Where’s Waldo? How about where’s Ubaldo?
Ubaldo Jimenez, the talented young pitcher the Rockies have placed so much hope and faith in this season, is nowhere to be found.
Surely that couldn’t have been the real Jimenez on the mound at Coors Field pitching four haphazard innings Saturday night as Rockies fell 6-5 to the Dodgers? But, in fact, it was.
Once again, early-game pitching woes haunted the Rockies. It was Jimenez’s third straight loss and the third straight time he failed to make it into the fifth inning.
“I don’t know what’s going on,” catcher Yorvit Torrealba said. “It’s still early, he’s still a good pitcher, so I think he’ll get on track.”
The loss was the Rockies’ 10th in their last 12 games and they’ve lost five straight to the Dodgers. It didn’t help that on a cold night at Coors Field, the offense failed to give the Rockies a jumpstart.
Los Angeles, taking command of the National League West in the early going, improved to 13-5, tied with St. Louis for the best record in the majors. The cellar-dwelling Rockies already trail L.A. by seven games.
Jimenez, his mechanics out of whack and his fastball in need of a homing device, was gone after throwing 91 pitches in four innings. After four starts, his ERA is an unsightly 7.58. And, for the first time, Jimenez was not available to the media after the game. He left before the clubhouse was open.
The Dodgers jabbed Jimenez for four runs on six hits in the first inning, the big blow a two-run single by Russell Martin. The stocky catcher added another two-run single off Jimenez in the fourth, putting the Dodgers ahead 6-3.
“He’s not hitting his spots and not commanding his secondary pitches,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “It’s a battle for him right now. He’s looked at the video and he’s worked hard to get it back in play, but sometimes the game gets in the way.”
Colorado closed the gap to 6-5 in the fifth on Garrett Atkins” two-run homer to left, driving in Todd Helton who had reached on a walk. But the Rockies, who managed just five hits total, couldn’t mount a rally in their last four innings against reliever Ramon Troncoso, who got his first major league save.
The Rockies cut the Dodgers” early 4-0 lead to 4-3 in the third on run-scoring single by Seth Smith and a two-run double by Brad Hawpe off L.A. rookie starter James McDonald, who hung tough to notch his first big-league victory. His combination of a good fastball and the nerve to throw curves and changeups in tough spots kept the Rockies from locking in on him.
“He did a good job keeping us off-balance with his off-speed stuff,” said Clint Barmes after his 0-for-4 night. “It’s frustrating, but I still think this offense is going to break out.”
The one positive theme woven into Saturday night’s game was the performance of Colorado’s bullpen. Four Colorado relievers, including Matt Daley in his major league debut, combined to toss five scoreless innings. Daley pitched a scoreless seventh, walking a batter, hitting a batter and striking out Troncoso with a nasty curveball.
“I just told myself to take a deep breath and slow down,” Daley said. “It was a dream come true tonight.”
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com
