Todd Helton didn’t need to be reminded of his May funk. He was acutely aware that he entered Sunday’s game against Minnesota with a .269 average and just one RBI in his last 10 games.
So he tweaked his mental approach.
“I’ve been thinking a little bit too much,” he said. “I’ve tried to get my head out of it and go out there and just be aggressive. I need to quit worrying about every little thing in my swing. That’s what I told myself I wasn’t going to do this year, but I kind of fell back into it.”
The adjustment paid off. In the sixth, Helton roped a two-out solo homer to right field, tying the game 2-all. It was only the fourth homer of the season for Helton and his first in 53 at-bats. Helton added a bases-loaded two-run single in the Rockies’ three-run seventh.
Helton also made two acrobatic plays at first base, robbing the Twins’ Justin Morneau of a hit in the third inning and doing the same to Mike Redmond in the fourth.
Morales meltdown.
Fixing what’s wrong with prized left-hander Franklin Morales is turning into a long-term project. In a Triple-A loss to Fresno on Saturday night, Morales pitched four-plus innings, coughing up 10 earned runs on eight hits and seven walks. In his previous start for the Sky Sox, Morales pitched five innings of no-hit ball, but he walked six.
“It’s more of the same,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “He lacked fastball command and he really didn’t have a whole lot to bring to the table with his secondary pitches. . . . For whatever reason, the to-do list has gotten extremely long.”
The Rockies’ goal is to help Morales regain his natural pitching motion and velocity.
“All we’re trying to do is revisit with him what he was born to do and the God-given abilities he was presented with,” Hurdle said. “Get back to that and then we’ll work off that.”
Footnotes.
Jeff Baker made his fourth consecutive start at second base, finished 1-for-3 and drove in the go-ahead run with an RBI single in the sixth. He has hit safely in 10 of his 12 starts this season. . . . Willy Taveras’ on-base percentage remains a disappointing .305, but once he gets on base, he wreaks havoc. He stole second and third in the eighth inning and has 18 swipes this season. He’s 7-for-7 attempting to steal third base, best in the National League.
