On 4 July, he caught on as first-base coach with the Tulsa Drillers, a feeder team for the Colorado Rockies and 18 days later, Coolbaugh found himself at Dickey-Stephens Park in Little Rock, Arkansas. With the Drillers trailing by four runs in the final inning, Matt Miller was on first, Tino Sanchez was at the plate, and Coolbaugh's role was to tell Miller when to start sprinting for second. That was about the point Sanchez connected with a fastball that curved slightly before hitting Coolbaugh below and behind his left ear. He died instantly. He is survived by a pregnant wife and two sons.

Less than three months later, the Colorado Rockies completed one of the most amazing runs in recent baseball history to somehow reach the play-offs. Having won 13 of their last 14 games to force a one-game wild-card showdown with the San Diego Padres, they have since cruised to the National League title and punched their tickets to the World Series with facile victories over the Philadelphia Phillies and Arizona Diamondbacks. Along the way, they also did something that has earned them the support of every neutral fan in America.

As a squad, they voted to give a full share of the players' pool money they will garner in the play-offs to Amanda Coolbaugh and her sons. The only tangible link these Rockies have with the deceased minor league coach is that they were all part of the same organisation on the day he died. They've never met the guy and nobody expected them to do anything. Yet, their generosity ensures that the pregnant widow will receive a cheque worth around $300,000 (if they lose in the World Series) or $400,000 (if they win). In an age when self-centred, greedy athletes are the rule rather than the exception, it's quite the gesture.

"Some of the older guys talked about it and brought it up and it was something we all wanted to do, " said Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki. "We felt that, as a team, it was the right thing to do."

Fourteen of the Rockies earn less than a million dollars a year, well below the league average of $2.6m so this wasn't just a bunch of multi-millionaires giving up money they didn't need. That too is part of the attraction with this Rockies' outfit. Established just 14 years ago, a club that was a laughing stock for most of its existence has turned into the unlikeliest of contenders via a policy based on promoting young home-grown talent instead of previous disastrous experiments with shopping for expensive free agents. There's also the little matter of faith.

"We try to do the best job we can to get people with the right sense of moral values, but we certainly don't poll our players or our organisation to find out who is Christian and who isn't, " said general manager Dan O'Dowd, who admits to conducting telephone prayer sessions with club President Keli McGregor and coach Clint Hurdle. "I know some of the guys who are Christians, but I can't tell you who is and who isn't.

You look at things that have happened to us this year. You look at some of the moves we made and didn't make.

You look at some of the games we're winning.

Those aren't just a coincidence. God has definitely had a hand in this."

O'Dowd made those comments over 12 months ago during another fortuitous Rockies' run but even in a country where religion is a divisive force, the re-airing of them hasn't served to dampen the national enthusiasm for this cause. That's partly because in a sport where the New York Yankees' annual payroll is touching $200m, Colorado has spent roughly a quarter of that amount.

Not to mention that $16m, one third of their entire salary, goes to Todd Helton (left), their star first baseman. Before clinching a trip to the "Fall Classic" following a win against the Diamondbacks last Monday night, Helton was second on the list of individuals with most games played without reaching the Series.

"After the Division Series against the Phillies and the other night when we made it to the World Series I brought my daughter into the clubhouse during the celebration, " wrote Helton on his blog.

"Tierney is five years old now. And now she thinks that every time we win, we drink beer and pour it on our heads. I hope she gets to see it one more time."

At this point, they've now won 21 of their last 22 games and when not describing them as "America's team" or "the club of destiny", the media have helpfully renamed the month "Rocktober" in honour of their incredible streak.

The only problem is if the World Series goes to a deciding seventh match, the last fixture will take place on the first of November.