The Colorado Rockies began the second act of their disappointing season on a high note with a win over the Philladelphia Phillies at Coors Field during the newly dubbed “Fan Friday.”
In what is obviously a desperate PR move, the Rockies ownership kicked off the second half of their season with a concert, street festival and discounted tickets. For some reason, the ownership heard the cries of “we need pitchers” and “fire Dan O’Dowd” from the streets and figured a street festival was in-order. Nothing says “we hear your concerns about the on-field product” quite like bouncy castles and food trucks. Thankfully, O’Dowd did try to shake things up a bit as roster moves came in a flurry to revamp the look of the second half .
Out
Todd Helton: DL – 15 days for hip soreness. He’ll get an MRI to determine how much of a concern his hip may be. His .237 batting average certainly wants to know.
Wil Nieves: DL – 15 days for turf toe. This cleared space for catcher Ramon Hernandez to make it back after being on the DL for what seems like forever.
Tyler Chatwood: Back to triple-A after a lackluster stint in the bullpen.
In
Josh Rutledge: Called up from double-A Tulsa – Rookie debut on Friday, the game MVP went 2-2 with a walk and two RBIs … and a stolen base.
Mike Ekstrom: Called up from triple-A Colorado Springs – Ekstrom will take Chatwood’s spot in the bullpen.
Borrowing cleats, a bat and glove, Rutledge had quite the rookie debut at shortstop. With Troy Tulowitzki out for at least the next six weeks, the decision was made to move Marco Scutaro back to second and give the rookie time at shortstop with Scutaro the subject of some trade talk. Luckily for the Rockies, things look hopeful as Rutledge had no problem at shortstop, with the possibility of moving to second base where he has played 22 times for the Tulsa Drillers.
I doubt Rutledge is the answer to the second half of the season, but it will be an interesting story to follow as he is filling in for Tulowitzki as a rookie. The pitchers need to step up this next half; Christian Friedrich got back on track picking up a much needed win in six innings of work only allowing one run and striking out seven. Guthrie takes the mound today and needs to follow up Friedrich with another win against a equally down Phillies club. If anything will be the key to a second half resurgence, it will be the pitchers playing like major leaguers and gaining control of the mound again. Take some advice from Rage Against the Machine and “take the power back.”
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