting on base, moving runners, and making the opposing pitcher's life miserable at-bat after at-bat. The division title was sealed in mid-September, sending the Rockies into the postseason as the NL West champions. The NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies was a five-game battle that ultimately went to Philadelphia, but the regular-season run—90 wins, a division banner, and a core that felt like it was just getting started—remains one of the most satisfying chapters in Rockies history.

Did You Know?

• Troy Tulowitz, the Rockies' shortstop in 2009, went on to become one of the most decorated players in franchise history, earning multiple Gold Gloves and All-Star selections during his tenure in Colorado.
• Matt Holliday, who played for the Rockies through 2010, was a two-time All-Star and a key part of the 2009 core before moving on to other franchises.
• Coors Field's altitude—approximately 5,280 feet above sea level—reduces air resistance on batted balls, a factor that consistently boosts offensive production for home teams and shapes the Rockies' identity as a hitter's
• The 2009 Philadelphia Phillies, who eliminated the Rockies in the NLDS, went on to win the World Series that fall, adding a bittersweet layer to the Rockies' postseason run.