The baseball calendar tells the story of Coors Field’s evolution.
Before July 9, 2005, when the Rockies’ Jason Jennings beat San Diego in a 1-0 classic, a major-league record 846 regular-season games passed at Coors Field before a 1-0 game was played there. Sunday, a mere 40 games later, came the second.
Credit excellent pitching by the Phillies’ Brett Myers and the Rockies’ Aaron Cook, factor in the humidor or blame the baseball gods, but this is not the same, old Coors Field. Sunday’s game time of 2 hours, 24 minutes confirmed that.
“They put a dent in the hardware of Coors Field,” Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. “It’s something we are becoming more aware of – this is capable of happening here.”
Myers, the winner, pitched 7 2/3 innings, allowing just seven hits. Cook, the loser, pitched eight innings, allowing just six hits. His only mistake was giving up a game-winning, solo homer to Ryan Howard in the seventh.
“The game has evolved here,” Rockies center fielder Cory Sullivan said. “It’s more of a small-game park, at least sometimes. You’re not always going to have the 10-8, 10-6 games that we’ve had the last few nights.”
Coors Field still requires gritty pitching and some unusual strategy. Cook, for instance, has learned to use his sinkerball to tame the beast.
“Cook pitched great today,” Myers said. “He had a nasty sinker.”
For his part, Myers had catcher Mike Lieberthal make frequent trips to the mound, thus allowing Myers to catch his breath in the mile-high atmosphere. Myers also came in with a solid game plan.
“I knew they were aggressive at the plate, so I threw a lot of fastballs early and then mixed it up late,” he said.
History lesson
Before last season’s 1-0 game at Coors, the previous record streak without a 1-0 game was 635, held by the Philadelphia Athletics of the American Association, from 1882-91. That streak, however, actually took place at three ballparks. According to Elias Sports Bureau, the streak started at Oakdale Park (1882), then spanned eight seasons at Jefferson Street Grounds (1883-90), before ending in 1890 at Athletic Park.
There was a 1-0 Rockies win over the Braves on Aug. 10, 1994, at Mile High Stadium, but that game lasted only six innings.
Gonzo sits
There can be no quibbling with second baseman Luis Gonzalez’s glove work. He has gone 105 consecutive games without an error. But Gonzalez’s bat work is lacking. After hitting .383 in spring training, he has opened the season hitting just .136 (3-for-22). That’s why utility infielder Jason Smith, batting a sizzling .455 (10-for-22) going into the game, started against the Phillies on Sunday.
“Luis is having some difficulties getting anything going at the plate,” Hurdle said. “He’s not where he needs to be, or where he can be offensively yet. He’s 0-for-7 off (Myers) lifetime. It’s a manager’s decision.”
