Los Angeles – While Jamey Carroll spent his pregame in the training room icing his sprained right ankle, Luis Gonzalez was taking batting practice and contemplating how to keep himself on track.
“The last couple of weeks I’ve felt more comfortable in the box,” Gonzalez said before Tuesday night’s game against the Dodgers. “I’ve been seeing the ball better. I’m going to get some more chances, so that should make me better.”
Gonzalez started the game at second base for Carroll, who sprained his ankle in the first inning of Monday’s 6-1 loss to the Dodgers. He’s listed as day to day.
Gonzalez got off to a good start Monday when he replaced Carroll in the third inning, going 2-for-3 with a double. Before Tuesday, Gonzalez had hit .274 (20-for-73) in his past 22 games, raising his average from .130 to .240.
“Last night he had two good at-bats,” Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. “He stayed on a breaking ball and drove it to left field, then he hit a 97-mph fastball to the wall in right field. Those are good signs. But time will tell.”
Carroll, who has played well and had taken over the leadoff spot from outfielder Cory Sullivan, will likely be out of the lineup just a few days.
“Jamey does have a history of ankle sprains, so if there is one negative to that, it’s that you tend to sprain your ankle more often,” Rockies trainer Keith Dugger said. “But you also tend to recover a little bit sooner because the ligaments are already stretched out.”
Kim up, Dohmann down
As expected, the Rockies activated right-handed pitcher Sun-Woo Kim off the 15-day disabled list. To make room, the club optioned right-handed reliever Scott Dohmann to the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox.
Kim entered spring training with high hopes to be a starter but will work out of the bullpen as a long reliever for now. The role will require major adjustments.
“What he’s got to do now is be able to get that all-important first batter he faces,” pitching coach Bob Apodaca said. “That is the absolute, most important job a reliever has. He won’t have two or three innings to find his rhythm out there.”
Kim made five rehab starts for Colorado Springs, going 2-2 with a 4.25 ERA. On May 13 at Omaha, he allowed just one hit in eight shutout innings. But last Thursday against New Orleans, he gave up four runs on 10 hits in seven innings.
“I have no problems with being a reliever for now, and I’m happy to stay with this team,” Kim said. “This team feels like a family to me, so I wanted to stay.”
Because he still had options remaining, Dohmann got caught in a numbers game.
“It’s still hard to swallow, but I’ve only got one way to move and that’s forward,” said Dohmann, who held the opposition scoreless in nine of his 13 major-league outings this season. “That’s the only way to approach this business, and it’s not like I haven’t done it before.”
Rockies recap
In a roundabout way, Dodgers rookie left fielder Andre Ethier can thank Rockies first baseman Todd Helton for his big major-league success. Following Ethier’s first full minor league minor-league season in 2004, Oakland minor league minor-league director Keith Lieppman sat down with Ethier and showed him Helton’s minor league minor-league stats. Ethier, coming off a seven-homer season, was frustrated that his power wasn’t transferring into homers. But Lieppman preached patience and showed Ethier that Helton hit just 26 homers over four minor-league seasons. Ethier hit 18 homers last year and was picked the A’s minor league player of the year. Acquired by the Dodgers in the offseason for Milton Bradley and Antonio Perez, he’s shown excellent power in limited action. Heading into Tuesday, he had three homers in 53 at-bats. He was a perfect 5-for-5 with a homer and three RBIs against the Angels on Friday.
NO CRYING IN BASEBALL: Actor Tom Hanks watched Tuesday’s game from one of the private boxes at Dodger Stadium. He was greeted with a film clip from his baseball flick, “A League of Their Own,” on the giant screen.
LONG-BALL ELIMINATORS: Before Tuesday, the Rockies had allowed just 35 home runs this season, the second-lowest total in the majors. Rockies relievers had surrendered six homers, the fewest by any relief corps.
