DENVER — Even if the Colorado Rockies had won a World Series title or two -- an accomplishment that remains elusive 30 years and 31 seasons into their major league history -- it's difficult to imagine such an event matching the hysteria the team generated from the Rocky Mountain region during its embryonic stages.
Kyle Dyer and Julie Andrews recapture that moment in time through their wonderfully informative documentary, "When Colorado Went Major League," which will be televised at 7 p.m. Saturday on KTVD Channel 20.
The hour-long show premiered Thursday night on the enormous TV inside McGregor Square with between 400 to 500 people watching from The Rally Hotel. Among those in attendance were former Colorado governors Roy Romer and Bill Owens, former U.S. senator Tim Wirth, former Denver Mayor Federico Pena, former Colorado House of Representatives Majority Whip Kathi Williams, Rockies owner Dick Monfort, former Rockies general manager Bob Gebhard, current GM Bill Schmidt and the Rockies player who perhaps best symbolizes the team's very beginning, Eric Young.
"Amazing. All of it,'' Young said of the documentary before he rushed off to catch a flight to Atlanta, where he serves as first base coach for a Braves team that opens their post-All Star break schedule Friday against the White Sox. "Brought back great memories, seeing all your former teammates and the excitement the Rockies brought to the city.
"And very educational. As players, we had no idea how many people were involved in bringing Major League Baseball here, the (ballpark) tax, the process involved, all the hard work.''
Tears streamed from EY's red eyes down to his gray beard as his famous home run from 30 years ago was shown to the premier gathering's applause. Before a record crowd of 80,277 at old Mile High Stadium, Young led off the home half of the first inning of the Rockies' first home game by lifting a full-count, Kent Bottenfield pitch into the left-field stands for a home run. Some 35 years of Denver trying to get Major League Baseball's attention was unleashed by the team's first batter in the first game played here.
The press box shook from its beamed support amid the pandemonium. And while EY, the Blake Street Bombers of Andres Galarraga, Larry Walker, Dante Bichette and Vinny Castilla, and the Todd Helton-led Rocktober of 2007 were featured in the documentary, this was more about Colorado's pursuit of a big-league franchise than it was about the on-diamond team.
Dyer, a former longtime 9NEWS anchor, and Andrews, who was among the 80,000 in attendance on that historical first day (the Rockies would beat Larry Walker's Montreal Expos, 11-4 on April 9, 1993) were co-producers, co-directors and co-storytellers of the documentary that is worth watching not only 30 years after the Rockies drew an unbreakable record 4,483,350 fans during their inaugural 67-95 season, but an invaluable historical testimonial for decades to come.
The show began with local real-estate agent and baseball fan Neil Macey pushing for a sales tax that would build a new ballpark -- if the major leagues would come. He found an ally in state representative Kathi Williams, who sponsored a bill of a .1 percent sales tax that was approved in August 1990 by the then-six county Denver metro taxpayers to build what became, in 1995, Coors Field.
When the ballpark construction costs were paid off, then-Broncos' owner Pat Bowlen piggybacked off that .1 percent sales tax to build what is now Empower Field at Mile High.
The promise of a new ballpark, the manic reception the Doug Danforth-led National League expansion committee received during its visit to Denver, political pressure exerted by U.S. Senators Wirth and Pat Schroeder, and just enough confidence in the Romer-assembled Denver ownership group led to National League president Bill White officially announcing on July 5, 1991 that the Colorado Rockies had joined Major League Baseball.
While time constraints prevented Gebhard, the Godfather of the Rockies' early years as the team's general manager, and popular team president Keli McGregor from getting their due, the documentary astutely credited former team attorney Paul Jacobs for not only structuring the initial ownership group, but rescuing it following the financial collapse amid criminal charges of lead partner Mickey Monus.
The inclusion of Coors Brewing to the ownership group led by Jerry McMorris, Charlie Monfort and Oren Benton was key to the Rockies joining the Florida Marlins as the 27th and 28th franchises in Major League Baseball. It wasn't until 1998 that Dick Monfort became a Rockies' ownership partner as McMorris and Benton ran into financial struggles with their personal companies.
The documentary was sponsored by Rockies' limited partner Linda Alvarado. Long before Mellody Hobson and Condoleezza Rice joined the Broncos' ownership group last year, Alvarado became the first woman owner in Major League Baseball.
Thirty years later, the Rockies are again losing on the field as they are 23 games below .500 entering this weekend series against the Yankees. Yet, the team averaged better than 42,000 fans during its previous 9-game homestand and three sellout crowds of 48,000-plus are expected for the Yankees. And that's with Taylor Swift expected to draw 150,000 for her shows Friday and Saturday at Empower Field and the String Cheese Incident selling out both of its shows at Red Rocks.
To think that for the 1993 season, the National League expansion committee was initially leaning towards awarding its two new franchises to two Florida cities. The big leagues have since learned that through good times and bad, there is no baseball market like Denver, Colorado. Local viewers of "When Colorado Went Major League" will be reminded of this Saturday evening on Channel 20.
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