NewsYoung Rox picking up slack on 'D'
Colorado (43-39) vs. Washington (24-56), 1:10 p.m. MT
By Thomas Harding / MLB.com
07/08/09 1:00 AM ET
DENVER -- Rockies manager Jim Tracy loves to talk about the range of his young outfielders. "As big as that outfield is, when you have a Dexter Fowler and Carlos Gonzalez in the same outfield, I'm sure there have been balls hit where the opposition feels like they're hitting in a cigar box," Tracy said. "That's a pretty big outfield to make a statement like that." As long as Fowler, a rookie who has been the primary starter in center field this season, and Gonzalez, called up from Triple-A Colorado Springs on June 5, keep making plays in the outfield, Tracy will give both chances to play through rough offensive stretches. They could play again on Wednesday in the series finale against the Nationals. Gonzalez broke an 0-for-12 skid with a third-inning single on Tuesday night. It should have been at least 1-for-11, but the Nationals' Nyjer Morgan robbed him by covering ground in deep center field Monday night. The switch-hitting Fowler is struggling from the left side, where he is hitting .239. Also included among the young, struggling hitters is third baseman Ian Stewart, who entered Tuesday batting .219, but with a team-leading 15 home runs. Interestingly, though, Fowler and Stewart entered Tuesday with 37 runs scored, which wasn't far off Brad Hawpe's team-leading pace of 48, and was in line with that of the regulars. So they're scoring runs, and Gonzalez is taking them away from opponents. But Tracy said there is room for improvement, especially in the strikeout column. "We sat down a little bit this afternoon and talked about where we were early in the season and what got us to the point we are right now," Tracy said. "How we got there was we focused on the big part of the field and we let home runs happen. We didn't try to hit home runs. "What I've seen over the last few games is I've seen us get a little long with our swings. I've seen us try to do too much with some pitches, rather than just get them in play, hit them to the big part of the field." Pitching matchupWSH: LHP Ross Detwiler (0-4, 5.81 ERA)
Detwiler started against the Braves on Friday and lasted 3 1/3 innings, giving up five runs on 10 hits. He said he had a good bullpen session before the game. By the time the game started, however, it was clear to Detwiler that he had a problem with his release point. Most of his pitches were up in the strike zone. COL: LHP Jorge De La Rosa (5-7, 5.14 ERA)
De La Rosa is riding a career-high three-game winning streak and arguably had his finest outing of the season Friday, as he threw eight shutout innings of four-hit ball with four walks and six strikeouts in a 5-0 win over the D-backs. Arizona didn't have a player reach second base until the sixth inning and had only three players overall accomplish such a feat. De La Rosa showed the tantalizing promise he always had, as he enjoyed complete command of all four of pitches -- fastball, slider, curveball and change. In his last six starts, De La Rosa is 5-1 with a 4.67 ERA after beginning April and May winless. Tidbits
Tracy outlined a schedule under which, if all goes right, right-handed setup man Manuel Corpas (bone chips in his right elbow) could return immediately following the All-Star break. Corpas went to Salt Lake on Tuesday, and he is scheduled for an inning Wednesday on rehab assignment for Triple-A Colorado Springs. He'll play light catch the next day and long toss the following day, then pitch a predetermined inning on Saturday. He'll be used on Sunday, and most likely will enter the game with runners on base. After that, he'll return to Coors Field for the team's optional workout after the All-Star break, and could be activated. ... Brad Hawpe's first-inning RBI single Tuesday ended a string of five games without an RBI. ... Rockies closer Huston Street has converted 13 straight save opportunities. ... The Rockies announced the signing of three high-round Draft choices -- left-handed pitcher Rex Brothers of Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tenn. (supplemental first round); third baseman Nolan Arenado (second round) of El Toro High School in Lake Forest, Calif.; and first baseman Ben Paulsen (third round) of Clemson. Arenado took batting practice at Coors Field on Tuesday, and he will soon join the Rockies' rookie affiliate in Casper. Tickets
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• Thursday: Rockies (Aaron Cook, 8-3, 3.76) vs. Braves (Tommy Hanson, 4-0, 2.25), 6:40 p.m. MT
• Friday: Rockies (Ubaldo Jimenez, 6-8, 3.86) vs. Braves (Derek Lowe, 7-7, 4.56), 7:10 p.m. MT
• Saturday: Rockies (Jason Marquis, 11-5, 3.61) vs. Braves (Jair Jurrjens, 6-7, 2.91), 6:10 p.m. MT
Thomas Harding is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
