In 2007, when the Rockies rode a Rocktober wave to the World Series, the Tampa Bay Rays finished last in the AL East standings at 66-96.
The year before, then-Tampa Bay executive vice president of baseball operations and general manager Andrew Friedman had hired Joe Maddon to manage the Rays, and together they worked to right the ship. In 2008 they did just that. Under Friedman, who now takes charge of the two-time champion Dodgers, the Rays went 97-65 and landed in the World Series.
Maddon, who now writes about baseball and leadership, among other things, wrote an article earlier this week The Athletics about what makes Friedman a good leader, which coincidentally also included some tips on winning.
Before we get to these tips, I need to make two disclaimers.
First off, I don’t think the Rockies should bring in the 71-year-old Maddon to lead the Rockies. Secondly, I believe his comments about the San Francisco Giants hiring Tony Vitello are “insulting” to him because he has no MLB experience, making it sound like he’s a grumpy old man yelling at kids to stay off his lawn (but I do like the reaction of to be insulted by being insulted). At the same time, Maddon’s winning percentage of .532 in his 19-year MLB managerial career is 0.44 higher than that of any Rockies manager and includes a World Series Championship. So he knows a thing or two about winning.
Last week, the Rockies hired Paul DePodesta as the new head of baseball operations. He has quite a to-do list: quickly hire a general manager, define the identity of the organization, determine the culture, make a choice on who will lead the team and build the roster for 2026. Some of Maddon’s advice may be valuable.
First, for DePodesta. Maddon shares Friedman’s two leadership traits that make him so effective. Dick Monfort should listen: First, “He deliberately challenged people’s ideas to start a conversation,” Maddon said, and second, “He was a great listener.”
At his press conference Thursday, DePodesta seemed to be on the right track on both counts. He emphasized that his priority is to get to know everyone and learn what has been done and what has worked in the past.
“The first thing I want to do is get to know everyone here and the opportunities that are already available,” DePodesta said. “I want to do that first before we think about how we want to supplement that with extra people and extra skills.
Rockies executive vice president Walker Monfort spoke of DePodesta’s freedom to try to change his mind, along with that of his father (owner Dick Monfort), who seemed to openly welcome challenges to Rockies conventional wisdom.
“He’s going to have an opportunity to distribute what we do have,” Walker Monfort said of DePodesta’s control of the reins when it comes to how money is spent. “And I think he has a chance to convince us that there should be more available.”
That seems promising because DePodesta should challenge Monfort’s ideas. The people under DePodesta need to challenge his ideas while he challenges theirs, and so on. Every decision, whether signing a free agent or determining a pitching approach, should be discussed as a diplomatic deliberation where only the best ideas that can pass scrutiny become policy.
Then there has to be a way for the manager, whether it’s Warren Schaeffer or someone else, to build an identity and win more games. This is where they might be able to take an approach that Maddon took to win 32 more games in 2008 than he did in 2007.
“Before the 2008 season, I came up with an esoteric idea for our team: 9 = 8. It meant: 9 players playing hard for 9 innings could make us one of the 8 teams in the playoffs,” Maddon explained. “I started extrapolating that. I wanted nine more wins from the offense, nine more wins from the defense, nine more wins from the pitching staff. I didn’t even know how that would work, but I thought it sounded good.”
If Tanner Gordon can play a full season, if Chase Dollander can continue to make progress, and if Kyle Freeland throws another 14 quality starts, at least nine more pitching wins are possible – and that’s just for the starters. If the Rockies defense doesn’t rank last in defensive efficiency (.661) and they don’t commit the second-most errors in the MLB (110), nine more wins could be on the table. And if the offense can cut down on strikeouts (not No. 29 at 1,531) and score more runs (not No. 29 at 3.69 per game), Colorado could use its bats to post nine more wins.
The Rockies went 43-119 in 2025. What if they could win 27 more games and be 70-92 in 2026? That would be a step in the right direction and result in the best Colorado record since 2019. While it would still be a losing season and nowhere near the playoffs, it would be a sign of progress, which the top executive said should happen every season at Thursday’s press conference.
On the plus side, as DePodesta said Thursday, one of the changes from the last time he played baseball is that 12 teams now make the postseason. Therefore, nine can be equal to twelve. It’s easier to reach the MLB postseason than ever before, and the Rockies could find a blueprint for contention sooner rather than later.
Which brings us to Maddon’s final piece of advice: the need for trust.
Maddon came up with the 9=8 idea while riding his bike. He wanted to use it as a way to motivate and direct the team. When he called Friedman to ask what he thought of the idea, Friedman said he loved it.
“Imagine the confidence I had to follow through on that. Andreas loved it. That created all the momentum for me,” Maddon said. “He loved new things, new thoughts and ideas, and he understood, beyond his capabilities with data and analytics, the human side of things.”
The Rockies need to embrace new ideas. Then they must find their vision for winning and instill confidence in everyone – from the head of baseball operations and GM to the manager and players – to execute it.
Renck: Rockies’ Dick Monfort passes the torch to son Walker. Please don’t take it back | Denver Post ($)
Troy Renck expresses optimism about DePodesta after attending Thursday’s press conference. While Dick Monfort let Walker do most of the talking, Renck expresses concern that the owner will interfere too much and not leave the key decision-making to his son and DePodesta.
A ‘Moneyball’ architect is back in the MLB to turn around a new franchise | Washington Post ($)
In a national story, Chelsea Janes analyzes the appointment of Paul DePodesta. She has quotes about his decision to return to baseball at a time when the game has changed and continues to evolve rapidly.
Three out-of-left GM candidates for the Colorado Rockies | Heavy
Mark Knudson has some ideas for who Paul DePodest could hire. My vote is for Kim Ng.
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