Now That He’s Retired, Will Charlie Blackmon’s No. 19 Be Retired Next?

It’s a special thing for an athlete to play long enough to reach their late-30s at the highest level of their sport. And it’s especially rare for a player in the modern day to spend the entirety of their career with one organization.

Special and rare are two words that adequately describe the recently retired Charlie Blackmon.

Drafted in 2008 and making his debut with the Colorado Rockies in 2011, Blackmon donned the purple pinstripes for 14 seasons. During that time, he won over the hearts of Denver denizens with his offbeat personality, a beard and mullet combination evocative of the Rocky Mountain region and an iconic walk-up song that he made his own.

“It’s rare that you see that kind of interaction from a fan base and a player in a stadium, and it’s just an incredible song, and I’ve never really once thought about changing it,” he said of The Outfield’s “Your Love” during his retirement press conference. “You can’t listen to that song and not think about baseball, not think about hitting. It just puts me in a great mindset… It makes me feel at home.”

For a generation of fans that attended a game at the baseball mecca known as Coors Field, the one constant was always Chuck Nazty. Batting leadoff, playing in center or right, or as the designated hitter at the end of his career, you could always rely on Charlie being there.

He was always there, it seemed. For 801 contests at Coors Field, Blackmon stepped to the plate 3,451 times. Each time, the crowd grew louder and louder as the sound dropped from the speakers and fans shouted, “Toniiiight!”

Toss in another 495 games on his path to the Majors from Low-A Tri-City in Washington to Triple-A Colorado Springs and it totals over 2,000 games as a member of the organization.

Blackmon’s resume is littered with accomplishments. Four selections to the All-Star Game, two Silver Slugger Awards and the 2017 National League batting title. Sprinkle in six NL Player of the Week Awards and a pair of NL Player of the Month Awards for good measure, too.

So many of Blackmon’s stats — 1,805 hits, 68 triples, 42 leadoff home runs, for example — ranked among the leaders for active players. Same is true in the annals of the Colorado Rockies. 

Among active players in Major League Baseball, only Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers, José Altuve of the Houston Astros, and Salvador Perez of the Kansas City Royals had been with their organization longer.

Blackmon has been around so long that Warren Schaeffer, his minor league teammate from 2009-2011, became his third-base coach for his final two seasons. 

In Denver though, the only player to eclipse the Georgia native’s tenure is Hall of Famer Todd Helton.

Helton ranks first in virtually every offensive category in franchise history. His number (17) was the first to be retired alongside Jackie Robinson’s no. 42. Larry Walker’s no. 33 was next, but not before he was on the precipice of his election to Cooperstown.

For the man with the second-longest career in Colorado, not to mention second on the list of so many all-time records, it’s fitting to acknowledge his incredible contributions to the club.

“Charlie’s been a terrific Rockie. I hope they retire his number,” former teammate Nolan Arenado said, before adding, “And I would like to come back for that. That would be pretty cool.”

The Memories

The first career home run for Blackmon came against Joakim Soria of the Kansas City Royals. It was also a pinch-hit dinger, one of two in his career, long before the balanced schedule guaranteed interleague games between all 30 clubs.

Homer no. 9 off John Lackey of the Boston Red Sox was his first leading off. For seven consecutive seasons, Blackmon recorded at least one home run to start the game. On May 30-31 in 2016, he opened with a dinger in back-to-back games against the Cincinnati Reds.

All total, Blackmon recorded 42 leadoff homers, 10th-most in the history of baseball.  

After his power was moved to the middle of the lineup during the 2020-21 campaigns, his final six home runs to start a game came over the past three seasons, including his final against the Miami Marlins on Aug. 27 of this season.

There was a three-homer game in Philadelphia at Citizens Bank Park against three different pitchers in 2016. He set a then-Major League record in 2017 with 103 RBI from the first spot in the batting lineup. 

On the final day of the regular season in 2018, when the team needed a win to force Game 163 to decide the NL West pennant, Blackmon hit for the cycle. During the 2020 season, Blackmon hit a walk-off grand slam, only the second in franchise history. 

In 2023, Blackmon became only the 18th player in baseball history and just the first in the National League since Billy Williams (1959-74) to record 1,500+ games, 300+ doubles, 200+ home runs, and 60+ triples in a career with one team.

The Final Week

The week leading up to Blackmon’s final game put a lot more positivity and good vibes in a ballpark that would witness 100 losses for a second consecutive season.

His press conference was a touching tribute to his career. Former teammates Arenado and Daniel Descalso, in town with the St. Louis Cardinals, snuck in the back as the rest of the Rockies roster and coaching staff filled up the media availability room beneath Coors Field.

For 30 minutes, Blackmon discussed a myriad of topics, like the impact his three managers — Jim Tracy, Walt Weiss and Bud Black — had on him, not to mention whether or not he would keep his beard following retirement. 

“My wife has actually never seen me without it, so I’m a little bit concerned how that would be received at home,” he said. “I think there will be a time where I will have to reveal my naked face to my family and clean it up, get a nice haircut or whatever, just to say that I’ve done it. But then after that, all bets are off.”

Ahead of his final game, Blackmon shared some final words of thanks for the Coors Field faithful, who numbered over 48,000 for one last sellout. The team gifted him a Toyota Tundra, the same one that sat high above the left field concourse for the entirety of the season. HIs children, Josie and Wyatt, threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

With “19” etched into the outfield grass, the 38-year-old laced one final base hit during his second plate appearance. Black called time, gestured for 23-year-old rookie Jordan Beck to enter the game as a pinch-runner, and Blackmon received a standing ovation as he exited the field.

Blackmon uttered one final “And here we go” on his way out the dugout, by himself, as he took center stage in centerfield for the first time since Game 3 of the 2018 NL Division Series. He doffed his cap, waved to the crowd and happily received the cheers that rained upon him.

“It’s been all week. The organization’s done a really good job,” Blackmon said following his final game. “It just far exceeded expectations of celebrating the week in the moment and bringing in some of my old teammates and the videos. And, I mean, it’s just been really incredible for me and my family. I want to, I want to thank the organization and the city of Denver, and this has been really awesome this week.”

Honoring Blackmon

Approximately one-third of teams in MLB do not have some form of acknowledgement for legendary players and personnel. Colorado is among that group. Even the Tampa Bay Rays, with five less years of history as the Rockies, established a team Hall of Fame in 2023.

While there is a carefully curated display of items in the suite level of the stadium, many fans are unaware of its existence. For now, there exists a chasm between the retired numbers — representing both Hall of Fame players — hanging from the second deck of Coors Field and the rest of the many critical individuals who have contributed to the organization since 1993.

Regardless of whether Colorado creates a proper museum or Ring of Fame to honor its history, Blackmon is more than deserving of having his number retired.

“I personally believe that 19 should be thrown up there with those numbers,” Kyle Freeland shared. “He’s proven that he’s been a staple in this organization for his entire career. He’s shown what hard work looks like and what hard work does when it pays off. So I believe no one else in this organization should wear 19 again.”

Even if the thoughts of teammates like Freeland and Arenado don’t come with enough weight, primary owner Dick Monfort feels similarly.

“I probably would,” Montfort said of retiring no. 19 in January of 2023. “In an era where stars seem to want to go other places, Charlie’s been pretty loyal and pretty good to us. You don’t want to make it like everybody gets up there. But I mean Charlie is — I would say in the history of the Rockies, longevity, all this and that — he’d be right behind Todd.”

Should Colorado use the template created when they retired no. 17 for Helton in the year following his retirement on Aug. 17, perhaps July 19 next season is when we’ll learn the fate of no. 19, literally and figuratively.