How are we Rockies fans from St. Louis?

There is always one expression people do when we tell them when we say our favorite team is the Colorado Rockies.  Definitely when my wife and I were born and raised in St. Louis, AKA Cardinals Nation.  I hope to answer those questions, first my father's company had season tickets to the Cardinals from 1989-1995.  Those years were terrible to watch, other than Ozzie Smith it seemed the Cardinals were just lacking in the star department and wins.  I was a big fan of Andres Galaraga and Larry Walker with the Expos and got to see him play a lot against the Cardinals.  Galaraga was traded to the Cardinals but due to injuries only played one year before getting shipped off to the new expansion team, the Colorado Rockies.  Soon after that Larry Walker was traded there.  The Rockies formed a star studded line-up like none other ever seen before, but there pitching was HORRIBLE!  The Blake Street Bombers of Andres Galaraga, Larry Walker, Ellis Burks, Vinny Castilla, Dante Bichette and later Todd Helton.  No matter what baseball magazine or sports newspaper I opened I would always see one of the Blake Street Bombers featured.  During that period the Rockies were nearly doubling the homeruns the Cardinals were hitting.  When I played MLB video games I was always the Colorado Rockies for their hitting.  My love of original Blake Street bombers turned into a love of my all time favorite player Todd Helton.  (Thus is why I have over 1,500 baseball cards of Todd Helton)  St. Louis began their insanities over the McGwire/Sosa chase, but I was more interested in Helton in Colorado.  Not only was he putting up big home run totals, he was hitting for high averages.

 (Since we live far from Colorado, sometimes we have to go to KC to watch them.  Giambi above with Josh)

I joined the Army in 2001 and left St. Louis, and didn't move back until late 2009.  During that time I was able to get stationed in Colorado Springs from 4 years and we had one of our children there.  As a family we went to over 25 Rockies games, and over 50 Colorado Springs Sky Sox (Rockies AAA team).  My son got to meet many players and be a part of many Rockies and Sky Sox kids camps.  If anyone hasn't been to Coors Field, it is an awesome field, and I loved the fact they had $4 seats and parking was only $5 in some areas.  My son still wears his Helton and Tulo jersey's at school here in Missouri but does get a little flack, and his favorite color is even purple! In 2007, being in Colorado and seeing the Rockies win 21 of 22 to get to the World Series was one of the most impressive streaks ever in MLB history.  So if one of my usual readers wondered how someone living in St. Louis had their favorite team in Colorado, I hoped that answered your question.

I LOVE THIS PICTURE!!  The joys of living in Colorado, go to a Rockies game in the afternoon (middle May) and get home and it is snowing!

 

To prove we aren't fair weather fans, last year in 2011 when the Cardinals were making their World Series run my son and I even wore our Rockies gear, plus my son got an autographed CarGo baseball he got after batting practice.  We loved the fact the Cardinals won the World Series, we root the Cardinals on if they don't play the Rockies, but one day Colorado will raise that World Series flag and we will be there!

We hoped you enjoyed reading our families story of how we fell in love with the Colorado Rockies!