For 17 years, the Rockies have been searching for the rarest, most valuable commodity in baseball. They once spent $121 million trying to buy one on the open market, a disaster that set them back years.
Call off the search party. For the first time in their history, the Rocks have a legitimate ace.
Never before have they been able to match up with a flamethrower like San Francisco’s Tim Lincecum. They could hope to get lucky with finesse, and occasionally did, but they could not fight fire with fire.
Sunday afternoon, before a full house at Coors Field, Ubaldo Jimenez announced to the baseball world that, at 25, he’s ready to join that elite class. He started with a 99-mph fastball to Giants leadoff man Eugenio Velez and rolled from there.
“Every time he takes the mound, our team expects to win,” said closer Huston Street, who finished up U-ball’s sixth consecutive win. “That, to me, is the sign of a true ace. When they’re on the mound, you expect to win.”
Coors Field hasn’t seen that many pennant-race pitchers’ duels over the years, but Sunday’s was a classic. Each ace made a single mistake. Jimenez surrendered a two-run home run to Edgar Renteria in the second, and Seth Smith returned the favor with a two- run shot off Lincecum in the seventh.
“One pitch,” Street said. “That was the name of the game for both pitchers today. That’s what happens in a pitchers’ duel. That’s how good you have to be. You have to be perfect almost.”
Jimenez has showed off his electric stuff in flashes since being called up in 2007, but he has not been able to command it reliably until this season, and in particular this month. He has carried the Rocks in August with a 5-0 record and shiny 1.63 ERA. With Aaron Cook hurting, U-ball has picked up the slack. That’s what an ace does.
“I was so excited I couldn’t sleep last night,” he said of his matchup with last year’s NL Cy Young Award winner. “He’s one of the greatest guys, so you’re always trying to learn from him.”
The defining moment for Jimenez came in the top of the eighth, after Smith had given him his first lead of the game. The one-run difference was a mistaken sixth-inning cutoff by Giants first baseman Ryan Garko on a throw by right fielder Nate Schierholtz that appeared to have Todd Helton out at the plate by about 30 feet.
Down 3-2, the Giants put the tying run on third with one out and Pablo Sandoval, their best hitter, at the plate. Catcher Chris Iannetta paid Jimenez a visit.
“He was like, ‘You have to bounce this pitch,’ ” Jimenez recounted. ” ‘We got (Bengie) Molina (behind him), he’s a righty, we have first base open. You don’t want to throw anything right in the middle of the plate.’ “
Jimenez threw a filthy curveball that was maybe 2 inches from the dirt when Sandoval grounded it weakly to Helton.
“I think he deserves a little bit more notoriety than he has gotten to this point beyond Denver,” Rocks manager Jim Tracy said. “He deserves more nationally, in my opinion.”
Owing mostly to his early- season struggles, Jimenez is unlikely to get that recognition this year, unless he commands the nation’s attention in October. Sunday’s win was his 12th against nine losses. He’s not worried about it.
“I just leave that to everybody else,” he said. “I just try to be out there for my team, give my team a chance. I’m not thinking about if I deserve to be mentioned with (Lincecum) or something. I know he’s one of the greatest pitchers. I just try to win the game.”
One simple factor distinguishes the Jimenez with potential to be an ace and the Jimenez who actually is — command of his nuclear fastball. Sunday, he was painting the black in the bullpen before the game. He walked two to Lincecum’s five.
“He’s one of the best pitchers in the league,” Smith said. “Whether he’s a secret or not, if you ask the players around the league, I’m pretty sure he’s no secret to them. I can’t speak for the fans or anybody else outside of players, but if you don’t know who he is, then it’s your fault.”
It doesn’t get much better than dueling aces in the middle of a pennant race, and this matchup is due to come back around soon. Real soon.
Friday night, in fact. In San Francisco. You don’t want to miss it.
“We’re home right now; we have like home advantage,” Jimenez said. “But we’re going to go to his house, his park, so it’s going to be really exciting.”
For the Rocks, it’s more than exciting. It means they finally have a pitcher who can match up with the very best.
Dave Krieger: 303-954-5297 or dkrieger@denverpost.com
