Getting to Know You: Charlie Blackmon Colorado Rockies Centerfielder

You know he’s a slugger, but this guy’s a runner.

It’s not difficult to see Charlie Blackmon is a slugger.

He won the Silver Slugger in 2016 and 2017.  Makes it sort of a no-brainer.  What may be a little beneath the surface is that he’s a runner.

In 2015, his 43 steals were third in the majors.

That’s huge.

Not only are you getting on base and putting out offensively but then you are adding to it by moving up.  It’s like adding 43 hits on top of the hits you already got.  Squeezing an extra base out of a situation is the difference between winning and losing sometimes.  It’s the offensive playmakers like this that have to be a part of championship teams.

Blackmon would debut with the Rockies in 2011 and his slugger nature and base running style were evident immediately.

2012 would be spotty for him fighting injury.  2013 was split with Triple-A and the Rockies with continued hitting success.

2014 was a break-out year where Blackmon earned his first selection to the NL All Star team.  He was a member of the Rockies opening day roster for the first time and was starting as the center fielder.  Of course, things just kept progressing and he was getting better and better, setting new career highs each season.

2016 was when his first Silver Slugger was awarded and the records started getting set and broken, as the case may be.  Unfortunately, this is also when his injuries will also start acting up, at least costing him valuable time if nothing else.  He will still be named player of the week twice and have a 14 game hitting streak through July.

2017 will mark Blackmon’s being awarded the National League Batting Title and his second consecutive Silver Slugger, not a bad resume for a season.  Oh, second All-Star Game selection for him too.  His stats can be viewed here and they are glorious, please take the time to check it out.  You can follow Charlie on Twitter @Chuck_Nazty or on Instagram @chuck__nazty.