The Hampster not too shiny lately

[RockieBill]

The Hampster may be headed to Seattle to represent the Rockies as their first-ever pitcher in the All Star Game, but he sure hasn't been pitching like an All Star of late.

Hampton was the victim of home runs early and betrayed by reliever Jay Powell late in a 6-5 loss to the Anaheim Angels at soldout Coors Field in Friday night's opening game of a three-game interleague series that concludes the pre-All-Star portion of the schedule.

The loss was the 14th in 17 games for the Rockies, a stretch in which Hampton has gone 0-3 in four starts, the Rockies having lost all four of the games pitched by the left-hander they signed to help them avoid such slides. The three consecutive losing decisions equaled the longest losing streak of Hampton's career.

Hampton has been charged with 24 runs -- 21 earned -- in 24 innings during his winless stretch. It includes a no-decision in a 5-4, 13-inning loss at Arizona on Sunday when he was unable to close out a 4-3 lead, allowing four runs in eight innings.

While the Snakes, Dodgers and Giants hang tough, the Rockies are 12 games out and don't look to be making a move in the NL West. It's a shame, considering the talent they have on that team.

RB


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[bear]

Hey, Rockiebill!
I made it over here!Lot of it looks familiar, but quite a shock to see a Mets fan as a Phillies moderator! Oh well!
This slide of Hampton's is exactly why I didn't renew his contract in my fantasy team, and one of the continuing joys of pitching in the thin air and hitters heaven of a park in Denver!But, he is too good a pitcher for this to get totally out of hand, ala Kile, or a Lima in Enron.

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bearin' up!

[Baseball Guru]

Yeah Hampton IMO didn't deserve the invite....
Bear, Hector is a Mets fan but Philly is his 2nd love as he used to live there.....


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"Man may penetrate the outer reaches of the universe, he may solve the very secret of eternity itself, but for me, the ultimate human experience is to witness the flawless execution of a hit-and-run."

LETS GO METS!!!

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[RockieBill]

Yes indeed, to be bogged down with Rockies pitchers on your fantasy team! lol

I wonder how Vfrog is doing with his team? I think he had Hampy and Neagle and Gabe White. White is really stinking it up this season...(I know, as I hung onto him way to long myself!) If anyone sees Vanderfrog out there in webland, please point him this direction.

I agree James, that Hampy probably didn't deserve the invite, but I think it was more Bobby V.'s way of rewarding him for last season. Maybe he'll just DH?

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[This message has been edited by RockieBill (edited 07-07-2001).]

[pmeares17]

hey i have hampton on my fantasy team and i keep hearing that he is struggling do you know of this? should i get rid of him?

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the journey of a single shoosh begins with a single step.

[RockieBill]

Hi pmeares17! Always good to see a Bucco fan in these parts. Yeah, The Hampster is struggling, but I wouldn't write him off just yet (unless you can trade him for Schilling!). As I posted earlier, he has gone 0-3 in his last 4 starts, and given up 24 runs in 24 innings.

While Hampton must shoulder some of the blame, the Rockies as a whole are reeling out of control. Their biggest problem is the defense (and bullpen!) behind whoever is pitching. I would wait a week or two, as I'm sure O'Dowd is going to bring in at least 3 or 4 new faces to bolster the defense.

Left field is a particularly glaring problem for the Rox, and if O'Dowd can plug that hole, you'll see a great improvement in the team's performance overall. I wouldn't be too quick to trade Hampton away just yet, as he may come back to bite you later on. He's made a huge commitment by signing an 8 year deal to pitch here, so he'll have to work it out eventually.

RB

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[pmeares17]

yeh hes to valuable for me to trade outright since i probubly couldnt get schilling for him :). hes far to valuable to waive. So all i can do is hope "hampster" :) gets out of the slide and starts it up again. thats good it sounds like the rockies are tryin to take steps to fix the problems. thanks again.:)

[RockieBill]

If Hampton is gonna get out of his funk, he'll have as good a chance as any tomorrow night when he goes against Helling in Texas. If he can't look sharp against that bunch of slugs, the Rockies are in for a loooooong second half! If you can get the game where you're at, it might be worth checking out.

While you really can't base anything on his performance in the All Star game, he did seem to have his slider working better than he has the last couple of outings.

RB

[pmeares17]

he was lit up today! i wonder what i should do now?

[RockieBill]

I've been away for a few days, sorry I'm replying so late.

Honestly, I don't know what you should do. I think maybe hang on to him, unless the Rockies trade away Astacio and/or Perez. If they make some salary-dumping deals, don't look for the team to rebound and make a run at the NL West.

While Hampton can't pitch this bad forever, he won't be much help to your team until the Rockies shore up their defense. I'm really surprised O'Dowd hasn't made a move yet. In the past, he's been pretty quick on pulling the trigger on any deal, good or bad.

RB

[pmeares17]

yeah i read something about hampton today he says he doesnt feel strong anymore and he is sometimes just heaving the ball instead of throwing it. also his speed and control are down. im attempting to trade him in my league so ill have to see what happens.

[RockieBill]

The Rockies are on pace to finish 50-112 if they continue losing at a rate of 22 times in 26 games. During this collapse, Hampton has been right in the middle of it. Remember, he was 9-2 with a 2.98 ERA on June 10. In his seven starts since, he is 0-5 with an 8.06 ERA. The way this team is reeling, I think I'd just cut him. It's not all his fault, but the results are the same.

[pmeares17]

the rockies were beat down yesterday! ach hampton was horrible. shoosh things sure are looking bad for them. they cant get much worse ill give you that. Once a team starts to slide like this there is only so far down they will go before they face a team that is playing worse ;) .:freak:

[RockieBill]

hehe, hopefully it'll be the Dodgers this weekend...

...but I wouldn't count on it!