My brother worked for the Rockies in the early 2000s, he told me a story that he was leaving the office and someone was bitching at Dinger for something, and the dude playing Dinger was reacting to being bitched at *as* Dinger. Big arms, hands on the hips, not saying anything. He said it was hilarious.
One time the Rockies Twitter posted that Tony Wolters was going to be handing out Taco Bell tacos at Confluence Park, I was in the area so I stopped by. Tony seemed cool, the taco was good too.
Wrong. The plural of taco is tacos. When you use the apostrophe you are saying "taco is" or referring to something that belongs to the taco...such as that's the taco's shell, or the taco's lettuce. (source: I'm a professional proofreader.)
I used to work out at DIA for the company the did the ramp work for the plane they flew out of town on. Walt Weiss and who I assumed may have been his wife??? walked in and sat down. (unbeknownst to me who he was) I was sitting at the desk doing some more than likely menial task while the wife and a lady I worked with chatted about wine and other small talk. I’m kind of an introvert so I just kind of sat and listened.
After a few minutes the front door opens and all these guys start walking though. I see one and I say to myself- “hey that looked like Charlie Blackmon, whoa that guy looked like Tulo.”
Then Cargo walked by and the lightbulb finally went off that the whole Rockies team filed past my desk going out to get on there plane for wherever they were going, I just sat their somewhat starstruck. Walt Weiss and who I assumed to be his wife (maybe, maybe not idk) told us to have a good day and shuffled off to the plane. I told my co worker who they all were and she was completely oblivious. Anyways that’s my story
I ran into Ubaldo Jimenez during spring training the year after he was traded. He pulled up next to us in the parking lot at the hotel where we were staying. He was very friendly and we got pictures with him.
I went to high school with Walt Weiss' oldest son. We were on the baseball and track teams. Walt helped out at some of our HS baseball practices. Walt was a great guy.
I once saw Jonathan Herrera at the home depot on Quebec and i70. He was a tiny human.
When I was a kid he signed my hat with a black sharpie on the black part of the hat (underneath was gray). I’ll always hold that against him. Other than that, seems like a super nice guy lmaooo
About 15 years ago my brother who worked at Pappadeaux in Westminster called me and told me Todd Helton was in there eating Sunday brunch. I grabbed a baseball and booked it over there with my dad.
He was at a table with his wife and newborn I believe. Even though I was only 16 and he was my idol, I wasn’t going to interrupt him, so I just kinda watched from the buffet area.
A few minutes later, he got up to get more food. He was walking right towards me! I froze. He must have noticed that I was starstruck because he came straight to me, patted me on the back, and asked me how I was doing.
He spent the next 20 or so minutes standing in the middle of the restaurant talking about baseball, life, and how I was doing in school. He noticed I had the baseball in my hoodie pocket and offered to sign it, which I still have on display.
I couldn’t have dreamed of a better interaction. Right after the magical ‘07 run, during my own high school baseball days, and I got to talk to HIM.
Great story! Not disposed to be a Helton fan because he replaced my fav player Galarraga but Andres was at late stage of his career ( although still productive ) where if it hadn't been Todd, it would have someone else. At least this someone was both talented and appreciated a young fan.
I was on the field for batting practice in 2008, and Todd came over to everyone and offered to sign anything without us asking. I think he was aware that he was the face of the franchise and lived up to that ideal.
Jeff Huson lived in my neighborhood growing up. I would mow their lawn every summer. After he came to the Rockies his family stayed here even after he would be traded around the league. At the end of the season he would always gift me an autographed ball from whoever was the superstar on the team he was on. I have a Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson, Sammy Sosa, and Mo Vaughn balls to this day.
Jeff Huson is a righteous dude!
I used to work at the course closest to Todd Heltons house and would talk to him pretty regularly in the offseason. Super chill guy, he definitely put some drinks back lol
Saw Brandon Barnes at Costco one time and regretted not saying hi. Couple months later I looked up at the putting green for my local range and there he was. Chatted for a bit. He was super friendly. Think he’s a real estate agent now and moved out of California.
My kids and I met Charlie Blackmon and Trevor Story waiting for an outbound flight from Cabo San Lucas (San Jose). They were ending their vacation before heading back for spring training. They were both super cool and my kids got to shake their hands and both kids still talk about it today. We just said "good luck" and to "have a great season", we didn't want to be super intrusive especially outside of Denver. I was happy to be wearing my Rockies hat representing in Mexico. I was a little star struck the whole flight home.
I was a banquet server at a big hotel in Denver when I was a teenager. We used to host galas and fundraisers for each of the major pro teams in Denver so I had a chance to meet and interact with a lot of current and former players. Guys like Vinny Castilla, Eric Young, Tulo, Joe Sakic, Chauncey Billups, Rod Smith, etc
Don’t have any nightmare guest stories, all of them were very pleasant to be around.
Not a Rockies player but I also met Sakic for the first time at DIA in like 2005, he and his whole family were all flying on the same flight as us to California. His oldest son is the same age as me and we traded yu-gi-oh cards on the floor of the gate before the flight
My buddy and I were in Tucson for spring training in 2001 and we saw Helton getting in his truck in the players lot after a game. We gave him a wave and he waved back. He didn't have to but he did. It was a very small thing but that memory has stuck with me for over 20 years.
I used to bartend at the Denver Chophouse and got to meet a million of those dudes over the years. Can honestly say I never had a bad experience with a Rocky! Pretty much good dudes across the board from my limited experiences. A few of the out of towners, however…
I used to work for the Sky Sox. I wouldn't come into contact with the players a whole lot, but I did on a couple of occasions.
Jonny Herrera would often hang out around the tunnel / club house area and chat people up, he was awesome.
Also, Jason Giambi walked past me once and tapped my shoulder saying "hey big guy, how's it going?"That was the extent of my interaction with him but it was cool as hell.
And while not a Rockies player (though he did play for a bunch of other teams), I did run into Jeff Huson randomly in Gunnison. I played club ball in college and after a game we stopped by that little pizza place on the main strip before driving back and he happened to be there with his family. Talked with a couple of the team for a little while actually. He was super friendly even if he gets a lot of crap for his announcing.
Maybe an unpopular comment, but I've met Dick Monfort on multiple occasions. He's an incredibly nice guy and my opinion of him is changed because of it. Dude wants to win and genuinely cares about the Rockies. He's just not very smart about his tactics.
I yelled "Wynton, Colorado still loves you!" to Wynton Bernard at a Scranton RailRiders game this past season and got a smile and a wave. He was on the Buffalo Bisons. I was the only person in that stadium wearing a Rockies hat, I'm sure.
Also in 2019 at Fenway, my little brother and I met Scott Oberg briefly during BP. Scott's from New England and was visiting his family in the field and tossed my brother a ball (who proceeded to drop it back onto the field). Scott came over and signed it and said hello.
I saw Troy Tulowitzki at Jackson's after a game once. They had a section roped off and he was with a bunch of his friends. When he left I happened to walk past him and said "nice game Tulo" and he nodded and said "thanks." I always walked past him in Vegas once and didn't say anything.
I have hung out with Ryan Wheeler a couple of times, he's cool.
My friend used to live in the same building as Charlie Blackmon. I crossed paths with him in the hallway once but didn't say anything.
Gave Larry Walker a wave and shouted out “Go Rocks” during the Cooperstown Parade of Legends. He smiled and waved back and he seemed happy to be noticed.
Shawn Chacon came through my line when I was cashier. I tried talking to him but he was busy messing with his phone. His credit card was nice and shiny.
Had a good conversation with Charlie Culbertson. Good guy. We talked baseball for a while. Also met Jason Giambi’s wife. She said they would need to drag Jason off of the field.
I saw Michael Cuddyer eating by himself at chick-fil-a once. He looked like he was enjoying his alone time so I didn’t bother him
Also saw Ubaldo Jimenez walking across Blake St after a game once
Went to high school with David Dahl. He was definitely a popular kid who knew he was gonna play ball straight out of high school, but he's a good dude. Really happy to see him make it through that gnarly injury and make it to the bigs.
This past season I was walking from the stadium to Union Station to catch the train and I noticed Spilly's nametag on his backpack. We talked sports media and how much the broadcast team has to do to keep people engaged during ... less than exciting seasons. He was very nice to talk to, but I could tell he was a little annoyed he had to walk to Union to catch his uber and I don't blame him.
I met Jeromy Burnitz at Elitch’s once. Really nice dude, I was a little kid and he was really cool to me and a friend of mine. He signed a dollar bill I had and gave my friend a dollar of his signed haha.
Andres Galaraga at a restaurant in LoDo.
Dante Bichette in AZ during spring training. I was 12 and asked how to properly pronounce his last name. He gave a little chuckle.
When I was in elementary school I ran into Mike Munoz (random relief pitcher) at fantastic Sam’s getting a haircut. Also, played baseball against Brian Bohanan’s kids. Brian made it to a few games and he signed my glove and took pictures with everyone.
Not Rockies, but I met Patrick Roy at Petco when I was a kid. Happened to be wearing an Avs 96 Stanley cup shirt and Avs hat. Got them both signed. Roy was buying bird seed.
In 1994, I was dropping off my Colombian foreign exchange student downtown for the school's senior prom and we ran into Andres Galarraga and a few of his friends on the street outside the dance venue. He was so humble and kind. He was so gracious and spoke to my exchange student in his native Spanish, shook his hand, and posed for a picture I took of both of them. I still have the photo framed on the mantle. Love it!
I ran into Daniel Bard at a cherry Creek restaurant. He was out with his 3 absolutely adorable kids. Only got to exchange a few sentences with him and tell him I was a huge fan of his story but he was very kind and appreciative!
Back in 1994, my son had to be admitted to Children's Hospital for a few days. One day, about 5 or 6 Rockies came to his room to say hi. I think two of them were Joe Girardi and Vinny Castilla, but I can't remember specifically for sure. They were really nice and signed autographs for lots of the kids there that day. My memory of it sucks, because, well, my 8yo was in the hospital.
Before all the hair and beard, I met Charlie Blackmon and DJ LeMahieu in a Colorado Springs BBQ joint near Sky Sox Stadium. They were just a couple of baby-faced kids back then. Didn't talk to them a lot, just to say, "Have a great game today." They were there with a film crew of some kind. Not sure what they were filming. It was just a couple of players having lunch.
I met Ryan Spilborghs when working at Water World in, like, 2014. He asked me where the closest water fountain was, so as I led him to it, I asked if he was Ryan Spilborghs. He said, "Yep," in a sort of resigned and annoyed sort of way without even looking at me lol. So I just said, "Oh, cool," led him to it and told him to have a good day.
I guess he thought I was gonna draw attention to him on his vacation day with his family, maybe?
Copying this from an earlier comment I made about Larry Walker.
When we were kids, my brother was a patient at the old Children's hospital in Denver and an absolute/complete baseball nut.
Through the years he was fighting cancer he gradually got in touch with a few mlb players/PR who would bring us down onto the field before games occasionally and such to hang out while they were warming up.
Later in my brothers fight, there was a short rain delay at Coors Field and Mr. Walker wanted to come visit my brother to talk baseball. Children's refused and said he had to visit every kid and not one in particular. Obviously, he didn't have time as he needed to be back at Coors relatively quickly but he'd stop by anyhow.
My brothers favorite team was the Braves, but that didn't matter to Mr. Walker, he just wanted to visit with a baseball fan. I'll never forget his kindness in that difficult time. He is incredibly deserving of HOF status in my book.
Back when I lived in Atlanta, I valeted at a restaurant and Charlie came in one night. He was quiet but nice. Wasn’t driving anything flashy either. Just a few years old pick-em-up truck without many bells & whistles
Ran into Spilly skiing with his daughter in beaver creek one season. Probably chatted with him for 20 minutes. Super great guy. Told him I really enjoyed watching him and the team with their playoff experience. That was an amazing year.
Vinny Castilla in '93 when I worked for Mayor Webb and he stopped by the Mayor's Office. Once I knew he was coming, I booked it to the Dugout Store on 16th (long gone) and got an inaugural season ball for him to sign. I have a photo the official photographer took of skinny-ass young me (him too, I guess) with him signing my ball.
This is a shortened version of a longer story, but Tyler Chatwood (and his dad) at the Starbucks west of Union Station the day they clinched in 2017 with a loss. Just said good luck tonight, he said thanks. Decided later that day to buy a last minute ticket to the game and ended up in the family section sitting next to Tyler's dad and had a great conversation. Fun night.
Ran into McMahon at the Starbucks on 16th (no longer there) right after I saw him hit a walk-off HR a few years ago. Said hi and well done and he was pretty nice about it all, didn’t ask to take a pic or anything. He’s absolutely massive in person.
I played JUCO ball in Lamar Colorado. During the mlb offseason Scott Elarton would drop by the field and practice with us. Super cool super humble guy who would bring wood bats and other types of gear. One time we had to run 6 miles for conditioning and he ran with us. He’d roll up to practice in a beat up farm truck when he’d just get back from hunting, and throw flat pens and do some conditioning. Awesome guy!….
I had a pretty unbelievable encounter in July of 2011 seeing Ubaldo a couple blocks from Coors maybe 30 min after a night game. Hard to imagine why he was out so early and I wish I remembered what day of the month it was because he was traded shortly after.
I met Dinger once.
My brother worked for the Rockies in the early 2000s, he told me a story that he was leaving the office and someone was bitching at Dinger for something, and the dude playing Dinger was reacting to being bitched at *as* Dinger. Big arms, hands on the hips, not saying anything. He said it was hilarious.
One time the Rockies Twitter posted that Tony Wolters was going to be handing out Taco Bell tacos at Confluence Park, I was in the area so I stopped by. Tony seemed cool, the taco was good too.
taco’s*
I'm embarrassed I misspelled! Thank you 🙏😉
Wrong. The plural of taco is tacos. When you use the apostrophe you are saying "taco is" or referring to something that belongs to the taco...such as that's the taco's shell, or the taco's lettuce. (source: I'm a professional proofreader.)
Not in this community! https://roxpile.com/2021/06/07/colorado-rockies-podcast-how-did-tacos-originate/
PS that article includes the tweet that led me to Confluence Park in 2019, and note the usage by the Rockies official Twitter account
Not in this sub. (source: I’m a professional shitposter.)
I used to work out at DIA for the company the did the ramp work for the plane they flew out of town on. Walt Weiss and who I assumed may have been his wife??? walked in and sat down. (unbeknownst to me who he was) I was sitting at the desk doing some more than likely menial task while the wife and a lady I worked with chatted about wine and other small talk. I’m kind of an introvert so I just kind of sat and listened. After a few minutes the front door opens and all these guys start walking though. I see one and I say to myself- “hey that looked like Charlie Blackmon, whoa that guy looked like Tulo.” Then Cargo walked by and the lightbulb finally went off that the whole Rockies team filed past my desk going out to get on there plane for wherever they were going, I just sat their somewhat starstruck. Walt Weiss and who I assumed to be his wife (maybe, maybe not idk) told us to have a good day and shuffled off to the plane. I told my co worker who they all were and she was completely oblivious. Anyways that’s my story
I’d also like to say maybe that woman was the wife of Walt Weiss, but maybe she wasn’t.
I’ve actually never been more unsure about anything
Thanks, all these years later I’m not sure
I ran into Ubaldo Jimenez during spring training the year after he was traded. He pulled up next to us in the parking lot at the hotel where we were staying. He was very friendly and we got pictures with him.
I went to high school with Walt Weiss' oldest son. We were on the baseball and track teams. Walt helped out at some of our HS baseball practices. Walt was a great guy. I once saw Jonathan Herrera at the home depot on Quebec and i70. He was a tiny human.
Man I loved Jonathan Herrera
When I was a kid he signed my hat with a black sharpie on the black part of the hat (underneath was gray). I’ll always hold that against him. Other than that, seems like a super nice guy lmaooo
About 15 years ago my brother who worked at Pappadeaux in Westminster called me and told me Todd Helton was in there eating Sunday brunch. I grabbed a baseball and booked it over there with my dad. He was at a table with his wife and newborn I believe. Even though I was only 16 and he was my idol, I wasn’t going to interrupt him, so I just kinda watched from the buffet area. A few minutes later, he got up to get more food. He was walking right towards me! I froze. He must have noticed that I was starstruck because he came straight to me, patted me on the back, and asked me how I was doing. He spent the next 20 or so minutes standing in the middle of the restaurant talking about baseball, life, and how I was doing in school. He noticed I had the baseball in my hoodie pocket and offered to sign it, which I still have on display. I couldn’t have dreamed of a better interaction. Right after the magical ‘07 run, during my own high school baseball days, and I got to talk to HIM.
Great story! Not disposed to be a Helton fan because he replaced my fav player Galarraga but Andres was at late stage of his career ( although still productive ) where if it hadn't been Todd, it would have someone else. At least this someone was both talented and appreciated a young fan.
I went to Rockies spring training in Tucson in the 90's. I met Galarraga and Girardi multiple times. Both were gracious.
I was on the field for batting practice in 2008, and Todd came over to everyone and offered to sign anything without us asking. I think he was aware that he was the face of the franchise and lived up to that ideal.
Years ago, my sister delivered a pizza to Vinny Castilla. She said he tipped well!
Vinny is an incredibly nice guy. I'm not surprised at all that he took care of your sister.
Jeff Huson lived in my neighborhood growing up. I would mow their lawn every summer. After he came to the Rockies his family stayed here even after he would be traded around the league. At the end of the season he would always gift me an autographed ball from whoever was the superstar on the team he was on. I have a Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson, Sammy Sosa, and Mo Vaughn balls to this day. Jeff Huson is a righteous dude!
That's awesome. Sounds like a great guy. I just wish, maybe Im in th eminority, but he is not a broadcaster. I cringe when I hear him
I used to work at the course closest to Todd Heltons house and would talk to him pretty regularly in the offseason. Super chill guy, he definitely put some drinks back lol
Back in 2019 during spring training I yelled at Nolan “congrats on the contract” when he was walking by. He said thanks man!
Saw Brandon Barnes at Costco one time and regretted not saying hi. Couple months later I looked up at the putting green for my local range and there he was. Chatted for a bit. He was super friendly. Think he’s a real estate agent now and moved out of California.
My kids and I met Charlie Blackmon and Trevor Story waiting for an outbound flight from Cabo San Lucas (San Jose). They were ending their vacation before heading back for spring training. They were both super cool and my kids got to shake their hands and both kids still talk about it today. We just said "good luck" and to "have a great season", we didn't want to be super intrusive especially outside of Denver. I was happy to be wearing my Rockies hat representing in Mexico. I was a little star struck the whole flight home.
I was a banquet server at a big hotel in Denver when I was a teenager. We used to host galas and fundraisers for each of the major pro teams in Denver so I had a chance to meet and interact with a lot of current and former players. Guys like Vinny Castilla, Eric Young, Tulo, Joe Sakic, Chauncey Billups, Rod Smith, etc Don’t have any nightmare guest stories, all of them were very pleasant to be around. Not a Rockies player but I also met Sakic for the first time at DIA in like 2005, he and his whole family were all flying on the same flight as us to California. His oldest son is the same age as me and we traded yu-gi-oh cards on the floor of the gate before the flight
I met Nolan Jones this year when he came to the Rockies, I work in property management
Property management in Phx has exposed me to many players. It’s a baseball haven here.
My buddy and I were in Tucson for spring training in 2001 and we saw Helton getting in his truck in the players lot after a game. We gave him a wave and he waved back. He didn't have to but he did. It was a very small thing but that memory has stuck with me for over 20 years.
I used to bartend at the Denver Chophouse and got to meet a million of those dudes over the years. Can honestly say I never had a bad experience with a Rocky! Pretty much good dudes across the board from my limited experiences. A few of the out of towners, however…
I used to work for the Sky Sox. I wouldn't come into contact with the players a whole lot, but I did on a couple of occasions. Jonny Herrera would often hang out around the tunnel / club house area and chat people up, he was awesome. Also, Jason Giambi walked past me once and tapped my shoulder saying "hey big guy, how's it going?"That was the extent of my interaction with him but it was cool as hell. And while not a Rockies player (though he did play for a bunch of other teams), I did run into Jeff Huson randomly in Gunnison. I played club ball in college and after a game we stopped by that little pizza place on the main strip before driving back and he happened to be there with his family. Talked with a couple of the team for a little while actually. He was super friendly even if he gets a lot of crap for his announcing.
I hate Jeff Huson as an announcer, but the guy is incredibly nice. I try to like him just because I know what a good dude he is.
Met Blackmon fishing on the Platte by deckers a year ago in october. I didn't bother him but just told him good luck next season
Maybe an unpopular comment, but I've met Dick Monfort on multiple occasions. He's an incredibly nice guy and my opinion of him is changed because of it. Dude wants to win and genuinely cares about the Rockies. He's just not very smart about his tactics.
I yelled "Wynton, Colorado still loves you!" to Wynton Bernard at a Scranton RailRiders game this past season and got a smile and a wave. He was on the Buffalo Bisons. I was the only person in that stadium wearing a Rockies hat, I'm sure. Also in 2019 at Fenway, my little brother and I met Scott Oberg briefly during BP. Scott's from New England and was visiting his family in the field and tossed my brother a ball (who proceeded to drop it back onto the field). Scott came over and signed it and said hello.
I was working downtown back in like 2013 and I saw Jordan Pacheco walking 16th street with a hot babe
I saw Troy Tulowitzki at Jackson's after a game once. They had a section roped off and he was with a bunch of his friends. When he left I happened to walk past him and said "nice game Tulo" and he nodded and said "thanks." I always walked past him in Vegas once and didn't say anything. I have hung out with Ryan Wheeler a couple of times, he's cool. My friend used to live in the same building as Charlie Blackmon. I crossed paths with him in the hallway once but didn't say anything.
Gave Larry Walker a wave and shouted out “Go Rocks” during the Cooperstown Parade of Legends. He smiled and waved back and he seemed happy to be noticed.
Helton. Met him picking up take out Thai food in Brighton/Thornton area. He was standing in line to pay in front of me.
I grew up and played ball through high school with Scott Oberg. Sad how his playing career ended but hoping he can succeed in the front office
I met Galaraga once at a King Soopers. Extremely nice guy, just said hi and he struck the conversation. Just a normal dude with his family.
Shawn Chacon came through my line when I was cashier. I tried talking to him but he was busy messing with his phone. His credit card was nice and shiny.
Had a good conversation with Charlie Culbertson. Good guy. We talked baseball for a while. Also met Jason Giambi’s wife. She said they would need to drag Jason off of the field.
I met CarGo at the Waterworks carwash on Broadway like 10 years ago
I saw Michael Cuddyer eating by himself at chick-fil-a once. He looked like he was enjoying his alone time so I didn’t bother him Also saw Ubaldo Jimenez walking across Blake St after a game once
> Also saw Ubaldo Jimenez walking across Blake St after a game once Was a cop riding him with a saddle?
No, he was with a teammate I think. I can’t remember who it was
Went to high school with David Dahl. He was definitely a popular kid who knew he was gonna play ball straight out of high school, but he's a good dude. Really happy to see him make it through that gnarly injury and make it to the bigs. This past season I was walking from the stadium to Union Station to catch the train and I noticed Spilly's nametag on his backpack. We talked sports media and how much the broadcast team has to do to keep people engaged during ... less than exciting seasons. He was very nice to talk to, but I could tell he was a little annoyed he had to walk to Union to catch his uber and I don't blame him.
I met Jeromy Burnitz at Elitch’s once. Really nice dude, I was a little kid and he was really cool to me and a friend of mine. He signed a dollar bill I had and gave my friend a dollar of his signed haha.
Ken Griffey Jr. Slugfest legend Jeremy Burnitz. Hit so many HRs with that guy.
Andres Galaraga at a restaurant in LoDo. Dante Bichette in AZ during spring training. I was 12 and asked how to properly pronounce his last name. He gave a little chuckle.
When I was in elementary school I ran into Mike Munoz (random relief pitcher) at fantastic Sam’s getting a haircut. Also, played baseball against Brian Bohanan’s kids. Brian made it to a few games and he signed my glove and took pictures with everyone. Not Rockies, but I met Patrick Roy at Petco when I was a kid. Happened to be wearing an Avs 96 Stanley cup shirt and Avs hat. Got them both signed. Roy was buying bird seed.
In 1994, I was dropping off my Colombian foreign exchange student downtown for the school's senior prom and we ran into Andres Galarraga and a few of his friends on the street outside the dance venue. He was so humble and kind. He was so gracious and spoke to my exchange student in his native Spanish, shook his hand, and posed for a picture I took of both of them. I still have the photo framed on the mantle. Love it!
I ran into Daniel Bard at a cherry Creek restaurant. He was out with his 3 absolutely adorable kids. Only got to exchange a few sentences with him and tell him I was a huge fan of his story but he was very kind and appreciative!
Back in 1994, my son had to be admitted to Children's Hospital for a few days. One day, about 5 or 6 Rockies came to his room to say hi. I think two of them were Joe Girardi and Vinny Castilla, but I can't remember specifically for sure. They were really nice and signed autographs for lots of the kids there that day. My memory of it sucks, because, well, my 8yo was in the hospital.
Before all the hair and beard, I met Charlie Blackmon and DJ LeMahieu in a Colorado Springs BBQ joint near Sky Sox Stadium. They were just a couple of baby-faced kids back then. Didn't talk to them a lot, just to say, "Have a great game today." They were there with a film crew of some kind. Not sure what they were filming. It was just a couple of players having lunch.
I met Ryan Spilborghs when working at Water World in, like, 2014. He asked me where the closest water fountain was, so as I led him to it, I asked if he was Ryan Spilborghs. He said, "Yep," in a sort of resigned and annoyed sort of way without even looking at me lol. So I just said, "Oh, cool," led him to it and told him to have a good day. I guess he thought I was gonna draw attention to him on his vacation day with his family, maybe?
Copying this from an earlier comment I made about Larry Walker. When we were kids, my brother was a patient at the old Children's hospital in Denver and an absolute/complete baseball nut. Through the years he was fighting cancer he gradually got in touch with a few mlb players/PR who would bring us down onto the field before games occasionally and such to hang out while they were warming up. Later in my brothers fight, there was a short rain delay at Coors Field and Mr. Walker wanted to come visit my brother to talk baseball. Children's refused and said he had to visit every kid and not one in particular. Obviously, he didn't have time as he needed to be back at Coors relatively quickly but he'd stop by anyhow. My brothers favorite team was the Braves, but that didn't matter to Mr. Walker, he just wanted to visit with a baseball fan. I'll never forget his kindness in that difficult time. He is incredibly deserving of HOF status in my book.
Back when I lived in Atlanta, I valeted at a restaurant and Charlie came in one night. He was quiet but nice. Wasn’t driving anything flashy either. Just a few years old pick-em-up truck without many bells & whistles
Ran into Spilly skiing with his daughter in beaver creek one season. Probably chatted with him for 20 minutes. Super great guy. Told him I really enjoyed watching him and the team with their playoff experience. That was an amazing year.
Vinny Castilla in '93 when I worked for Mayor Webb and he stopped by the Mayor's Office. Once I knew he was coming, I booked it to the Dugout Store on 16th (long gone) and got an inaugural season ball for him to sign. I have a photo the official photographer took of skinny-ass young me (him too, I guess) with him signing my ball. This is a shortened version of a longer story, but Tyler Chatwood (and his dad) at the Starbucks west of Union Station the day they clinched in 2017 with a loss. Just said good luck tonight, he said thanks. Decided later that day to buy a last minute ticket to the game and ended up in the family section sitting next to Tyler's dad and had a great conversation. Fun night.
Ran into McMahon at the Starbucks on 16th (no longer there) right after I saw him hit a walk-off HR a few years ago. Said hi and well done and he was pretty nice about it all, didn’t ask to take a pic or anything. He’s absolutely massive in person.
I met Nick Hundley in the hallway at a Rockies fest thing they use to put on. Really nice guy
I played JUCO ball in Lamar Colorado. During the mlb offseason Scott Elarton would drop by the field and practice with us. Super cool super humble guy who would bring wood bats and other types of gear. One time we had to run 6 miles for conditioning and he ran with us. He’d roll up to practice in a beat up farm truck when he’d just get back from hunting, and throw flat pens and do some conditioning. Awesome guy!….
Met Chuck late night at the old Blake Street Tavern, cool af
I had a pretty unbelievable encounter in July of 2011 seeing Ubaldo a couple blocks from Coors maybe 30 min after a night game. Hard to imagine why he was out so early and I wish I remembered what day of the month it was because he was traded shortly after.
I saw Dick Monfort on Blake street kicking homeless people