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Isotopes center fielder Sam Hilliard catches a fly ball against Sugar Land on July 15. Hilliard and the Isotopes defense has led to the team’s success. (Mike Sandoval for the Journal)
Albuquerque Isotopes manager Warren Schaeffer can’t pick the personnel on his roster.
But the 36-year-old former minor league middle infielder knows he can control one thing with every team he oversees.
“I would never manage a team where we didn’t talk about (defense) all the time,” Schaeffer said Tuesday. “That’s a fact. I mean, every team is different. … but I put a lot of emphasis on defense. We do a lot of defense at home a lot of early work (before games) defensively.
What should be the next number to be retired by the Rockies?
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Colorado Rockies news: Checking in on the 2020 draft class
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Connor Joe scoops up a grounder before making a play at first base during the Albuquerque Isotopes’ home victory Thursday over El Paso. (Roberto E. Rosales/Journal)
Good luck finding a bigger smile this season at Isotopes Park than the one worn regularly by Connor Joe.
Between the smile, the high-energy approach to the game, the cavernous dimple on his left cheek and that flowing hair fighting its way out of the back of his helmet when he’s at the plate, the 26-year-old San Diego native who has bounced back and forth a few times this season between the Colorado Rockies and Albuquerque Isotopes pretty much personifies fun.