Nonetheless, the Rockies expressed confidence in Black, with general manager Bill Schmidt stating, “We believe this team is heading in the right direction” and praising his manager’s “skills, experience, and knowledge” in a recent press release. Considering those comments, one might think the Rockies would want to give Black a longer-term deal. After all, managers on expiring contracts are typically seen as lame ducks. In Black’s case, however, this is another one-year deal; he also signed single-year contracts entering 2022, ’23, and ’24. Reporter Nick Groke once described the skipper as “on a rolling year-to-year contract.” The unique contract situation may be just as much for Black’s benefit as Colorado’s, giving him the chance to walk away after every season.
The Rockies finished the 2024 season 61-101, the worst record in the National League and the second-worst record in MLB. Some promising young players took big steps forward — namely Brenton Doyle and Ezequiel Tovar — but this team is still far off from being taken seriously as a contender. After so many losing seasons in a row, plenty of fans would surely love to see a shakeup in the dugout, but practically speaking, it’s hard to imagine a new manager would make much of a difference in 2025.
Before joining the Rockies ahead of the 2017 season, Black managed the Padres from 2007-15. He went 649-713 (.477), leading the team to just a pair of winning seasons in nine years. He was named NL manager of the year in the second of those winning seasons (2010). Before his managerial career, Black was the pitching coach for the Angels from 2000-06, winning a World Series with the club in 2002.
Cornelius and Pilittere both joined the Rockies coaching staff ahead of the 2022 season. Following the conclusion of his playing career in 2000, Cornelius worked as a coach in the Marlins minor league system from 2003-09. In 2010, he took over as the bullpen coach for the big league club, a role he held until 2016. After a brief stint coaching in the Braves minor league system, he returned to the Marlins organization as a minor league pitching coach in 2019 and a major league rehab pitching coach in 2021.
Pilittere played in the Yankees’ minor league system from 2004-11 before taking on a minor league coaching role in 2012. In 2018, he was named the major league club’s assistant hitting coach. After four seasons, the Yankees let him go at the end of the 2021 campaign, and he signed on with the Rockies shortly after.