Let’s not even try to sugarcoat this—things are rough in Colorado. Like, historically rough. The Colorado Rockies are not just losing games but seemingly rewriting the “how bad can it get” section of the baseball handbook. After 50 games, they have already racked up 50 losses. That’s a pace so bad that it hasn’t been seen since…1884!

So, where do they even go from here?

Well, just early in May, Colorado let go of their longtime manager, Bub Black, and handed the reins to 40-year-old Warren Schaeffer. The hope is that a new voice, a new vibe, and a new result will come about. And honestly, the players say that the tone in the clubhouse has shifted, if not the record. And one even admitted they were not competitive before!

Austin Gomber, who is sidelined with injury, summed it up best to ESPN, “In the beginning of the year, we weren’t very competitive… Since [Schaeffer] took over, we’re pretty much in every game… It’s not going our way, but we’re competing.” While that might just sound like talk, there are surely some changes. But blowouts still happen—16 games lost by at least five runs. They are just 6-11 in one-run games, and the stats can eat at players, fans, and the clubhouse.

And here is another kicker, and it’s also kind of unbelievable.

For years, the Rockies have leaned on Coors Field’s hitter-friendly altitude. Now they are ranked dead last in scoring! Yes, the team built to hit in Denver’s thin air is scoring fewer runs than anyone else in baseball. The lowest they ranked was 22nd to date, but they even managed to surpass it.

Even the pitching is royally at its worst. They are the worst in the league for runs allowed. They are scoring the least and giving up the most. And one doesn’t need to be a sabermetrician to know this is a disaster.

Still, veterans like Kyle Freeland are not ready to quit just yet. “You can’t be mailing it in or closing up shop… We veterans have to keep the attitude of the team in the right spot.” And as far as guys like Tyler Freeman are concerned, they are trying to show up every day.

Freeman’s bat is doing the talking for the Colorado Rockies

There was a moment in March when the front office flipped Nolan Jones for Tyler Freeman, and it left the Colorado Rockies fans scratching their heads. And right now, strangely, Freeman might be the one bat cooking some kind of redemption arc. Against the Miami Marlins, the 26-year-old utility man turned heads with five hits over two games, including a clutch double on Wednesday that led to a fifth-inning run.

After the game, even Warren Schaeffer couldn’t help but admire Freeman. “Free looks really good right now… He’s just got really good bat-to-ball skills, and he’s making it happen… We’ll roll with him.” And it makes all the sense. Sure, the Freeman-for-Jones trade didn’t seem like a blockbuster move then. But now, more than two months later, Freeman has quietly outperformed Jones.

Despite having fewer opportunities, Freeman’s average is .283 with four extra-base hits and a low 11.7% strikeout rate. It’s kind of a slap on the critics. Jones is batting just .215, striking out at more than double Freeman’s rate, and holds a -0.7 WAR. So while they both are not lighting up MVP-level numbers, one guy is definitely at the forefront.

Sure, Freeman can’t be cracking the top team’s lineup every day, but for the Rockies, who are amid a rough reset, the small wins are what they can hang on to. Don’t you think so too?