The Colorado Rockies have stumbled into the history books for all the wrong reasons. After Monday night’s 6-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves, Colorado dropped to 4-24 on the season, marking the worst start in modern National League history, according to MLB’s Manny Randhawa.
The Rockies are just the third NL team ever to lose at least 23 of their first 28 games, joining the 2022 Cincinnati Reds and 1952 Pittsburgh Pirates. Neither of those teams finished strong: the Reds ended with 62 wins, while the Pirates managed just 42.
Colorado’s current .148 winning percentage projects to a 24-138 finish—worse than the 2024 Chicago White Sox’s 41-121 mark, which set a new MLB record for most losses in a season. The Rockies’ pace would shatter that number and potentially set a new standard for futility in the sport.
Monday’s game followed a familiar script. The Rockies jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first inning, only to surrender six unanswered runs. Atlanta scored in three straight frames between the third and fifth innings, sealing Colorado’s seventh consecutive loss.
The Rockies have now dropped 15 of their last 16 games and haven’t won back-to-back contests all year. Their last win came on April 20. In 26 of their 28 games, they’ve trailed at some point—often early, often for good.
MLB writer Dayn Perry noted that the Rockies’ historically bad start is even more alarming when compared to recent basement dwellers. He pointed out that while last year’s White Sox set a new benchmark for ineptitude, Colorado is on pace to undercut even that.
The franchise has long struggled to find consistency, but this season’s start is alarming even by their standards. With a depleted roster, lackluster pitching, and an inability to generate offense late in games, the Rockies are rapidly heading toward a historically poor campaign.
Colorado will try to halt their slide on Tuesday in the second of their three-game series against the Braves. But with momentum against them and a brutal schedule ahead, even small signs of progress may be hard to find.
Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
