Read more: Colorado Rockies, Rockies Recap, Disappointing 2011 for Rockies, Rockies Makeover, Season Ends for Rockies, Pro, MLB

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies spent 38 days in first place before the trap door swung open and sent them plummeting to the most disappointing season in their history.

Colorado committed $273 million to contracts last offseason, including deals that locked up young stars Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez. They kept Jorge De La Rosa in purple pinstripes and added Matt Lindstrom to their powerhouse bullpen.

All of this created expectations both inside and outside Colorado’s clubhouse that the Rockies would win their second pennant and maybe even hoist their first World Series banner.

Instead, they went 73-89.

(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

By Russ Oates

– Senior Editor

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Sep 30, 2011 – Glum that the Colorado Rockies’ season went south months ago, preventing Rocktober III? Don’t really care which team wins the World Series (though, how can one not want the Tampa Bay Rays or even the Milwaukee Brewers to win it all)? Then let’s root for those players with a connection to the Rockies or the state of Colorado.

First, we have Texas Rangers catcher Yorvit Torrealba. Rockies fans are familiar with him from his 2006-2009 days behind the batter. Torrealba was never more than a sub-par hitter (.258/.316/.394 in four seasons), but he always managed to steal playing time from Chris Iannetta.

The Philadelphia Phillies sports a duo of players with connections to Colorado. The most obscure player is Ross Gload. Rockies fans need to think back to 2002 when Gload picked up eight hits in 31 at-bats. The Rockies traded Gload to the White Sox before the start of the 2003 season for Wade Parrish. Gload has a hip injury that will likely prevent him from playing much, if at all.

The other player is, of course, Roy Halladay. Halladay, as we recall, is from Arvada, CO. Still one of the game’s best at 34, Halladay went 19-6 with a 2.35 ERA and eight complete games during the regular season. He struck out 220 batters in 220-2/3 innings. He will start Game 1 on Saturday.

The St. Louis Cardinals also have two players with Colorado ties. The deepest belong to Matt Holliday. We all know that story: outfielder rises through the minors, dominates the big leagues and then gets out of Colorado one season after he tastes the postseason. His right middle finger will keep him out of Game 1 on Saturday and may for the entire series.

The other player is pitcher Octavio Dotel, who pitched all of eight games for the Rockies in 2010. He departed in the offseason under a gentleman’s agreement with the Rockies about an arbitration offer. The Rockies offered and Dotel agreed to decline so the team could receive draft compensation. He made his way to St. Louis as part of the trade that sent Colby Rasmus to the Blue Jays.

Here is the schedule for the first two nights of play:

30-Sep
TEAMS	TIME (MT)	TV	PITCHERS
Tampa Bay at Texas	3:07 PM	TBS	Moore vs Wilson
Detroit at NY Yankees	6:37 PM	TBS	Verlander vs Sabathia
1-Oct
TEAMS	TIME (ET)	TV	PITCHERS
Arizona at Milwaukee	12:07 PM	TBS	Kennedy vs Gallardo
St. Louis at Philadelphia	3:07 PM	TBS	Lohse vs Halladay
Tampa Bay at Texas	5:07 PM	TNT	Shields vs Holland
Detroit at NY Yankees	6:37 PM	TBS	Fister vs Nova

Read More: Ross Gload (1B – PHI), Octavio Dotel (P – STL), Matt Holliday (LF – STL), Yorvit Torrealba (C – TEX), Roy Halladay (P – PHI), Colorado Rockies

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Read more: San Francisco Giants, Colorado Rockies, Rockies Beat Giants, Last Game of Season, Last Game of 2011, Season over for Rockies, Kevin Kouzmanoff, Pro, MLB

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Kevin Kouzmanoff had three hits and drove in two runs and the Colorado Rockies sent the reigning World Series champions into an early offseason, beating the San Francisco Giants 6-3 Wednesday.

Drew Pomeranz (2-1) outpitched fellow rookie Eric Surkamp (2-2) in their second matchup in two weeks and Jordan Pacheco added a pair of RBI singles for the Rockies, who snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Giants.

San Francisco (86-76) wound up in second place in the NL West behind playoff-bound Arizona, becoming the first defending champion not to make the playoffs since the 2007 St. Louis Cardinals.

Mark DeRosa hit a two-run single in what was likely his last game for the Giants.

(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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