The late, great manager Sparky Anderson once said, “You give us the pitching some of these clubs have and no one could touch us, but God has a way of not arranging that, because it’s not as much fun.”

Rockies fans can certainly relate, though they might not be laughing. When they flock to Coors Field and watch a team stocked with talented young position players they can’t help but wonder, “If we only had some pitching … ”

Jeff Bridich can relate, too.

On Sunday, he’ll arrive at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center outside Washington, D.C., to begin his third winter meetings as Rockies general manager. Acquiring a first basemen will be near the top of his off-season to-do list, but finding more reliable arms will be front and center on his hot stove burner.

The major moves Bridich has made — from trading star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki to Toronto for three pitching prospects in 2015, to recently hiring former big-league pitcher Bud Black as Colorado’s new manager, to retaining Steve Foster and Darren Holmes as pitching coaches — illustrates Bridich’s constant quest to improve the Rockies on the mound.

That said, some of Bridich’s most high-profile miscues have come trying to fill holes on the pitching staff. In February 2015, he signed veteran right-hander Kyle Kendrick to a one-year, $5.5 million contract. It was a disaster. Kendrick went 7-13 with a 6.32 ERA. Last winter, Bridich signed right-handed relievers Jason Motte (two years, $10 million) and Chad Qualls (two years, $6 million). The duo combined for just 56 innings pitched and a 5.14 ERA.

Bridich remains undaunted.

“One of the major goals of the last two years is to find ways to, in a multitude of different ways, better ourselves from a pitching depth standpoint,” he said. “The goal is to utilize all our assets looking at pitching and looking at, “Who are the good young pitchers? If we’re going to make trades, who are the types of guys we should go take chances on?'”

Translation: Bridich knows more moves are necessary to upgrade a bullpen that posted a 5.13 ERA last season, worst in the majors, and end a cycle where the Rockies have averaged 92 losses over the past six seasons.

New pitching philosophy

Dig deeper than the won-loss record and it’s clear Bridich is overhauling the franchise’s pitching blueprint. Long gone is the four-man piggyback rotation. The Rockies also have scrapped the idea that only a certain type of pitcher — a sinkerball specialist as a starter, or a flamethrower out of the bullpen, for example — can tame the beast that is Coors Field.

“We talked about that in my (job) interview,” Black said. “Is there a certain style that works here? I don’t think so. You know what works here? Good pitching, and making pitches and getting outs.”

The four returning stalwarts of the Rockies rotation illustrate Black’s point: Right-hander Jon Gray is a power pitcher who racks up strikeouts; left-hander Tyler Anderson is a control artist with an excellent changeup; right-hander Chad Bettis utilizes four different pitches and right-hander Tyler Chatwood’s sinker induces a lot of groundballs.

“I think any style can work at Coors, if the pitcher makes his pitches,” Black said.

Mark Wiley concurs. Entering his 48th year in professional baseball, Wiley has been Colorado’s director of pitching operations since 2013. He oversees pitching from the minors to the majors and helped design a top-to-bottom pitching plan for the entire organization.

“When I first returned here, there was definitely a focus on guys who could throw sinkers or guys who would throw two-seamers,” said Wiley, who was with the Rockies previously as assistant to player development from 2006-07 and as director of player personnel in 2000. “There was definitely an effort to acquire guy that threw a two-seamer or had a special sinker.

“But as time evolved, we realized that there is a value to guys who throw sinkers, but there is also a big value to guys who have power fastballs, who can pitch up in the strike zone. And value to guys who have a real good changeup. It really isn’t that much different than any other place.”

Bettis is thrilled with the change in philosophy.

“It’s great, especially coming from the guys upstairs, understanding that we aren’t robots and that every guy is different,” he said. “I mean, what I have isn’t what Gray has, and what Gray has isn’t what Anderson has.”

Bridich and Wiley, along with Doug Linton and Darryl Scott, the team’s minor-league pitching coordinators, have installed a strict set of criteria that young pitchers must follow in order to move up. The education begins with rookie ball in Grand Junction.

Right-hander Jeff Hoffman, the centerpiece of the Tulowitzki trade, is a prime example of how the system works.

Fans would see Hoffman’s prowess at Triple-A Albuquerque — a seven-inning, five-hit, 11-strikeout performance vs. Reno last June, for instance — and wonder why he wasn’t in the big-league rotation. But the Rockies wanted Hoffman to improve such things such as his pitch command and controlling the running game.

“It’s not only about game awareness at the big-league level, it’s about mastering pitches,” Wiley said. “For example, guys that don’t have what we classify as a quality, big-league changeup yet, they have to work on it. We make them use it and develop it.”

Results of the Rockies’ system-wide plan have been decidedly mixed, tainted by the bullpen’s multiple meltdowns last season that resulted in 28 blown saves, third-most in the National League. Yet there is promise, too. Opponents hit just .257 against Rockies last season, the fifth-best mark in franchise history and Rockies pitchers had 1,223 strikeouts, second most in club history.

Counting on rotation

Gray, Anderson, Chatwood and Bettis, the four starters who will form the core of the 2017 rotation, have a chance to become one of the best rotations in club history. The foursome went a combined 41-33 (.554 winning percentage) with a 4.28 ERA, the best mark since the 2009 rotation that led the Rockies to their last playoff appearance went 67-48 (.582) with a 4.05 ERA.

“I think I speak for all four of us, when I say we can be really good,” Bettis said. “It’s a lot of fun, and what’s great is that we are still young and we are pushing each other.”

What Wiley likes about the Rockies’ current crop of pitchers is their attitude.

“Jon Gray is tough. Tyler Anderson is tough. Chad Bettis is tough. ‘Chatty’ is really tough,” Wiley said. “One of the first things we talked about when I came back here was, ‘If you weren’t tough, you are not going to be around.’ Because there is always going to be adversity (at Coors Field) …

“We want guys who can handle it and don’t back away from it. We want guys who can win a game 6-4. We want a guy who can give up four runs in an inning and then battle through to the seventh inning.”

Toughness, however, must be paired with talent, and Colorado’s bullpen lacked proven talent last season. While Bridich said he expects rebound seasons from left-hander Jake McGee, as well as Motte and Qualls, the Rockies will likely make moves to prop up the bullpen.

Bridich has acknowledged free-agent talks with veteran closer Mark Melancon and left-hander reliever Mike Dunn, but he’s also said there are in-house candidate for late-inning roles. Those include right-hander Adam Ottavino, who took over as closer at the end of last season after recovering from Tommy John surgery; McGee, who’s trying to come back from a knee injury in June and show he can still bring the heat; and rookie right-hander Carlos Estevez, who was prematurely forced into the closer role in midseason because of injuries.

“We are getting a lot of young guys through they system who are going to be able to help us in the bullpen,” Wiley said. “We didn’t have a lot of those guys before.”

PITCHING PROGNOSIS

The Rockies will be looking to improve their pitching this winter, either through free agency or a trade. Their major focus is the bullpen, which posted a major-league worst 5.13 ERA this year.

The Denver Post Rockies beat reporter Patrick Saunders offers a snapshot of the team’s current crop of pitchers and top prospects:

Established starters:

LHP Tyler Anderson: The 2011 first-round pick blossomed in 2016 into a crafty control pitcher with a solid 3.54 ERA.

RHP Chad Bettis: Staff workhorse won 14 games and went 7-2 with 3.75 ERA over last 14 starts.

RHP Tyler Chatwood: Wonderful on the road (8-1, 1.69 ERA) but erratic at Coors Field (4-8, 6.12 ERA)

RHP Jon Gray: Consistency is necessary next step for the Rockies’ strikeout king and most dominant pitcher.

Fifth-starter candidates

RHP Jeff Hoffman: Product of Troy Tulowitzki trade flashed talent but was uneven in six big league starts.

RHP German Marquez: Began his season at Double-A; a September callup who shows promise as a starter or a reliever.

Bullpen returners

RHP Carlos Estevez: Erratic flamethrower who made 63 appearances but was 11 of 18 in save chances. Rookie was erratic.

RHP Jordan Lyles: Appears best suited as a middle reliever after going 3-3 with a 4.42 ERA in 35 appearances.

LHP Jake McGee: Huge disappointment with a 4.73 ERA and diminished fastball velocity, due in part to an injured knee.

RHP Jason Motte: Shoulder problems limited his workload; 4.94 ERA made his two-year, $10 million, free-agent deal look bad.

RHP Adam Ottavino: Returned from Tommy John surgery, but struggled, blowing five saves in 12 chances.

RHP Chad Qualls: Injury and illness limited Qualls to an ineffective 44 appearances and an ugly 5.23 ERA.

LHP Chris Rusin: Versatile and reliable, he’s become Colorado’s best long reliever.

In limbo

RHP Eddie Butler: Former first-round pick posted ugly 7.17 ERA this year.

RHP Miguel Castro: Showed dynamite stuff early, but shoulder woes limited him to 14 ⅔ big-league innings.

RHP Jairo Diaz: A talented, hard thrower missed the 2016 season with Tommy John surgery; figures to be late inning reliever in 2017.

RHP Scott Oberg: Sustained blood clots in right arm; Rockies hopeful he can make full recovery.

On the horizon

RHP Yency Almonte: Has a 95-96 mph fastball, hard slider; projects as No. 4-5 starter or long reliever.

RHP Shane Carle: Moved to reliever in AAA and posted 3.60 ERA with 18 strikeouts and four walks in 15 innings.

RHP Matt Carasiti: His 9.19 ERA illustrates his rocky two months in the majors, but he didn’t allow a run in final eight outings.

LHP Kyle Freeland: Posted a 3.91 ERA in 12 Triple-A starts and likely will make his MLB debut in 2017.

LHP Sam Moll — Struggled at AAA, posting a 4.94 ERA. He projects as a possible left-on-left specialist in the majors.

RHP Antonio Senzatela: Dynamic fastball/slider combination brought him to Double-A by age 21; lost most of 2016 season due to shoulder inflammation.

BRIDICH’S BUSINESS

Jeff Bridich, 39, has been the Rockies general manager since Oct. 8, 2014. Following are the major player moves made during his tenure:

2014

Signed RHP Jair Jurrjens as a free agent @

Traded RHP Rob Scahill to Pirates for RHP Shane Carle %

Signed LHP John Lannan as a free agent #

Signed RHP Jose Ortega as a free agent #

Signed OF Jason Pridie as a free agent @

Signed LHP Aaron Laffey as a free agent @

Signed RHP Brett Marshall as a free agent #

Signed RHP Justin Miller as a free agent @

Signed C Audry Perez as a free agent #

Traded RHP Juan Nicasio to Dodgers for minor-league outfielder Noel Cuevas +

Traded infielder Josh Rutledge to Angels for minor-league RHP Jairo Diaz %

Signed outfielder Matt McBride as a free agent @

Signed LHP Buddy Boshers as a free agent #

Signed infielder Daniel Descalso as a free agent @

Signed RHP Jason Gurka as a free agent @

Signed outfielder Roger Bernadina as a free agent #

2015

January

Signed catcher Nick Hundley as a free agent @

Signed RHP Rafael Betancourt as a free agent @

Traded catcher Jose Briceno and catcher/outfielder Chris O’Dowd to Braves for RHP David Hale @ and RHP Gus Schlosser #

February

Signed third baseman Josh Vitters as a free agent #

Signed RHP John Axford as a free agent @

Signed RHP Kyle Kendrick as a free agent @

March

Released RHP Jhoulys Chacin @

July

Traded RHP LaTroy Hawkins and SS Troy Tulowitzki to Blue Jays for RHP Jesus Tinoco +, RHP Miguel Castro %, RHP Jeff Hoffman $ and SS Jose Reyes @

November

Traded RHP Tommy Kahnle to White Sox for RHP Yency Almonte %

Traded RHP Rex Brothers to Cubs for LHP Wander Cabrera +

December

Signed RHP Jason Motte as a free agent $

Signed RHP Chad Qualls as a free agent $

Signed 1B Mark Reynolds as a free agent @

Signed outfielder Alex Castellanos as a free agent #

Signed LHP Yohan Flande as a free agent @

2016

January

Signed 1B/OF Stephen Cardullo as a free agent $

Signed OF Gerardo Parra as a free agent $

Traded 3B Kevin Padlo (minors) and OF Corey Dickerson to Rays for RHP German Marquez $ and LHP Jake McGee $

February

Acquired catcher Tony Wolters off waivers from Indians $

March

Signed utility infielder Ryan Raburn @

June

Released SS Jose Reyes @

KEY

$ Currently on Rockies’ active roster

% Currently on Rockies’ 40-man roster

+ Currently in Rockies minor-league system

@ Played for Rockies, no longer with team

# Never played for Rockies