TUCSON — Jorge De La Rosa talks about focus so much you’d think he was cinematographer.
But with Jeff Francis scheduled to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery Wednesday, De La Rosa’s importance to the Rockies’ rotation is magnified. He’s slotted as the fourth man in the rotation, which makes him the first left-hander.
“I think I am ready to help this team,” said the 27-year-old from Nuevo Leon, Mexico. “I need to concentrate and stayed focused better.”
There is a lot of truth to De La Rosa’s mantra. In the second half of last season, he proved he has the firepower to win in the majors. In September, for instance, he went 3-1 with a 2.67 ERA. But his top priority this spring training is to prove that his loss of poise is part of his past.
“The keys will be the same for him as they were in the second half of last season,” manager Clint Hurdle said today.
Hurdle then proceeded to rattle off a to-do list: Repeat delivery, maintain mound presence and composure, throw secondary pitches for strikes, stay calm when he gets behind in the count, pitch with a steady pace.
“There weren’t many things he missed on in the second half of last season, but the challenge is doing it for a whole season,” Hurdle said.
Hurdle said De La Rosa wasn’t simply handed the No. 4 spot ahead of pitchers such as Greg Smith or Jason Hirsh.
“I think he’s earned that opportunity,” Hurdle said. “I just saw a lot of good things in the second half of the season. He was very hard to hit. I think he’s a guy who is very prideful and embraces a challenge.”
Who’s No. 2 in the order? Ryan Spilborghs is penciled in as the leadoff hitter, but Hurdle is juggling his thoughts on who should hit second on a regular basis.
The candidates: outfielder Seth Smith, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, second baseman Clint Barmes, utility man Jeff Baker and perhaps even first baseman Todd Helton.
With some pop in his bat, smarts and decent speed, Barmes would seem an ideal candidate, but his .322 on-base percentage last season needs to improve.
“He got more selective as the season went on,” Hurdle said. “I’m not sure he’s ever going to be a big walk, base-on-balls guy. But he can square the ball up; he’s got some barrel to his bat.”
Torrealba time. Catcher Yorvit Torrealba, who had surgery to repair cartilage in his left knee late last season, is fit and eager to compete with Chris Iannetta for playing time. Torrealba endured pitch-blocking drills Thursday and said his knee felt fine.
Though Torrealba chose not to play for Venezuela in the upcoming World Baseball Classic, he predicts Iannetta will benefit from playing for Team USA.
“The WBC is going to be a good experience for him,” Torrealba said. “I would have liked to go, but I decided not to because this is my last year before free agent, I need to play.”
Venezuela already has catchers Ramon Hernandez and Dioner Navarro, so Torrealba didn’t think it was worth missing any time in Rockies camp.
“I would go there and I wouldn’t play much,” he said. “So I prefer to be here and get in shape, get at-bats and be ready.”
Torrealba’s grievance against the New York Mets is still pending after the hearing was delayed twice. Torrealba and his agent contend that the Mets backed out of deal in the winter of 2007 without just cause. He ended up signing for nearly $6 million less with the Rockies.
Tucson future. The Rockies and Diamondbacks, the only teams still calling Tucson their spring training home, continue weighing their future options. The teams could stay in Tucson, but probably only if two other teams moved to town, making for a workable foursome. Right now, that scenario seems unlikely.
Casa Grande, about midway between Tucson and Phoenix, is trying to lure the Rockies and Diamondbacks, but that plan remains in the preliminary stage.
The Rockies’ lease at Hi Corbett Field expires in 2011, and the Diamondbacks’ lease at Tucson Electric Park is up in 2012. But both teams can break those contracts because they are the only teams left in Tucson after the Chicago White Sox departed for Glendale for this spring.
One possible option is for the Rockies to share a complex with the Diamondbacks near Chandler on the Gila River Indian Reservation south of the Phoenix metro area.
The Rockies have been in Tucson since their inception in 1993.
Footnote. As the Rockies begin hammering out contracts for their zero-to-three-year service time players, outfielder Seth Smith agreed to terms. He will make $403,000 in the majors and $149,514 in the minor leagues.
Troy E. Renck contributed to this report.
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com
