Tucson – Moments after throwing his first live batting practice of spring training Thursday, Rockies left-hander Jeff Francis wondered what all the fuss was about.
“This is the first time anybody’s wanted to interview me after throwing batting practice,” a perplexed Francis said.
Truth is, Francis is an interesting topic. Following his up-and-down, 14-12 rookie season, he packed on 15 pounds. He now carries 220 pounds on his still-slender 6-foot-5 frame. He’s also working to add variety to his pitching repertoire.
Though his big three pitches – fastball, curve and changeup – remain his bread and butter, he’s working on a sinker and a cut fastball to work inside on right-handed batters.
“Last year I was getting the ball up too much and it was sailing out over the plate,” Francis said. “I wanted to get the ball down better, and if this helps me do that, I’ll be a better pitcher.”
Francis said the added weight should help his stamina, but said he doesn’t know yet if it will improve his velocity.
“I’ve always needed to gain weight, so I took a little more care with my eating,” he said. “We’ll see if it helps.”
Francis is scheduled to leave spring training March 2 to join Team Canada for the World Baseball Classic. He’ll be limited to 65 pitches in first-round games and 85 in the second round.
That’s the ticket
Based on initial sales, the Rockies believe they will increase their season-ticket base this season. They sold about 15,000 a year ago, and team president Keli McGregor said Thursday that eclipsing 17,000 is “possible, but we will really have to work at it.”
Single-game ticket sales are up from a year ago, with opening day, which the organization expects to sell out, and the fireworks nights the most popular. A year after unveiling the Gen-R marketing campaign, the Rockies are again marketing the team around the “R” slogan. The first newspaper ads featured the slogan “R You Ready?” with more plays on that theme to follow.
Tsao on the mend
Chin-Hui Tsao, who opened last season as the closer, threw a 20-pitch bullpen session three weeks ago, just eight months removed from surgery on his labrum and biceps tendon.
His shoulder felt a little tight, so he backed off, and is hoping to repeat the drill again soon. He is targeting a June return to the big leagues.
“I am happy I had (the surgery),” Tsao said. “This rehab is harder than with my elbow (he had Tommy John surgery). But it feels a lot better.”
Footnotes
Tom Martin received the obligatory criticism, with friends asking “Why would you want to pitch in the thin air?” The answer was simple for the reliever, who spent the final three months of last season hanging out at home. He trusted general manager Dan O’Dowd, who he knew from his days in Cleveland, when told he would have a fair shot to make the Rockies’ bullpen. “That’s all I needed to hear,” Martin said. Martin can request his release June 15 if he’s not added to the big-league roster….The Rockies signed first baseman/outfielder Ryan Shealy to a $329,000 contract. The club also signed veteran outfielder Ernie Young to a minor-league contract. His minor-league statistics cast him as a bit of a Crash Davis. “All I know is that I have hit too many of my homers in the minors,” he said….Pitcher Nate Field, who flew back to Denver on Wednesday to attend to personal matters, is due back at camp on Saturday….In his attempt to make the team as an outfielder, former third baseman Jeff Baker reported to camp at 203 pounds, down 25 from where he ended last season.
