Blackmon, a 4-time All-Star, to retire after 14 seasons -- all with Rockies
Thomas Harding
@harding_at_mlbLOS ANGELES -- Charlie Blackmon's Rockies career started with three injury-shortened trials in the Majors. But he arrived for good on April 4, 2014, when Blackmon went 6-for-6 with a home run, three doubles and five RBIs in a 12-2 victory over the D-backs in the team¡¯s home opener that year.
If the just-completed weekend series at Dodger Stadium is any indication, Blackmon is also trying to have a bang-up goodbye.
Blackmon posted on X on Monday that he will retire after a 14-season career spent entirely with the club. Blackmon represented the Rockies in four All-Star Games and won two Silver Slugger Awards.
Blackmon, 38, is happy not to go quietly.
In Friday¡¯s 6-4 loss to the Dodgers, Blackmon launched his first home run in 56 at-bats, a solo shot off Daniel Hudson in the fifth inning. The next night, he went deep off Hudson again -- a two-run homer in the ninth as the Rockies won, 6-3.
Blackmon has one more homestand, starting Tuesday against the Cardinals, for a few more memories.
But Blackmon¡¯s status among the best Rockies in history is already solidified.
He is the team¡¯s career leader in triples with 67. His 1,797 hits, 2,942 total bases, 333 doubles and 1,618 games played, among other accomplishments, rank second in team history only to Hall of Famer Todd Helton.
¡°When Charlie told me of his plans to retire I got a little emotional, as I¡¯m sure many fans will when they see the news that one of the greatest Rockies of all-time will no longer take the field,¡± Rockies owner/chairman and chief executive officer Dick Monfort said in a statement. ¡°It has been an absolute privilege watching Charlie¡¯s career from start to finish here at Coors Field. Charlie¡¯s passion and dedication to the game of baseball, this organization and our great fans was on display every single day and I can¡¯t thank him enough for pouring his heart into every game and every at-bat over the course of his 14 years here. Charlie is a Rockie to his core, and although his playing days are over, he will continue to be a part of this team in a multitude of ways going forward. We look forward to celebrating Charlie throughout this weekend and we wish Charlie and his family nothing but the best in the years ahead.¡±
During his six-year prime (2014-19), Blackmon batted .306, posted a 120 OPS-plus, hit 163 home runs and drove in 472 runs. His best season was 2017, when he led the league in batting (.331), runs (137), hits (213), triples (14) and total bases (387) to finish fifth in NL Most Valuable Player voting. He also logged an MLB-record 101 RBIs from the leadoff spot, and grew into arguably the game¡¯s best No. 1 hitter.
A noted figure for his tireless workouts and game preparation, Blackmon saw his six-year, $108 million contract end last year. But Blackmon¡¯s second-half production surge ¨C he finished at .279 with an .803 OPS ¨C led the Rockies to sign him for this year, at $13 million. While he has seen a slight decline in overall offense -- he enters the season¡¯s final week with a .249 batting average and .718 OPS -- he has been the team¡¯s most effective leadoff hitter and has hit 11 home runs.