Los Angeles – Jeff Francis is still searching for a cure for his late-summer blues.
The Rockies’ rookie left-hander was sent reeling again Monday night, this time at rowdy Dodger Stadium, where Colorado was shut out 7-0.
Starter Jeff Weaver baffled Rockies batters and threw a complete-game, three-hit gem.
Francis, at one time a candidate for rookie of the year, was gone after four innings. He allowed six runs (five earned), on nine hits, including five doubles.
“I’m not keeping the ball down low in the zone. I’ve never had this much problem taking my pitching from the bullpen to the game,” Francis said. “I keep it low in the bullpen, and then I get out there and the adrenaline seems to take the ball up.”
Francis fell to 12-12, marking the first time since June 19 that he has not been above .500. He was 5-5 at the point, but then won six of his next nine starts to climb to 11-7.
Since, he has fallen into a familiar and disturbing pattern in which he has gotten behind in the count. That forces him to offer sacrificial fastballs.
“When Jeff had his stronger games, he was consistently ahead in the count and throwing good stuff down and away to right-handers,” pitching coach Bob Apodaca said. “Lately, he’s been throwing a flat fastball out over the plate. I don’t care how hard you throw it – and Jeff’s not an overpowering pitcher – you’ve got to have good location at this level.”
Francis is central to the Rockies’ rebuilding blueprint, but he obviously has a lot of kinks to work out in the final three weeks of the season.
The usual suspect in a young pitcher’s fall from grace is fatigue, commonly referred to as hitting the rookie wall. Francis, however, continues to insist that is not his problem, saying, “Absolutely not.”
Said manager Clint Hurdle: “He says he knows fatigue and he’s not experiencing it. He wishes he was.”
Apodaca acknowledged that Francis is growing frustrated, but said there is a solution to the problem. According to Apodaca, Francis simply needs to adjust his timing. But that’s easier said than done.
“His timing has been off ever so slightly, which cause the breakdowns,” Apodaca said. “The problem is, Jeff can’t feel it, so he doesn’t feel what we can see. Until he can get to that point and understand it, he can’t make the adjustments. It’s a matter of learning on the job.
“In the minors, he didn’t have to learn too much. He didn’t have to make a lot of adjustments because he was getting everybody out. Now, when he’s facing the best, he doesn’t know where to go.”
Both Apodaca and Hurdle praised Francis for his work ethic, attitude and professionalism. That said, it’s clear that all involved are tired of Francis’ recent swoon.
“I know he’s had enough,” Hurdle said. “He’s tired of being told to keep battling. He’s tired of hearing that. So I said, ‘You know how you fix that? You go out and battle and do really well.”‘
Francis wasn’t the only Rockie overwhelmed by Dodger blue Monday night. Weaver limited Colorado to singles by Aaron Miles, Cory Sullivan and Matt Holliday. Weaver, who had nine strikeouts, also stopped Garrett Atkins’ 16-game hitting streak.
“He had it going on,” Miles said of Weaver. “His ball was moving every which way, and he was getting every call on the corners.”
For the Dodgers, Monday night’s victory was flavored with revenge. Colorado had won five straight against the Dodgers, including a three-game sweep at Coors Field on Sept. 2-4.
The Dodgers, still alive in the race for the National League West title, are five games behind San Diego.
Patrick Saunders can be reached at 303-820-5459 or psaunders@denverpost.com.
