The Colorado Rockies' 1997 season was the fifth for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Denver, Colorado, their fifth in the National League (NL), and third at Coors Field. The team competed in the National League West, finishing in third place with a record of 83–79. Right fielder Larry Walker won the NL Most Valuable Player Award (MVP), becoming the first Rockies player and Canadian-born player to do so in MLB. In a season of contrasting dynamics, the Rockies led the NL in attendance, runs scored, batting average, on-base percentage (OBP), and slugging percentage. However, the club was last in earned run average (ERA), as only Roger Bailey and John Thomson pitched enough innings to qualify for the ERA title and both produced ERAs under 5.00. Walker, Vinny Castilla, and Andrés Galarraga each hit at least 40 home runs. Walker led the NL in home runs with 49 and OBP (.452), and the major leagues in on-base plus slugging (1.172), while Galarraga led the NL in runs batted in (140).

Offseason

Regular season

The Rockies commenced the 1997 season on the road. Larry Walker hit two home runs in the season-opening series against the Reds in Cincinnati, and, on April 5, hit three more versus the Montreal Expos in Montreal for his first career three home run game. His first week accomplishments included a .440 batting average with six home runs in 25 at bats and the Player of the Week Award for the second time in his career on April 6. Walker concluded the month of April batting .456 with 41 hits, 29 runs scored, 11 home runs, 29 runs batted in (RBI), seven stolen bases, .538 on-base percentage (OBP), .911 slugging percentage (SLG), and 1.449 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS). His 29 runs scored set a major league record for the month of April, until surpassed by Bryce Harper in 2017. Walker was named NL Player of the Month for the first time. The Rockies concluded the month of April with a 17–7 record for a .708 winning percentage, their most successful month of 1997. Perhaps the most famous home run first baseman Andrés Galarraga hit was a mammoth grand slam off Kevin Brown on May 31, which landed 20 rows deep into the upper deck at Florida Marlins' Pro Player Stadium. It may also be his most debated home run with a distance initially measured at 573 ft and then 529 ft. At the time, it set a record for both the Rockies and the stadium. In 2011, ESPN's Home Run Tracker recalculated the distance to 468 ft. In the June 20 contest versus the San Diego Padres, Walker collected his 108th hit of the season and the 1,000th of his career while batting against Andy Ashby. Walker continued to hit near or above .400 in July, when he was selected to play in the All-Star Game. His remarkable season continued: as late as July 17, he was hitting .402. The Rockies struggled in the month of July, losing 19 of 27 games for a .296 winning percentage. Third baseman Vinny Castilla replicated the exact totals in batting average (.304), home runs (40), and RBI (113) as he had produced in 1996, with one fewer game played (159) and one point less in slugging percentage (.547). The Rockies led the NL in attendance at more than 3.88 million. They also led the league in runs scored (923), home runs (239), batting (.288), OBP (.357), and SLG (.478). They were last in ERA at 5.25. The career season for Walker was 1997, when he hit .366 with 49 home runs, 130 RBI, 33 stolen bases, and 409 total bases, en route to becoming the first Canadian-born and Colorado Rockies player to win the MVP Award in MLB. Combined with 12 outfield assists, the season remains one of the finest all around performances in recent baseball history. Even more impressively, Walker's breakout season came just one year after various injuries limited him to 83 games and 272 at-bats, although the NL Comeback Player of the Year award went to Darren Daulton.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Transactions

Major League debuts

Roster

Game log

Player statistics

Batting

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Awards, league leaders, and accomplishments

National League leaders

Offensive statistics

Defensive statistics

Awards

Farm system

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Portland

References and notes