When Rodrigo Lopez contemplated his future, his past steered him in a new direction. If he was really going to start fresh with the Rockies, he had to let go of the old things.
There would be no winter ball in Mexico for the first time, no matter his loyalty to his country. His home, too, spoke of a new beginning, as he moved full time to Chandler, Ariz. The stability, in keeping with his offseason theme, allowed him to work out relentlessly, reshaping his body and clearing his mind from last season’s miserable 18-loss experience in Baltimore.
“Things happen for different reasons. Having a new place, a new team, it’s good,” said Lopez, acquired in a January trade. “I can’t wait to start winning games for the Rockies.”
As Colorado attempts to end a streak of six consecutive losing seasons, it’s impossible to overstate Lopez’s importance for the Rockies’ chances this season. Not only is the 31-year-old responsible for gobbling the innings vacated by Jason Jennings (trade), but his rebound could elevate a rotation considered inferior to National League West counterparts.
“He’s looking to redefine himself, he’s hungry,” Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. “He didn’t have a good year last year, but if he had, he wouldn’t have been available. Look at the track record. We aren’t asking him to do something he’s never done.”
In 2004 and 2005, Lopez won a combined 29 games and was considered one of the American League’s most underrated starters. Last season was forgettable, stained by a 9-18 record, 5.90 ERA and a messy philosophical clash with first-year Orioles pitching coach Leo Mazzone.
Mazzone stressed the importance of locating the fastball down and away, an idea that Lopez never embraced, a chasm further widened when the right-hander was temporarily exiled to the bullpen.
“I didn’t have the coaching I believe I will have here,” Lopez said. “I had a bad beginning and a bad last month. I let too much stuff get into my head.”
Rockies reliever LaTroy Hawkins, a member of the Orioles last season, added, “I clashed with Leo, too. Rodrigo never let anything break his spirit. Everyone is entitled to an off year.”
In Colorado, Lopez believes he found an ideal spot to stage a revival. He will work directly with pitching coach Bob Apodaca, whose previous reclamation projects include Shawn Estes and Darren Oliver. Lopez also reunites with former Orioles pitching coach and current Rockies special assistant Mark Wiley.
Apodaca promised a patient, open-minded approach. Wiley’s confidence in Lopez can be traced to two factors: He’s not injured, and he bounced back once before after a difficult 2003 season.
And, yes, defecting from the American League East, where he regularly faced the Red Sox and Yankees, won’t hurt, either.
“You can always regroup when you’re healthy. He was in the toughest division in baseball pitching for a club that wasn’t really good. A lot of things can happen mentally,” Wiley said. “I think he’s going to be comfortable. The one thing about Rodrigo is that he’s a real competitor. You aren’t going to see him feeling sorry for himself.”
Glenn Steele never saw pity, only humility and dedication this winter. From Nov. 21 to Feb. 9, Lopez worked with Steele four times a week, three hours a day, strengthening his shoulder and improving his flexibility. He missed only one session. His tightened abdominal muscles and Steele’s sore left catching thumb are proof.
“Everything he did was 100 percent. He wants to prove something,” said Steele, the performance director at Velocity Sports in Gilbert, Ariz. “I have caught over 100 guys, and he’s the hardest because everything breaks so late.”
Lopez throws with a loose wrist, Wiley said. That hand speed on his delivery creates backspin on his sinker, cutter and slider. Vinny Castilla, Lopez’s teammate last year on Mexico’s World Baseball Classic team, applauded the pitcher’s decision to rest his arm and increase his conditioning.
“Rodrigo is never satisfied,” Castilla said. “He will work to get back to where he was.”
A transition made easier by where he is – in body and mind.
“I believe in myself,” Lopez said. “I feel great. I look forward to being out there every five days giving the team a chance to win.”
Troy E. Renck can be reached at 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com.
Rotation in motion
Rockies beat writer Patrick Saunders stacks up the competition for the five spots in the team’s starting rotation:
JEFF FRANCIS | 2006 stats: 13-11, 4.16 ERA in 32 starts
Status: With a four-year, $13.25 million contract in hand, the quiet, yet tenacious southpaw is poised to compete with Aaron Cook to be the opening-day starter.
AARON COOK | 2006 stats: 9-15, 4.23 ERA in 32 starts
Status: Logged 212 1/2 innings last year, but needs to be more consistent to replace Jason Jennings as the staff ace. Turned over seven leads that the bullpen blew.
RODRIGO LOPEZ | 2006 stats: 9-18, 5.90 ERA in 36 games/29 starts with Orioles.
Status: Despite horrid 2006 season, he is penciled in as the No. 3 starter.
JASON HIRSH | 2006 stats: 3-4, 6.04 ERA in nine starts with Astros.
Status: Athletic, 6-foot-8, 250-pound right-hander is poised to become a rotation fixture. Needs to improve changeup.
JOSH FOGG | 2006 stats: 11-9, 5.49 ERA in 31 starts
Status: A battler who has won at least 10 games in four of five big-league seasons.
BYUNG-HYUN KIM | 2006 stats: 8-12, 5.57 ERA in 27 starts
Status: The side-winding right-hander is wildly inconsistent. Candidate to be traded.
BRIAN LAWRENCE | 2006 stats: Sat out the season with Washington while recovering from a torn labrum.
Status: Rockies will be cautious with him as he recovers from injury.
TAYLOR BUCHHOLZ | 2006 stats: 6-10, 5.89 ERA in 22 games/19 starts with Astros.
Status: Probably destined for long relief.
