Even for Aaron Cook, patience has an expiration date.
He is the franchise leader in wins. And no pitcher has spent more time in a Rockies uniform. But in a pennant race, the past and tenure don’t necessarily matter. Challenged to give his team a chance to win Tuesday, Cook dissolved again before the Rockies’ eyes in an ugly 10-0 loss to the Giants, their worst at home this season.
The performance jeopardized his rotation spot after Colorado dropped 6 1/2 games behind San Francisco in the wild-card race.
“Every team is giving me trouble this year,” Cook conceded. “I have been pitching badly.”
Manager Jim Tracy elected not to discuss Cook’s status afterward, saying there would be opportunities later, possibly as soon as today. But the raw numbers and Jhoulys Chacin’s presence as a potential replacement in Triple-A Colorado Springs suggest that a change is imminent.
Cook is 0-3 in his past three starts with a 13.98 ERA. Teammates wondered late Tuesday if he had already been told he’s moving to a long relief role.
“If I had the answer (to the command issues), I would fix it,” said Cook, whose control is fine in sessions between starts. “It’s aggravating.”
Twenty-eight pitches into Tuesday’s outing, Cook was knee deep in trouble. He had retired only one batter. The Giants finished with four runs in their initial at-bat, going 5-for-6 with runners in scoring position, including a single by wonderboy catcher Buster Posey.
It continued an alarming trend for Cook. While his velocity is similar to that of his last few seasons — 88 to 91 mph — Cook’s strong sinker remains elusive. When he misses, it’s elevated. And he doesn’t have the offspeed pitches to compensate, his 70 mph curveball to fan Posey in the third inning notwithstanding. Cook dropped to 4-8 with a 5.34 ERA. Chacin, before his demotion when Jorge De La Rosa returned to the rotation, was 5-8 with a 4.04 ERA.
“I would line up behind (Cook) any day,” said Todd Helton, who admitted his back stiffened up in his successful return off the disabled list (1-for-3 with a walk), which could keep him out of today’s lineup. “He’s just going through a tough stretch.”
In fairness to Cook, these aren’t the Giants you remember. When last seen at Coors Field, they needed someone to pull the rip cord. They were 40-39 on July 2, losers of seven straight. They have gone 22-6 since.
The Rockies, who had scored 40 runs in their previous four victories, offered no counterpunch against Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez. At one point, the Rockies struck out seven consecutive times, tying a franchise record. Colorado made the mistake of not punishing Sanchez (six innings, three hits) early when he was still feeling for his control.
“Sorry,” Tracy said as he left his news conference. “There’s just not much to say about this game. We just have to forget about it as quickly as possible.”
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
Looking ahead
TODAY: Giants at Rockies, 1:10 p.m., FSN, KOA
Ubaldo Jimenez (16-2, 2.67 ERA) shut out the Giants on Memorial Day. He was searching for answers before his seven-inning, one-run performance vs. the Pirates last week. If he commands his fastball early in the count, he can dominate any lineup. Lefty Madison Bumgarner (4-3, 2.70) certainly hasn’t been rushed to the big leagues. He was 34-6, 2.00 in the minors after being selected with the 10th pick in the 2007 draft. He throws 94-96 mph with a cut fastball he runs in on right-handers’ fists.
Jim Armstrong, The Denver Post
Upcoming pitching matchups
Thursday: Rockies’ Jeff Francis (4-3, 4.44 ERA) at Pirates’ James McDonald (0-1, 8.22), 5:05 p.m., FSN
Friday: Rockies’ Jason Hammel (7-6, 4.37) at Pirates’ Zach Duke (5-10, 5.36), 5:05 p.m., FSN
Saturday: Rockies’ Jorge De La Rosa (4-3, 5.01) at Pirates’ Ross Ohlendorf (1-9, 4.41), 5:05 p.m., FSN
Sunday: Rockies’ TBA at Pirates’ Paul Maholm (7-9, 4.59), 11:35 a.m., FSN
