History of Colorado Rockies in Timeline
The Colorado Rockies are a professional baseball team based in Denver, Colorado, competing in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) West Division. Their home games are played at Coors Field, situated in Denver's Lower Downtown area. The team is owned by the Monfort brothers and managed by Bud Black.
1922: Philadelphia Phillies
In 2018, the Rockies became the first team since the 1922 Philadelphia Phillies to play in four cities against four teams in five days, including the 162nd game of the regular season, NL West tie-breaker, NL Wild Card Game and NLDS Game 1.
1955: Denver Bears
In 1955, the original Denver Bears in the Western League were replaced by a Triple-A team of the same name.
1958: Continental League Proposed
In 1958, New York lawyer William Shea proposed the new Continental League as a rival to the two existing major leagues.
1960: Continental League Announcement
In 1960, the Continental League announced that play would begin in April 1961 with eight teams, including one in Denver headed by Bob Howsam.
April 1961: Continental League
In April 1961, the Continental League was supposed to begin play with eight teams, including one in Denver, but the league never played a game.
1985: Pirates Purchase Attempt
Following the Pittsburgh drug trials in 1985, an unsuccessful attempt was made to purchase the Pittsburgh Pirates and relocate them.
January 1990: Coors Brewing Company Partnership
In January 1990, Colorado's chances for a new team improved when Coors Brewing Company became a limited partner with the AAA Denver Zephyrs.
1991: Expansion Franchise Granted
In 1991, Denver was granted a Major League Baseball expansion franchise, along with the Florida Marlins.
1992: Ownership Change
In 1992, Monus and Antonucci were forced to drop out after Monus's reputation was ruined by an accounting scandal, Jerry McMorris stepped in at the 11th hour to save the franchise.
1993: Keli McGregor joins the Rockies
In 1993, Keli McGregor started working with the Rockies.
1993: Expansion Team
In 1993, the Rockies began as an expansion team and played their home games at Mile High Stadium.
1993: Inaugural Season
In 1993, the Rockies began play in the National League West and set an MLB attendance record with 4,483,350 fans.
1993: Black Uniform Debut
In 1993, the Rockies originally wore an alternate black uniform during their inaugural 1993 season, but for only a few games.
1993: Rockies begin play
Since the Colorado Rockies began play in 1993, the Dodgers and Giants have combined for 21 division titles.
1995: Coors Field Completed
Coors Field was completed for the 1995 Major League Baseball season.
1995: Move to Coors Field
In 1995, the Rockies moved to Coors Field, which became known as a hitter's park.
1995: Playoff Elimination
In 1995, the Rockies reached the MLB postseason as a National League Wild Card team and were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
1997: Jackie Robinson's Number Retired
Jackie Robinson's No. 42, was retired throughout all of baseball in 1997.
1998: Diamondbacks Founded
In 1998, the Arizona Diamondbacks were founded as the newest team in the league, leading to a rivalry with the Rockies.
2000: Uniform Change
In 2000, numerals were added to the chest of the Rockies' home uniforms.
2000: Pinstripes
In 2000, piping on the Rockies' road uniform was replaced with pinstripes, and black trim was added to the letters.
2000: Purple Alternate Uniform
In the 2000 season, the Rockies first unveiled their purple alternate uniform.
2002: Alternate Uniforms
From 2002 to 2011, the Rockies wore alternate versions of their pinstriped white uniform, featuring the interlocking "CR" on the left chest and numerals on the right chest.
2002: Keli McGregor becomes team president
In 2002, Keli McGregor rose to team president from senior director of operations.
2004: Vest Design
In 2004, the Rockies went with a vest design with black undershirts.
2005: Sleeveless Uniform
In the 2005 season, the Rockies started wearing black sleeveless alternate uniforms.
June 1, 2006: Christian Code of Conduct Controversy
On June 1, 2006, USA Today reported that Rockies management, including manager Clint Hurdle, had instituted an explicitly Christian code of conduct for the team's players, sparking controversy.
October 17, 2007: World Series Tickets
On October 17, 2007, the Colorado Rockies announced that tickets were to be available to the general public via online sales only, despite prior arrangements to sell the tickets at local retail outlets.
2007: Rockies sweep Diamondbacks in NLCS
During the 2007 National League Championship Series, the Rockies, entering as a wild card, swept the division champion Arizona Diamondbacks, advancing to their first World Series.
2007: World Series Appearance
In 2007, the Rockies advanced to the World Series but were swept by the Boston Red Sox.
2007: NL Pennant
In 2007, the Rockies won the NL pennant after winning 14 of their final 15 regular season games.
2009: Playoff Elimination
In 2009, the Rockies reached the MLB postseason as a National League Wild Card team and were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
April 20, 2010: Death of Keli McGregor
On April 20, 2010, Keli McGregor, the president of the Colorado Rockies, passed away. He had been with the team since its inception in 1993 and became team president in 2002.
March 2011: Salt River Fields Opens
In March 2011, Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Arizona, opened as the Rockies' spring training home.
2011: Alternate Uniforms
From 2002 to 2011, the Rockies wore alternate versions of their pinstriped white uniform, featuring the interlocking "CR" on the left chest and numerals on the right chest.
2012: Purple Mondays
At the start of the 2012 season, the Rockies introduced "Purple Mondays" in which the team wears its purple uniform every Monday game day.
2012: Road Uniform Update
Prior to the 2012 season, the Rockies brought back the purple piping on their road uniforms, but kept the other elements of their 2000 uniform change.
2013: Spanish radio broadcast on KNRV
As of 2013, Spanish language radio broadcasts of the Rockies are heard on KNRV 1150 AM.
August 17, 2014: Todd Helton's Number Retirement
On August 17, 2014, Todd Helton became the first Colorado player to have his number (17) retired.
2017: Official Purple
Beginning with the 2017 season, PMS 2685 was established as the official purple of the Rockies, inspired by the line "For purple mountain majesties" in "America the Beautiful."
2018: Carlos Gonzalez leaves the team
After 2018, Carlos Gonzalez left the team, and his number 5 has not been re-issued by the Rockies since.
2018: Four Cities in Five Days
In 2018, the Rockies played in four cities against four teams in five days, including the 162nd game of the regular season, NL West tie-breaker, NL Wild Card Game and NLDS Game 1.
2018: 25th Anniversary
In the 2018 season, caps with the "CR" in silver were worn to commemorate the team's 25th anniversary.
2019: Alternate Pants
Prior to 2019, the Rockies always wore their white pinstriped pants regardless of what uniform top they wore during home games. In 2019, the Rockies have since added alternate white non-pinstriped pants to pair with either their black or purple alternate uniforms at home
January 2020: Jerry Schemmel let go by KOA
In January 2020, long-time KOA radio announcer Jerry Schemmel was let go from his role for budgetary reasons by KOA's parent company.
2020: Personnel Work
During the 2020 season, the Rockies had baseball operations personnel work as clubhouse attendants in addition to their front office duties, resulting in work days lasting up to 17 hours.
March 2021: Report on Team Dysfunction
In March 2021, a report detailed dysfunction in the Rockies' front office, including baseball operations personnel working as clubhouse attendants.
2021: Larry Walker's number retired
In 2021, Larry Walker, the first Baseball Hall of Famer wearing a Rockies hat, had his number (33) retired by the Colorado Rockies, becoming the second player in team history to receive this honor.
2022: Jerry Schemmel returns to KOA
In 2022, Jerry Schemmel returned to KOA, replacing Mike Rice, who reportedly refused the COVID-19 vaccine.
2022: City Connect Uniforms
In 2022, the Rockies retired the black sleeveless uniform and replaced it with the "City Connect" uniform.
2023: Nuggets Win Finals
After the Denver Nuggets won the 2023 NBA Finals, the Rockies became the only one of Denver's franchises in the major North American professional sports leagues yet to win a championship.
2023: City Connect Uniform Tweaks
In 2023, the Rockies tweaked their "City Connect" uniform, pairing it with white pants on day games and green pants on night games.
April 10, 2024: FAA Investigation
On April 10, 2024, coach Hensley Meulens posted a video of himself seated in the captain's seat mid-flight, leading to an FAA investigation.
2024: All-Time Record
At the end of 2024, the Rockies had an all-time record of 2,321–2,699, resulting in a .462 winning percentage.
February 20, 2025: Roster Update
On February 20, 2025, the Rockies' roster, coaches, and NRIs were updated.
