DENVER — Juan Uribe began his career in the Rockies’ organization in 1998 and reached the big leagues with Colorado in 2001.
While the now-Atlanta Braves infielder was in the Colorado farm system, current Rockies manager Walt Weiss was a special assistant to then-general manager Dan O’Dowd and spent a lot of time observing and working with minor league players.
Weiss, a former shortstop, has vivid memories of Uribe, 36, who came up and replaced Neifi Perez as the Rockies’ shortstop.
“It sounds generic, but he’s just a really good baseball player,” Weiss said of Uribe. “He’s one of those guys that’s probably going to be playing winter ball when he’s 53 and hitting .320. He’s timeless.
“I remember him over here as a kid. I was working here, and he was a young shortstop. I loved him as a shortstop. He’s obviously gotten a little bigger these days, but he still has hands of a wizard and the flare for the dramatic. He’s still a very good player in this league.”
Asked what made Uribe special as a shortstop, Weiss said, “He had incredible hands, some of the best hands I’ve ever seen in a long time. His transfer was as good as anybody. He was a wizard with the glove.”
Now a third baseman who has long outgrown shortstop, Uribe went 0-for-4 on Thursday in the Braves’ 5-3 loss to the Rockies.