ANAHEIM, Calif. — Who was on first Saturday night?
Rockies utility man Melvin Mora. Who was on second? Jonathan Herrera.
Mora gave Todd Helton a needed rest after the Rockies’ back-to-back extra-inning marathons. It was the second time this season Mora started at first. He has also played at second, third and left field.
Herrera, who beat the Angels on Friday night with a run-scoring single in the 11th inning, made his eighth straight start at second.
The two are examples of the Rockies’ versatility and depth, something manager Jim Tracy has been forced to call upon frequently through an injury-filled first half of the season.
The problems reached a crescendo June 17 when star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki went out with a broken wrist. Yet after Friday’s victory, the Rockies improved to 6-1 without Tulo.
“I have known for the last few years that we had great depth,” said Clint Barmes, who moved from second base to short to replace Tulo, meaning Herrera had to fill Barmes’ footprints at second. “Of course we miss Tulo, but with the type of players we have, the type of character they have, they come in and jell right away. It’s a credit to the organization.”
After striking out in his first three at-bats Friday, Herrera hit three singles, including the game-winner. It marked his seventh start in a row, during which time he safely hit in every game at a .452 clip (14-for-31).
Mora has been struggling at the plate, entering Saturday’s game in a 1-for-17 funk. But overall, he has hit well on the road (.275) and has given Tracy another chess piece to maneuver.
“I try to make it easy for our manager,” Mora said. “I think it’s good that I can play all those positions. I think God gave me the ability to play all of those.”
Then he quipped: “I guess it’s good for the organization, because it saves them money because they don’t have to call in another guy to do what I can do.”
Hurtin’ Hawpe.
When right fielder Brad Hawpe ran into the thinly padded concrete wall down the right-field line at Angel Stadium on Friday, he got the wind knocked out of him. He went to bed fearful he was going to have some playing time knocked out of him too. But there were no broken ribs, and although Hawpe wasn’t available Saturday, he is not expected to miss significant time.
“I think I’m going to be all right, but I still wanted to get checked out,” said Hawpe, who ran into the wall while chasing a foul ball in the first inning. “When I went to bed last night, it hurt pretty bad. But it’s a lot better today.”
Footnotes.
Friday’s victory was just the second of the season in which the Rockies came back to win when trailing after seven innings. . . . Reliever Matt Belisle pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings Friday. He has thrown 46 2/3 innings, second-most among NL relievers behind the Nationals’ Tyler Clippard (47).
Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post
