The final two weeks of July are like no other time in the baseball season. There’s nervous anticipation. Players ask about trade talk, wondering if they are going to show up the next day with a stranger by their locker.
The door was revolving Saturday, not over transactions, but positions. With Todd Helton out indefinitely with a back injury, the Rockies shifted Garrett Atkins to first base, presenting Ian Stewart with his first extended look at third.
There were no second thoughts Saturday as the tweaked lineup buried the spiraling Pirates 7-1 at Coors Field.
A paid crowd of 44,565 — the fifth-largest this season — turned out on beach towel night. There was dark humor in the promotion for Pirates starter Yoslan Herrera, who was chased to the showers in the second inning.
The Rockies mauled the right-hander, who looked overmatched from his first pitch. Colorado banged out five runs in the first inning on five hits. Atkins, who made all the plays at first base, drove in a run on a sacrifice fly. Stewart roped an RBI single to right, and Omar Quintanilla brought throaty screams, plating two runs with a double.
Herrera was mercifully pulled in the second inning before any scoring records became threatened. He’s not alone in the Pirates’ futility. Their starters have won just once in their past 20 games.
Given a six-run cushion, maddening left-hander Jorge De La Rosa delivered his latest gem. Though he’s likely only keeping the seat warm in the rotation until Jeff Francis finishes his rehab assignment, De La Rosa extended the Rockies’ winning streak to three games.
He allowed just one run in six innings, recovering from a base-loaded mess in the first inning. He improved to 4-5.
As the Rockies try to crawl back into contention, if nothing else, they have re-established momentum at home, where they improved to 28-21. Aaron Cook, coming off his brilliant All-Star Game performance, starts today as the Rockies look for their first sweep since brooming the Indians at home a month ago.
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
