Ranking the greatest Colorado Rockies of all time

The Colorado Rockies may not have the rich history of the Boston Red Sox or the many World Series titles of the New York Yankees, but they have produced more than their fair share of world-class players and eye-popping highlights.

Join us now as we count down the top five players in franchise history. It should be noted that the inhabitants of Coors Field are known for offensive prowess, so no pitchers have made our list.

5. Vinny Castilla

Position: Third base
Accolades: 3x Silver Slugger, 2x All-Star
Years active: 1991-2006

Like many sluggers from the steroid era, Castilla gets forgotten about, and that’s a shame because he had several excellent seasons. Between 1996 and 1999, the dependable infielder missed a total of nine games, and he drove in more than 100 runs in each of those four campaigns.

He had a career resurgence in 2004, when, at 36 years of age, he paced the NL with 131 RBIs.

4. Troy Tulowitzki

Position: Shortstop
Accolades: 5x All-Star, 2x Gold Glove, 2x Silver Slugger
Years active: 2006-2019

At his peak, Tulo was one of the best all-around shortstops in baseball. His five All-Star selections came between 2010 and 2015, and when he was on the field, he was a true weapon.

Unfortunately, he was injury-prone, and that led to his departure from Colorado during the 2015 season. He wasn’t himself in either Toronto or New York, and retired in July of 2019.

3. Nolan Arenado

Position: Third base
Accolades: 5x All-Star, 8x Gold Glove, 4x Silver Slugger
Years active: 2013-present

OK, this one hurts. Arenado led the NL in home runs three times in four years between 2015 and 2018 and has put up Hall of Fame numbers to this point in his career. Most of those stats came while he was in a Rockies uniform, but he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals prior to the 2021 campaign.

2. Todd Helton

Position: First base
Accolades: 5x All-Star, 4x Silver Slugger, 3x Gold Glove
Years active: 1997-2013

Helton spent his entire career in Colorado and made five consecutive All-Star Games from 2000 through 2004.

In 2000, he not only led the National League with a .372 batting average, he also paced the senior circuit with 147 RBIs and smashed 42 home runs (just eight fewer than NL home run leader Sammy Sosa).

1. Larry Walker

Position: Right field
Accolades: Hall of Fame, 5x All-Star, 7x Gold Glove, 1x NL MVP
Years active: 1989-2005

Larry Walker was one of the most dangerous all-around players in baseball during the 1990’s. He shined both at altitude and away from Coors Field, and while it took voters 10 years, Walker received the call from Cooperstown in 2020.