It was opening day and somebody had to match the promise of high expectations.
That somebody was Arizona reliever J.J. Putz, who put a tidy finish on an ugly day when he closed out the 11th inning in the visitor’s 7-6 victory on Friday.
Putz’s job was simple: Protect a one-run lead. He struck out Troy Tulowitzki swinging and Ryan Spilborghs looking and got Ty Wigginton on a routine groundball to end a marathon neither team seemed to want to win at times.
“I’ll take that kind of finish every time,” Putz said. “The split was working pretty well, and I was able to locate my fastball in and out. Getting ahead of the hitters late in the game is the key.”
Arizona catcher Miguel Montero had a wild day. On offense, he was a hero, with three hits, including a two-run home run off Ubaldo Jimenez. On defense, he made a horrible throw to first base on what should have been an inning-ending strikeout in the seventh. The extended inning allowed the Rockies to tie the score 6-6.
“My team picked me up big,” Montero said. “We were able to keep it to minimum damage.”
Arizona manager Kirk Gibson said: “Miguel Montero played his heart out today. He made a mistake. We all picked him up. Jimenez was tough. He made some mistakes. We got a hold of him a couple of times, and it seemed to take some wind out of his sails.”
Jimenez also allowed a home run to Justin Upton.
For Diamondbacks hitting coach Don Baylor, it was a satisfying day. He was let go as the Rockies’ hitting coach after last season. On this day, Arizona collected 15 hits.
“The atmosphere here at Coors Field really helped our guys get focused,” Baylor said. “There’s something about opening day and playing that first game.”
Baylor said he isn’t bitter about what happened.
“I move on. I don’t look back. My work always has been the same. Blame jobs are just part of baseball. Somebody’s always to blame.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
