The scenarios seem cruel when weighed against past seasons, if not the holiday season.
For three years the Rockies couldn’t close out games. In 2005, Brian Fuentes morphed into the team MVP and now Colorado is having trouble finishing off free-agent deals.
The Rockies thought they had Junior Spivey as late as 10:30 p.m. Thursday night only to wake up and learn he was taking $100,000 less – $1.2 million compared with Colorado’s $1.3 million offer – to compete for the St. Louis Cardinals’ second-base job.
Spivey’s decision – driven by the fact he grew up a Cardinals fan – came two days after Rockies general manager Dan O’Dowd met with starting pitcher Pedro Astacio. What made the meeting significant is Astacio requested it. He has been working out at Coors Field while he spends time at his Littleton home.
There was no signing – only a sign of respect.
“He has a good relationship with the (Rockies), and before we do anything we will definitely talk to them,” agent Stephen Schneider said late Friday night. “Whether they get him or not is going to come down to what they are prepared to do given their financial constraints.”
There’s heightened interest in Astacio as Byung-Hyun Kim’s chance of returning continues to nose dive and Shawn Estes’ market ripens.
The Rockies won’t re-sign Kim without a face-to-face meeting, and team officials admitted there has been no progress on the pitcher securing a visa before the Jan. 8 deadline.
The Texas Rangers met with Estes last week – he’s viewed as a backup plan if they don’t sign Kevin Millwood – and San Francisco is interested in landing the left-hander along with former Colorado backup catcher Todd Greene.
Astacio, 36, makes sense for the Rockies, though finding a compromise on dollars won’t be easy. The Rockies have offered Astacio a one-year deal in excess of $1 million. After struggling with Texas, Astacio went 4-2 with a 3.17 ERA in 12 games for the Padres.
As it stands, the Rockies’ rotation would feature Jason Jennings, Aaron Cook, Jeff Francis, Sunny Kim (whom the team would prefer to use in a swing role) and Zach Day, leaving manager Clint Hurdle to say, “There’s nothing wrong with having a guy that’s 34 or 35 being able to come in and provide some depth.”
Other veterans available include Ramon Ortiz, Kazuhisa Ishii and Kirk Rueter.
Footnotes
With Spivey gone, the Rockies are debating whether to aggressively pursue utility man Willie Harris. …
While Fuentes considers himself a “longshot” for Team USA’s World Baseball Classic entry, manager Buck Martinez thinks otherwise: “I am not going to get into specifics of who’s on and who’s not, but we definitely know how he could help us.” …
Two explanations for the Rockies’ mild interest in outfielder Eric Byrnes: Prospect Jeff Baker will play some outfield this spring as he attempts to stick as a bench player, and Ryan Shealy continues to make progress in his transition from first base. Ideally, Shealy could spell Brad Hawpe against tough left-handers. … Vinny Castilla, who didn’t participate in winter ball to rest his knee, is looking forward to playing in the WBC for Mexico, calling it “a great way to get ready for the season.”
Troy E. Renck can be reached at 303-820-5447 or trenck@denverpost.com.
