NewsCorpas, Embree could become factors
Duo may be available to pitch for Rox during postseason
By Thomas Harding / MLB.com
09/23/09 8:34 PM ET
DENVER -- The end of a season and the pending postseason are perfect times for longshots to have an impact. Two Rockies relievers, right-hander Manuel Corpas and left-hander Alan Embree, are hoping to become factors against their long odds.The season began with Corpas, the closer during the team's 2007 run to and through the playoffs, and Embree, a five-time playoff participant, expected to be key bullpen members. Both were injured.
Those who replaced them pitched well, and that's a key reason the Rockies entered Wednesday night's game with the Padres five games ahead of the Braves and Giants in the National League Wild Card chase with 11 games to play. Right-hander Rafael Betancourt (3-1, 1.77 in 27 games since arriving in a trade with the Indians) and Franklin Morales (3-1, 3.05, seven saves in 36 games) are handling those key innings.
But Corpas and Embree are hoping to be healthy enough to work in the postseason in some capacity.
Corpas, who had a bone chip removed from his right elbow on July 24 and had a follow-up surgery to clean an infection in the area of the surgery, is throwing in instructional ball in Tucson, Ariz.
Manager Jim Tracy said he wasn't sure of the exact day, but the next time lefty Jeff Francis -- who is preparing for a 2010 comeback from shoulder surgery -- throws in a game, Corpas will throw.
"At this point in time I would venture to say it's very safe to say we wouldn't rule anything out as far as he's concerned," Tracy said of Corpas, who struggled -- 1-3, 5.88 ERA in 35 games, with one save in an injury-plagued year.
Embree was assumed out for the season when he suffered a broken right fibula after being hit by a line drive during a July 10 game. However, the break began healing quickly enough that Embree was able to regain arm strength. Now mobility is the only question.
Tracy said he was to meet with the team's training staff and Embree to determine the next move, which could be joining Corpas in Tucson. Tracy said he would discuss a "plan of attack" for Embree either Wednesday night or Thursday afternoon.
Embree is 2-2 with a 5.84 ERA in 36 games this season.
Thomas Harding is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
