MIAMI — Corey Dickerson trotted gingerly off the field after grounding out to shortstop in the sixth inning Saturday, then tossed his helmet into the Rockies’ dugout in disgust.
It wasn’t the fact that he was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts that ignited the left fielder’s frustration, it was the pain pulsing in his left foot. Dickerson, who initially went on the disabled list May 19, was reinstated Thursday. He hoped he could play through the plantar fasciitis that has dogged him for much of the season.
“He hurt the left foot,” manager Walt Weiss said. “I’m not sure exactly how serious it is. But it’s a chronic thing. Hopefully it didn’t flare up too bad.”
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Dickerson is hitting .306 with five homers, seven doubles, two triples and 16 RBIs in 36 games.
Big Cat sighting. There were smiles all around the batting cage at Marlins Park. It couldn’t be helped, not with Andres “The Big Cat” Galarraga on hand.
“One of the great smiles of all time, and he wore it 24/7,” said Weiss, who played with Galarraga for four years in Colorado (1994-97) and three in Atlanta (1998-2000).
Galarraga, who lives about an hour north of Miami in West Palm Beach, celebrated “Venezuelan Heritage Day” by throwing the ceremonial first pitch. Galarraga, 53, was born in Caracas, Venezuela.
“This is special, against the Rockies, and in Miami,” said Galarraga, who wore a purple-striped shirt for the occasion.
The Big Cat was the Rockies’ first big star. He resurrected his career in 1993, hitting .370 to win the National League batting title in the Rockies’ first season. The nimble first baseman was a three-time all-star in Colorado.
Galarraga hit 399 career homers for seven teams in his long career, but being in Miami, the subject of his most famous home run came up. It was a towering grand slam off the Marlins’ Kevin Brown on May 31, 1997, into the upper deck at Pro Player Stadium. It was originally called one of the longest homers ever hit, traveling 579 feet. The homer was later reduced to 529 feet.
Footnote. Troy Tulowitzki extended his hitting streak to 12 games, the longest active streak in the majors. It’s tied for the longest streak of his career in a season (Aug. 16-27, 2007).
Rockies’ Jorge De La Rosa (3-2, 5.53 ERA) at Marlins’ Dan Haren (6-2, 3.12), 11:10 a.m. Sunday, ROOT; 850 AM
The Rockies would appear to have an advantage against Haren, a 34-year-old right-hander. In 19 starts against them, he is 7-9 with a 5.12 ERA, his third-highest ERA against any team. Also, outfielder Carlos Gonzalez has teed off on Haren, going 9-for-23 (.391) with four home runs. But Haren has been nails at Marlins Park this season, going 3-0 with a 1.96 ERA. De La Rosa, meanwhile, is 5-5 with a 5.71 ERA vs. the Marlins in his career; 1-1 with a 7.71 ERA in two starts at Marlins Park.
Monday: Rockies’ Chad Bettis (2-1, 3.05 ERA) at Astros’ Dallas Keuchel (7-2, 1.90), 6:05 p.m., ROOT
Tuesday: Rockies’ Chris Rusin (2-1, 3.38) at Astros’ Vincent Velasquez (0-0, 0.00), 12:10 p.m., no TV
Wednesday: Astros’ Brett Oberholtzer (1-1, 2.25) at Rockies’ Kyle Kendrick (2-8, 5.87), 6:40 p.m., ROOT
