The Rockies on Saturday "gave away 15,000 Troy Tulowitzki jerseys" that all featured his name misspelled, according to Nick Groke of the DENVER POST. The jerseys showed his name as "Tulowizki." The team in a statement said, "Acknowledging that many fans came to the game for the jersey, rather than disappoint them, we decided to go ahead and hand them out. We have made plans to reproduce the jersey and fans wishing to exchange will be able to do so at a future date." The statement also said the team wanted to "apologize to longtime corporate partner King Soopers, who was not involved in the production of the jerseys" (DENVERPOST.com, 7/26). YAHOO SPORTS' Mark Townsend wrote the Rockies "attempted to do something nice for their fans on Saturday," but given their "recent history, we shouldn't be a bit surprised that they failed." Townsend: "Maybe next time they should just stick to Tulo, since that's almost impossible to screw up" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 7/26). In Denver, Terry Frei wrote the Rockies "are evolving from inept to farcical, from mile-high quirkiness to becoming the butt of national derision." It is "not their fault that on back-to-back days, the jerseys handed out were those saluting injured stars." But when bad luck or ill fortune "happens to savvy organizations, the damage at least is mitigated rather than contributing to unmitigated disaster." If someone "like a $28,000-a-year promotions assistant is made the scapegoat" of the jersey incident, that "would be unfortunate." Frei: "I hope the ownership is as supportive and loyal to that person as it has been to the baseball front office" (DENVER POST, 7/28).
A ROCKY ROAD: The Rockies are 43-61 and in last place in the NL West, and in Denver, Mark Kiszla wrote the problem "is the management culture of the Rockies." Kiszla: "It settles for mediocrity. It makes excuses. It stinks." Rockies Owner Dick Monfort is "reluctant to fire anybody." While he "regards that attitude as compassionate," it is "also a cop-out." A winning organization "demands accountability and places respect for fans' hard-earned dollars ahead of friendships within team headquarters" (DENVER POST, 7/27). Also in Denver, Patrick Saunders wrote Monfort "is extremely loyal and can be stubborn." That "will be a factor in October when the Rockies evaluate their season." Saunders: "I only hope the front office faces as much scrutiny as the players." Major decisions "are still made by a committee," with Monfort, Senior VP/Major League Operations & Assistant GM Bill Geivett, Exec VP, Chief Baseball Officer & GM Dan O'Dowd and others "sitting at the table." But if you are "looking for a pecking order, Monfort is at the top, followed by O'Dowd and then Geivett" (DENVER POST, 7/27).
