SAN FRANCISCO — There will be no fifth attempt at tying the Rockies’ single-season record of 17 victories.
Manager Clint Hurdle confirmed today that pitcher Aaron Cook has been shut down for the season and will not make his previously-scheduled start Friday in Arizona.
Jason Hirsh will replace him, making his first start of the season.
“I give Aaron a lot of credit for thinking through this and not just shutting down immediately,” Hurdle said. “He’s been red-lining it the last few starts. And I think the risk of injury is real if he would go back out there.”
Cook, who leads the Rockies with 16 wins and a 3.96 ERA, has been bothered off and on by back pain since the All-Star game.
“I took a lot of things under consideration,” Cook said. “I talked to my family, my agent and my teammates. When my teammates said they were okay with it, that’s when I decided to do it.”
Cook also admitted he’s had problems getting loose his past two starts because of his heavy work load this season.
As for the Rockies’ lineup, Matt Holliday will return tonight after sitting out the past two games with a tweaked back.
A look at the rest of the lineup for tonight’s game against the Giants:
CF Smith
SS Tulowitzki
LF Holliday
RF Hawpe
C Iannetta
3B Stewart
1B Koshansky
2B Quintanilla
P Jimenez
