SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Esmil Rogers figures to win the job as the Rockies’ fifth starter. Question is, will he win it by default?
Rogers cruised through three innings against the Angels on Sunday before starting a slow meltdown once the Anaheim batters got multiple looks at him. It has been the story of his short career. Witness these numbers: Opponents batted .400 against him in the fifth inning last season, .368 in the sixth.
This time, the Angels touched him for six runs before he was pulled three hitters into the sixth inning, one scoring on a home run by Torii Hunter off a curveball that did considerably more hanging than curving.
“When you get to the point where you start going through the lineup for a third time, you don’t have room for error,” Rockies manager Jim Tracy said. “You can’t leave pitches up in the zone.”
With little more than a week remaining in spring training, Rogers, who has a 5.68 ERA, appears to be the front-runner for the job. Greg Reynolds stands at 6.05 and the other candidate, John Maine, isn’t scheduled to make a start this week after struggling with his command against the Reds on Saturday.
Reynolds still may be a candidate, but Maine, nine months removed from shoulder surgery, appears headed for Triple-A Colorado Springs to log some innings.
“I don’t think about the decision,” Rogers said. “I think about my job. My job is going to tell them what to do about me. I’m not nervous. I’m ready for any decision they’re going to make.”
Footnotes.
Troy Tulowitzki, after hitting two home runs including a three-run shot, said he’s ready for the season: “I hope so. It’s baseball and tomorrow I could have four bad at-bats. But at the same time, I feel good.” . . . Felipe Paulino is warming to his new job in the bullpen after opening the spring as a starter. He pitched his third straight scoreless inning, blowing away Peter Bourjos with a 97-mph fastball to open the ninth.
Jim Armstrong, The Denver Post
Rockies Recap
Rockies 6, Angels 6 (10 inn.)
Hits: The Rockies strung together seven consecutive hits in the first inning, including Troy Tulowitzki’s three-run homer, to take a 4-0 lead. Tulowitzki added a solo shot in the third, with both long balls coming off Matt Palmer. . . . The Rockies recorded their sixth consecutive sellout at Salt River Fields as 12,209 stormed the turnstiles. . . . Huston Street looks ready for the season. He pitched a scoreless inning, giving him one run allowed in his last six outings. Misses: His line in the box score — one inning, one hit, no runs — looked clean, but Franklin Morales struggled to find the strike zone, uncorking two wild pitches. . . . Dexter Fowler, back in the lineup after missing three games with a strained right quadriceps, went 0-for-4 and was picked off first base.
Next up: Today, 2 p.m., at the Giants, Jason Hammel vs. Tim Lincecum. Other Rockies pitchers scheduled: Matt Belisle, Rafael Betancourt, Matt Reynolds.
Jim Armstrong, The Denver Post
