Rockies fans: Get ready to say goodbye to Yorvit Torrealba

Yorvit Torrealba was definitely among the best performers during the Rockies’ all-too-brief 2009 playoff run, hitting well (e.g., that home run in game two) and playing consistent defense. So, of course, the team is going to let him leave. No, the Rockies haven’t announced that Torrealba will only be invited…

Why Rick Upchurch belongs in the Broncos Ring of Fame

Rick Upchurch was the best at what he did when he did it. But the former Denver Broncos return specialist isn’t in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Nor is he in the Broncos’ own Ring of Fame at Invesco Field. This fact was all the more glaring Sunday when…

Going retro with the 5-0 Broncos

I’m not generally in favor of so-called NFL “legacy” games, in which teams are required to wear their hideous and humiliating uniforms of yore and the fans are barraged with waves of schlock and nostalgia: old geezers from golden-age squads out on the field to get special plaques, commemorative programs,…

Gratuitous fist pumps aside, it’s time to trust Josh McDaniels

OK, so the excessive fist pumping in the exact location of 47 camera men was a little odd, but other than that, let’s see … – He traded a sore-losing, sore-winning, sour-faced quarterback for one who is calm (and even jovial) under pressure, rarely makes mistakes and has an awesome…

Gambling with Homer: The Broncos are Super Bowl-bound

Homer Duggins is the biggest sports fan in Denver and Westword’s gambling, uh, “expert.” Read his dispatches every Friday in the Latest Word sports section. What’s that noise? It’s a little whisper I keep hearing, a whisper becoming louder and louder, blowing on the wind until it becomes a roar…

Basebrawl goes national

Cue the shameless self-promotion. Village Voice Media, of which Westword is a part, has put together a new website offering an alternative take on the current Major League Baseball playoffs — meaning some of the posts include words that Joe Buck would be fired for saying on the air (including…

Ex-Broncos cheerleader is Ultimate Spike Girl

Spike TV markets itself as television for dudes — horny dudes, presumably. No wonder the net has just-completed a search for the “Ultimate Spike Girl,” a babe who embodies every male fantasy and is willing to parade her assets around for fans of erections and hand lotion everywhere. And your…

Bears fans need to keep on lovin’ Kyle Orton

We’ve done more than our fair share of ribbing QB Kyle Orton since he headed to Denver as part of a trade with the Bears for Jay Cutler. But despite the party-dude reputation KO garnered during his time in Chi-town, plenty of the Bears faithful still have a soft spot…

Rockies get best of Holliday trade (last night, anyway)

Even after the Wacky Wednesday loss in game one of their playoff series against the Philllies, the Rockies still had a chance to regain home-field advantage — and they managed to do so with a little help from a pair of players obtained in the trade that sent Matt Holliday…

Don’t worry, Rockies fans: It was just a Wacky Wednesday

Most commentators discussing the Philadelphia Phillies’ 5-1 dismantling of the Colorado Rockies yesterday came to the conclusion that the P-men simply outclass the Rocks on every level — an easy conclusion to draw if you suffered through the last five innings. But amid the destruction, there was reason for hope,…

Five Colorado Rockies we hope the Phillies underrate

You’re the Philadelphia Phillies — the defending World Series champs, and winner of three consecutive National League East crowns. You’ve got a lineup filled with stars like Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, Cliff Lee. The entire sporting press, and much of the public, expects you to roll over the Rockies in…

Loveland opening: “Leave your rock skis at home”

See photos of the opening at westword.com/slideshow. Loveland Ski Area wins this year’s race to become the first to open in Colorado. But given how early the starting bell rang — Loveland hasn’t gotten started so soon in forty years — should zealots leave their top-shelf equipment at home and…

Hugging how-to for Josh McDaniels and Brandon Marshall

One of the most unlikely debates to arise following the Broncos win over the Dallas Cowboys this past Sunday involved the hugs between baller Brandon Marshall and coach Josh McDaniels — the first immediately after Marshall’s astonishing touchdown catch, the second in a post-game press conference. On their Mile High…

Rick Reilly’s Capitol tongue-bathing: Arousing!

On Monday, we told ou about ESPN columnist Rick Reilly’s April promise to “tongue-bathe the Capitol dome if the Rockies make the playoffs” — and his subsequent vow to make good on this lost bet. He proved as good as his (second) word yesterday, gamely lapping the golden cap in…

Help wanted (and not for pot): Westword seeks outdoors writers

Westword.com is looking for mountain-addicted wordsmiths to help us tell the stories of Colorado’s outdoor-sports scene. If you spend your weekends dodging lift lines, count Sniagrab as a national holiday, and — here’s the kicker — can write as well as you board or bike, we want to hear from…