Rockies third-base prospect Nolan Arenado, 20, who drove in 122 runs for the High-A Modesto Nuts last season and was the MVP of the Arizona Fall League,
Rockies third-base prospect Nolan Arenado, 20, who drove in 122 runs for the High-A Modesto Nuts last season and was the MVP of the Arizona Fall League, takes a practice cut Tuesday as spring training ratchets up at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Ariz. AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — A change of culture, better team chemistry and authentic relationships between the players.

Those are the catchphrases of the Rockies' 2012 spring training. Dan O'Dowd uses them, Jim Tracy uses them, even some of the players use them.

The professional cynic in me rolls his eyes and wonders how a change in philosophy and the addition of a bunch of 30-something ballplayers can transform the Rockies from a 73-89 ballclub into a contender.

It seems too touchy-feely.

Yet I have already seen some tangible changes on a team that was so out of sync last season.

For instance, Jamie Moyer, a 49-year-old lefty hoping for one more season, was given a locker next to prospects Tyler Chatwood and Drew Pomeranz. As the Rockies hoped, the youngsters are asking for advice from Moyer, who's happy to provide it.

As part of the culture-building concept, the players were each given a homework assignment. They drew the name of a teammate and are then required to present a biography of that player in front of the rest of the team. Moyer began it with a 20-minute dissertation on newcomer Jeremy Guthrie. The players loved the needling, the jokes and the inside information.

Monday, Tracy briefly addressed the team before handing things over to veterans including Troy Tulowitzki, Todd Helton, Jason Giambi and Carlos Gonzalez. The impressive thing, to me: It was the players who asked Tracy if they could lay out the expectations for 2012.

I asked Giambi, a 17-year veteran, about all this clubhouse culture stuff. He told me that it's real and it's important, explaining that when he played for the successful Oakland A's teams from 1995-2001, the A's had a homegrown family atmosphere.

"We all grew up in baseball together and it was like 25 tight brothers," he said. "We got along, we had the greatest time in the world and we all went to dinner together. We were very tight, which in turn made us very tough to beat because we all cared so much about each other."

When he signed with the Yankees in 2002 as a free agent, Giambi found a different kind of culture.

"The team chemistry with the Yankees was different," he said. "We had older players and all they cared about was winning. In New York, everybody has a big contract there and it's all about winning. That's chemistry too, because everybody has a common goal of winning the World Series."

I asked Giambi if he thinks the Rockies' emphasis on changing the team culture was legitimate.

"Absolutely," he said. "When you don't have $200 million to spend, you have to find something else to make things click. When I was in Oakland, and we would bring over a player, and because we had a tight chemistry, he would fit in and he would play five times better because he was comfortable."

Former Twins outfielder Michael Cuddyer said he signed with the Rockies in part because he wanted to help build a new culture. He likes the young talent and wants to help develop it.

"Trust me, having veterans can make a big difference," Cuddyer said. "I'm not just talking about playing the game on the field. If a young kid has somebody he can go to and ask him how much to tip the clubbies, or ask where to pick up the bags at the hotel, it makes a difference. They are more relaxed. They need a veteran they can go to, somebody who takes them under their wing, somebody who's not going to resent them or make fun of them for asking them the question."

Of course, the Rockies aren't going to win if their young rotation comes unglued or if their aging veterans get hurt. O'Dowd knows that.

"We don't think anybody we signed or traded for is going to sprinkle pixie dust on our issues and make them all go away," he said.

Fair enough. So, for now, I'll put my reporter's cynicism aside and see what unfolds. And I'll admit that it would be pretty cool if, in this day and age, old- fashioned unity produced a winner.

Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1720 or