COMMENT: Trading Koshansky is most likely path for Rockies

Todd Helton will earn $90 million to play baseball through the 2011 season. That massive figure means he’s about as likely to depart Colorado as Pikes Peak.

Joe Koshansky is pounding the baseball for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. He is one of baseball’s precious prospects, a 6-foot-4 power hitter with a knack for clearing the bases.

Here’s his problem. He, like Helton, plays first base.

“It’s not that I think I can push Todd Helton out,” Koshansky said. “... He’s got a no-trade clause and a long contract.”

This is a virtual repeat of last summer when first baseman Ryan Shealy was smacking the ball for the Sky Sox and wondering where he would be traded. This summer, Koshansky is considering his travel plans.

Koshansky, 25, is ready for his chance at the bigs, but knows it’s unlikely he’ll ever play for the Rockies at Coors Field. He’s collected 10 home runs and 63 RBIs this season while pushing the Sky Sox to first place. He’s powered 91 home runs since 2004.

He’s a realist. He sees Helton entrenched in Denver. He believes he’s on his way to a new home.

“I’m really kind of playing for every team in the league,” Koshansky said. “I’m trying to put myself in a position where maybe another team would want me enough to trade for a need the Rockies have.”

Many Rockies fans stubbornly embrace a fantasy. They see the Rockies trading Helton and his fat contract for badly needed pitching. They see Koshansky — younger and cheaper — inheriting first base.

This is one of those fantasies that probably won’t come true. During the offseason, the Boston Red Sox came close to trading for Helton. They liked his consistency, and Helton liked the idea of hitting in Fenway Park, which John Updike described as a “lyric little bandbox of a ballpark.”

Helton waived his no-trade clause, and the teams started talking. Everything was set for Helton’s departure.

Money axed the deal. The Red Sox, according to several reports, wanted the Rockies to eat half — or $45 million — of Helton’s contract. The Rockies, according to The Boston Globe, were willing to devour only $27.5 million.

Helton is no bargain at $16.6 million this season, but he remains a superb first baseman and a calming leader for a youthful team. He’s lost much of his power, but remains a lock to hit .300 each season. Shealy, for all his promise, is hitting a mere .221 for the Kansas City Royals.

Koshansky enjoys many blessings, but he’s hardly perfect. His swing-from-the-heels style leads to strikeouts. He’s collected 75 this season, including two whiffs Thursday night. He’s mediocre, at best, defensively. He’s bumbled to eight errors this season compared with Helton’s two.

His best position is designated hitter.

“I could be playing for an American League team pretty soon,” Koshansky said. “You never know.”

He sounds like a prophet to me.

You never truly know almost anything, but in this case you can be nearly sure Helton is staying and Koshansky is going.