DENVER — In a memorable takedown of the forgettable 1985 Chuck Norris movie “Invasion U.S.A.,” Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic Roger Ebert concluded his scathing review this way:
“Is this a bad movie? Real bad.”
The 2025 Colorado Rockies, who opened a three-game series Friday night against the Yankees at Coors Field, can relate.
Are the Rockies a bad baseball team?
Real bad.
And, to this point, historically so.
After getting swept by the Phillies to start the week, the Rockies fell to 8-42, the worst 50-game start in Major League Baseball’s modern era, which dates to 1901. The only team in MLB history to have a worse 50-game start were the 1895 Louisville Colonels, who started 7-43.
There are always a handful of terrible teams in a given MLB season, but this year’s Rockies are headed for uncharted territory.
For years, the modern-day gold standard for single-season awfulness was the 1962 expansion Mets, who went 40-120, a winning percentage of .250. Casey Stengel’s group was joined last year by the White Sox, who went 41-121 and “beat” the Mets’ winning percentage at .253.
But this year’s Rockies, with a winning percentage of .160, not only are regularly mentioned with those sad teams but are drawing comparisons to the sport’s all-time cellar-dwellers: the 1899 Cleveland Spiders.
That club, because of a variety of odd circumstances, played 112 games on the road, dropped 40 of its final 41 games and finished 20-134 (.130), the most losses in MLB history.
Entering Friday night, the Rockies, already 23 games behind the NL West-leading Dodgers, were on pace to lose 136 games.
Surpassing the Spiders is a tall task. But the numbers suggest the Rockies, who allowed a combined 50 hits to the Phillies in that four-game sweep, could be up to it.
The Rockies came into this series with a minus-159 run differential, far clear of the next-worst team in that category, the Orioles, who are at minus-99 (the Yankees, by comparison, lead MLB with a plus-95 run differential).
The Rockies, who bring to mind John McKay’s line about his 1976 expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers — mic’d on the sideline during one game of that winless season, the legendary coach was heard to mutter, “We can’t stop the pass or the run. Otherwise, we’re in great shape” — have been shut out eight times this season. Their 45 errors through 50 games are the most by an MLB team since the 2019 Mariners.
Naturally, there was a managerial change.
Longtime manager Bud Black was fired on May 11 after a victory over the Padres (but a 21-0 loss to San Diego preceded it). Naturally, Black was given a vote of confidence the day before the three-touchdown loss by general manager Bill Schmidt.
“Our play so far this season, especially coming off the last two seasons, has been unacceptable,” Rockies owner Dick Monfort — among the hardest of hardline owners when it comes to pushing for a salary cap, always a non-starter with the MLBPA — said in a statement after Black’s firing. “Our fans deserve better, and we are capable of better.”
Not so far.
After the Rockies were swept in a series for a remarkable seventh time this season, interim manager Warren Shaeffer fell to 1-9 since taking over for Black. Far more of that is likely to come as, after the Yankees leave town, Colorado faces off against two NL contenders, the Cubs and Mets.
None of which is relevant to the Yankees.
“We talked today about just being focused,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Friday. “Being focused on we’re playing good baseball right now. Focus on our preparation and focusing on who the opponent is and trying to go out there and play a good game. We know, no matter who we’re playing, anything can happen. Our focus is on our preparation and hopefully going out there and taking care of business.”
DJ LeMahieu, who spent seven seasons (2012-18) with the Rockies and was on their last two playoff teams (2017 and ’18), said it’s been tough watching the team with which he grew into a big-leaguer reach the depths it has.
“Spending so many years here, I still root for them. Not this weekend, but from afar I always root for them,” LeMahieu said Friday. “A lot of good people around here still since I was here. It’s been a tough go for them.”
Erik Boland started in Newsday’s sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.
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