Pick 3 – Colorado Rockies
Selection: 1B Todd Helton
Every so often in the DBL, fate decides to flex its narrative muscle. It happened when Don Mattingly slipped on the pinstripes, a union so natural it felt preordained. And now, in 1996, we get a sequel: Todd Helton to the Colorado Rockies—the most inevitable pairing since the league first shuffled its draft cards.
With the top two arms off the board, the Rockies are staring at the cleanest decision they will make all decade. Helton isn’t just the best hitter in the draft; he’s the best bat in this draft once fully developed, a rare hitter whose combination of polish, power, and strike-zone command makes scouts speak in hushed, reverential tones. In a class full of intriguing bats, he’s the one who rises above the noise.
But before we get to the coronation, let’s address the elephant in the room—or rather, the duo clogging up the depth chart: Glenn Davis and Bob Hamelin. Yes, technically, the Rockies have first base and DH “covered.” Sure. And technically a tarp “covers” a baseball field, but that doesn’t mean it’s playable.
Helton isn’t competition for Davis and Hamelin—he laps them. He projects past them, outclasses them, and frankly renders the comparison obsolete. The Rockies didn’t earn the No. 3 pick to draft for positional comfort; they earned it to draft foundational players. Helton qualifies.
Even better? He’s nearly filled out already, meaning the wait for production will be mercifully short. And the idea of pairing him with Juan Gonzalez—a superstar in desperate need of lineup protection—should have Colorado’s front office ecstatic. Gonzalez has spent too many seasons carrying the offensive load solo; Helton changes that calculus overnight.
Do the Rockies need pitching? Of course they do—pitching is oxygen in this league. But Helton is the kind of bat you don’t talk yourself out of. He’s the type of player who raises a franchise’s ceiling simply by existing in its lineup.
Colorado isn’t a contender yet. They’re not even particularly close. But you win in this league by accumulating stars, and Helton is the brightest in this draft class.
Sometimes the obvious pick is obvious for a reason. Helton to Colorado was written in ink long before the card reached the commissioner’s desk.