TUCSON — The Rockies won’t have their closer for opening day, but it looks like they’ll have their setup man.
Rafael Betancourt threw 26 pitches to Rockies and Diamondbacks minor-leaguers Saturday, popping the glove at 88-92 mph. Afterward, Betancourt said he’s confident he’ll be ready to pitch by April 5, when the Rockies open the season at Milwaukee without injured closer Huston Street.
“I think I’m going to be fine,” Betancourt said. “Two weeks is good enough. That’s fine for me.”
Betancourt plans to make a handful of Cactus League appearances, starting Tuesday vs. the Padres at Hi Corbett Field. After that, he’s scheduled to face Cleveland on Friday and Oakland on Sunday.
He’s hoping to cross another threshold in the final week of camp: pitching back-to-back days. But Saturday, all Betancourt wanted to talk about was how good he felt after struggling with shoulder inflammation throughout spring training.
“Very nice,” he said, when asked to describe his outing. “I was throwing strikes. For the first game, that’s good. And I know, now that I’m pitching, my arm is going to get stronger.”
Betancourt threw mostly fastballs, but mixed in two changeups and six sliders, with crisp movement on each.
“He threw all of his pitches,” Rockies trainer Keith Dugger said. “I liked every bit of it. He wasn’t laboring. His velocity was actually better than I thought it would be.”
Double trouble.
Jeff Francis allowed four doubles in the span of five Angels hitters in the second inning. His assessment of the damage: “I battled pretty good without having everything in my pocket. My curveball and changeup were getting me into bad counts, and I had to come with fastballs.”
Francis, who had allowed two runs in his previous seven innings, has made big strides after missing last season and is on course to be in the rotation. But the Rockies have the option of leaving him in Arizona for additional work since they won’t need a fifth starter in the first week of the season.
Belisle on a roll.
Right-hander Matt Belisle pitched a scoreless inning, his fourth straight scoreless outing. Manager Jim Tracy, on Belisle: “That stuff . . . I would have to say, is definitely noteworthy. Is that stuff capable of being at the back end of a game? Yes.”
Now for the down side: Belisle has yet to pitch on back-to-back days because of lingering inflammation in his forearm, a condition that has plagued him for years.
Minor adjustments.
Aaron Cook, initially scheduled to face the Royals today, instead will pitch to minor-leaguers in Tucson. Cook asked for the reassignment after losing the release point on his signature sinker, witness his 0-2, 11.42 ERA spring numbers.
“It’s spring training,” Cook said. “If I was hurt or my mechanics weren’t where I want them to be, it would be a different story. I’d be aggravated. I told Tracy and Dac (pitching coach Bob Apodaca) that once the ball starts coming out of my hand with the true spin, forget about it. I’ll be fine.”
Footnotes.
Catcher Paul Lo Duca, who left Friday’s game vs. Oakland with an arm problem, doesn’t believe it will be a major issue: “I just had a little knot under my arm.” . . . The Rockies optioned right-hander Esmil Rogers to the minors. . . . Left-hander Greg Smith has gained 12 pounds, from 189 to 201. It’s by design after Smith struggled to regain his strength after getting sick last spring. Smith: “It’s helped me more than I thought it would. I feel more durable on the mound.”
Jim Armstrong, The Denver Post
Rockies 11, Angels 10
At Hi Corbett Field
Hits: The Rockies trailed 6-0 after two and 10-6 in the ninth. The game-winner came via a three-run triple from Eric Young Jr. . . . Ryan Spilborghs was a poster boy for the Rockies’ don’t-be-pull-happy approach with a a double and a triple to center field and a double down the right-field line. . . . Jason Giambi doubled in a run with a deep drive to right-center off Scott Kazmir, his first hit off a left-hander.
Misses: The Rockies’ third-base defense has left something to be desired. Ian Stewart has a team-high four errors in 10 games, and Melvin Mora had another on Saturday. . . . Jonathan Herrera lost the ball in the crowd down the left- field line and couldn’t come up with the throw on a would-be force play that cost Jeff Francis two unearned runs in the first.
What’s next: Royals, today, 1:10 p.m., Surprise, Ariz. Jhoulys Chacin vs. Gaby Hernandez.
Jim Armstrong, The Denver Post
