The Rockies fired manager Bud Black on Sunday amid the ballclub’s historically bad start to the season, despite a 9-3 win over the Padres that snapped an eight-game losing streak. They also fired bench coach Mike Redmond.
The Rockies are 7-33, last in the National League West and own the worst record in Major League Baseball.
Black, 67, was in his ninth year as the Rockies’ manager and was the longest-tenured manager in team history. This was the final year of his contract.
Black was replaced by third base coach Warren Schaeffer, who will serve as interim manager for the remainder of the season. Hitting coach Clint Hurdle has been named the interim bench coach
Black found success early in his tenure with Colorado, leading the team to its only back-to-back postseason appearances in 2017-18. But it’s been all downhill since. Amid a youth movement, the franchise is headed toward its seventh consecutive losing season, the longest streak in franchise history. And a third consecutive 100-loss season appears likely.
Hamstrung by the worst offenses in franchise history, the Rockies lost 103 games in 2023 and 101 games in ’01, marking the only times the club suffered triple-digit losses in a season. The 2024 club’s .242 average, .304 on-base percentage, and .704 OPS were all the lowest in franchise history, while its 1,617 strikeouts were the most in club history.
Black managed more games than anyone in club history, won more games but also lost more games). Personable and charismatic, Black had a strong, friendly relationship with his players, the front office and staff, as well as the media.
A major league pitcher for 15 seasons, Black brought a pitching-rich background to Colorado when he was hired before the 2017 season. He replaced Walt Weiss and inherited a team that went 75-87 in 2016.
The ’17 Rockies finished 87-75 and advanced to the postseason but lost 11-8 to Arizona in the National League wild-card game.
Colorado improved to 91-72 in 2018 and came one game away from winning its first division title. The Dodgers and Rockies finished the regular season deadlocked, forcing a one-game playoff in Los Angeles. The Dodgers won, 5-2, to clinch the NL West title.
The Rockies beat the Cubs 2-1 in a dramatic 13-inning wild-card game at Wrigley Field but were then swept in three games by Milwaukee in the NL divisional series.
Under Black’s tutelage, left-hander Kyle Freeland and right-hander German Marquez blossomed into two of the best pitchers in franchise history. In 2018, Freeland finished fourth in the NL Cy Young Award voting after posting a 2.85 ERA, the lowest in a full season in franchise history and the fifth-lowest in the NL in 2018.
In 2021, Marquez was one of the best pitchers in baseball in the first half of the season and made the All-Star Team. He finished with a 4.40 ERA and led the NL with three complete games.