TUCSON — Josh Towers didn’t need a phone call to confirm the Rockies” interest. The 30-year-old pitcher knew Colorado liked him when they claimed him on waivers last summer from Toronto, but were unable to complete a trade.
When a possibility of playing for his hometown San Diego Padres evaporated when they added Mark Prior, Towers quickly signed with the Rockies. He joins the mix for a final bullpen and rotation spot, a low-risk investment with only $400,000 of his contract guaranteed.
“I think I have come to camp once in my career with an actually job so it’s nothing new,” Towers said. “The World Series berth didn’t influence me. It was a young team that played hard. And everybody needs pitching.”
So Towers finds himself in Tucson, the U-turn capital of the world. It’s only fitting for a pitcher who went 5-10 with a 5.38 ERA. Towers’ frustration played out in the press, which led Toronto to try and move him. The right-hander is incorporating a split-finger pitch this spring, but believes a mental adjustment is more important than any physical change.
“I need to regain the confidence I lost when I got rocked. The Blue Jays didn’t help pulling me early in games and hiding me in the bullpen,” Towers said. “I need to get that arrogance back on the mound. You look at guys like Chad Johnson and Terrell Owens, you don’t see many athletes who play with arrogance that aren’t successful.”
Manager Clint Hurdle has gone to great lengths to talk about the open competition for the final two rotation slots, though the club’s preference is for Jason Hirsh and Franklin Morales to secure them. Towers is an interesting alternative given his experience.
“Towers has shown an ability to make pitches and work both sides of the plate. He’s not going to blow up the radar gun,” Hurdle said. “He pitches similar to how Josh Fogg attacked hitters. It’s about command, location, changing eye level. He’s a guy who still has a ceiling on his side.”
If nothing else, Towers is unique. He is the only starting pitcher in major league baseball to don a single-digit number. No, he doesn’t wear No. 7 for John Elway or Mickey Mantle. It was the only one available when he arrived in Toronto. Now he has his reasons for keeping it.
“No pendants or tattoos with it. Players just get known for numbers so I wanted the same one,” Towers said. “Besides my son really likes it.”
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
