TUCSON — The Rockies have a lot invested in setup man Luis Vizcaino, so they were encouraged to see the right-hander work a crisp sixth inning in a 12-11 win over the Diamondbacks on Saturday.
After giving Vizcaino a two-year, $7.5 million free-agent deal, the club became concerned when he experienced a sore elbow early in camp. He missed four days while traveling to the Dominican Republic because of personal issues. He’s working to get ready for the regular season.
“We just want to make sure he’s healthy and make sure he builds up his volume of pitches,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “He needs to get a little more downhill plane on his fastball, but his slider was very effective today.”
Vizcaino gave up a single but escaped the inning by inducing a groundball double play. He’s scheduled to pitch again Monday and Wednesday.
Cook hot, cold.
Chris Young greeted Rockies starter Aaron Cook with a leadoff homer in the first. Cook then settled into a groove, allowing just one hit until the fifth inning. Then it got ugly. Cook opened the fifth by plunking Justin Upton and Ed Easley. That opened the floodgates, and Cook ended up getting tagged for six runs on five hits in 4 1/3 innings.
“I just lost it,” Cook said. “There is no other explanation. It’s one of those things where it’s just spring training, and it’s easier to put behind you.”
Tulo time.
Troy Tulowitzki continues hammering the ball, going 2-for-4 with a double. He has five doubles to go with four homers and is hitting .341.
“He’s going to grow as a hitter, but one of the biggest challenges that comes for a first-year player is how the league will set him up for the second season and how’ll he counterpunch,” Hurdle said.
Footnotes.
The race for the final outfield spot stayed hot. Scott Podsednik reached base three times (one hit, two walks), boosting his average to .375 and his on-base percentage to .556. Cory Sullivan, considered the favorite because of his defense, went 2-for-3 and is hitting .212. . . . The morning lineup card listed Brad Hawpe as the starting right fielder, but he was scratched so he could stay behind for extra batting practice. He’s been out with a sore elbow. . . . Jayson Nix (back tightness) was back in the starting lineup at second. He went 1-for-3 and scored a run.
