Colorado Rockies' Offense Too Good to Not Be Competitive in 2015

The Colorado Rockies won only 66 games last year, limping to a 66-96 record and a fourth-place finish in the National League West. Which is why it seems laughable to even consider this team to be even decent.

However, look up and down their lineup and it seems way too productive to not be at least a middle-of-the-pack club.

Check out the team's projected lineup for 2015:

1	CF	Charlie Blackmon
2	LF	Corey Dickerson
3	SS	Troy Tulowitzki
4	RF	Carlos Gonzalez
5	1B	Justin Morneau
6	3B	Nolan Arenado
7	C	Wilin Rosario
8	2B	DJ LeMahieu
9	P	Pitcher

Stick with me as I dissect this potential juggernaut.

In Charlie Blackmon and Corey Dickerson are two of the two biggest breakout players of 2014. Each player got a full season's worth of at-bats for the first time in their respective careers, and they both flourished.

Blackmon hit .288 with 19 home runs and 28 stolen bases, while Dickerson hit .312 with 24 home runs and nearly cracked the top 10 in the MLB with an impressive 142 OPS+, according to Baseball-Reference.com.

After them come two of the elite hitters in the game, when healthy. Troy Tulowitzki is arguably the most valuable player in the game when he is firing on all cylinders because of the power he brings to a generally soft-hitting position, and he hit .340 with 21 home runs in 91 games in 2014.

Carlos Gonzalez hit at least .295 with home runs in every season from 2010-2013, but he has battled various injuries seemingly every year as well.

Batting fifth is Justin Morneau, whose .319 batting average was good for the NL batting title. He has slowly but surely regained his MVP form from his days with the Minnesota Twins. Even going into his age-33 season, he continues to swing a hot bat and should be just as effective at the plate in 2015.

Mike Stobe/Getty Images

Then there's Nolan Arenado, who is widely considered to be on the verge of a breakout. He is only 23 years old and still managed 18 round-trippers and 34 doubles despite missing time with a finger injury in May and pneumonia in September.

Wilin Rosario is no slouch behind the plate, either. He hit more than 20 homers in each of his first two full seasons, and even though he regressed to only 13 in 2014, he could easily reach the 20-plateau this year.

And DJ LeMahieu is a Gold Glover at second base and is not bad with the bat. He hit .267 with 25 extra-base hits and 10 stolen bases.

It is a tremendously talented lineup, and when you put that kind of an offensive unit in a hitter-friendly ballpark like Coors Field, there is no reason why it shouldn't lead the league in runs scored.

But there is health, which has eluded most of the Rockies in the past. Folks have tried and tried to find the source of these injury woes—maybe it's the high altitude or some other factor—but whatever it is, Colorado needs to conquer it to have any shot at improving.

Tulowitzki cannot put a finger on it, either, but that doesn't mean he isn't going to do everything in his power to stay on the field for a full season.

"I've gone to lengths and lengths to try to figure this thing out," he told The Associated Press, via ESPN.com in February. "I'm not going to quit. I'm not going to quit trying until I find that right recipe."

That kind of dedication is good to hear, and it is only mathematically logical that Tulo will play an injury-free season one of these years.

Ben Margot/Associated Press

Now I understand that the organization does not have many (if any) quality pitchers, so the Rockies will likely not be able to consistently hold their opponents to low run totals throughout the season.

But this lineup is too powerful for the team to not be at the least competitive. Every series, the opposing team should know that they are going to have to score six or seven runs per game to win games.

That might not sound like much, especially against the Rockies' unimpressive pitching staff, but scoring runs consistently can do wonders to a team's psyche.

Ultimately, the Rockies are probably not going to win a whole lot of games this year no matter how awesome their offense is. But they have a few young pitching prospects—most notably Jon Gray and Eddie Butler—and like I said before, one of these years the injury bug has to lessen a bit.

Last year, they only had one pitcher make more than 22 starts. Also, 26 players pitched in at least one game. That kind of massive turnover is not favorable for the team, and it's one of the main reason for the team's lackluster record.

With that said, the Rockies have what it takes to compete in the NL West in 2015.  Don't confuse compete with contend. They likely don't have any realistic chance of cracking the playoffs, even the second wild card spot, but they have the talent to play plenty of close games no matter the opponent.

Whatever happens, you can bet that the Rockies will punish opposing pitchers' ERA, especially in games played at Coors Field.

You can bet as well on a few injuries along the way.