Numbers never tell the story of Aaron Cook.
The Rockies’ most dominant pitcher won again Sunday, a complete-game 7-2 smothering of the Arizona Diamondbacks at sun-bleached Coors Field.
He threw 118 pitches, 82 strikes. He posted his fifth consecutive victory. And yet, the statistical picture lacks framework. Cook has quietly emerged as a potential staff ace 13 months after nearly dying on the mound.
“People can talk all they want about other comeback players,” Rockies general manager Dan O’Dowd said, “but nobody has come back from more than Aaron has.”
To correct clotting in his lungs, Cook underwent a procedure last September to improve blood flow to his shoulder. A portion of his top rib was removed. From his initial loss of breath to his complicated surgery to his lonely rehabilitation, Cook demonstrated steady resolve.
Always a man of faith, the experience provided clarity, which has proved critical in his stunning success. Once a pitcher preoccupied with doubt – “I would worry every time somebody got a hit,” Cook said – he simplified his approach.
He redefined himself as a sinkerball pitcher. Here it is, try to hit it. Opponents do. But rarely hard, and almost never in the air. Of his 27 outs Sunday, 17 came on groundballs and five others on strikeouts in the Rockies’ first complete game since Jason Jennings tamed the Dodgers on April 22.
“All I know is that if he continues to do what he’s doing,” Arizona first baseman Tony Clark said, “we’re going to have to deal with him for quite some time.”
Cook’s performance – one that may trigger talks of a multiyear contract this winter – was all the more remarkable considering how this season started. Cook labored through his rehab assignments, and his velocity was so inconsistent the Rockies harbored no expectations when he arrived July 30.
“He was really shaky in the starts,” O’Dowd said. “I am proud of him. I believe he has just scratched the surface.”
Trusting the sinker proved critical. He throws the pitch nearly 85 percent of the time. As Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said, “You know exactly what you are going to get out of him.”
The predictability begs the question: Why doesn’t he get hit? In a nutshell, Cook’s sinker is a snowflake, never duplicated, and its late movement – picture a shot put dropping off the breakfast table – makes it difficult to lift into the air.
“The Diamondbacks should know how it feels because it’s the same when their guy Brandon Webb pitches,” said outfielder Matt Holliday, who delivered a three-run double in the Rockies’ six-run fourth inning. “You see a lot of guys hit the ball in the dirt, off their shins.”
Cook smiles when talking about his sinker, somewhat amazed how far it has evolved since he began using it four years ago. He is standing at his locker beneath a small pennant that reads lovingly: Dad, 28, splattered in bright colors.
As usual, numbers don’t tell the story.
“God saved my life,” Cook said. “I want to be the best baseball player, but I know it’s not the end of the world. Long after this is over, how I am as a husband and father is what will matter.”
Troy E. Renck can be reached at 303-820-5447 or trenck@denverpost.com.
