Spring Training Game 20: Hits, Misses & Foul Tips

Rockies 11, Rangers 10 (boxscore)

Hits

Ian Stewart

The most important thing to take away from tonight's game is how good Ian Stewart looked at the plate and in the field. His timing was good. His movement was good. He didn't look like a guy that missed 2 1/2 weeks. Now hopefully he feels good tomorrow and can build enough stamina and confidence in his knee to be a go on opening day.

The Home Run Parade

Ty Wigginton, Jason Giambi, Mike Jacobs and then the big game-tying job by Cole Garner in the ninth inning. Good to see the baseball exploding off some bats, regardless of how hitter friendly that ballpark appeared to be.

Willy Taveras

Three more hits and three RBI after filling in for an injured Dexter Fowler. Great, great spring for Willy. He's going to make it excruciating on the coaches to not select for the roster, but that's still not likely unless Fowler's quad lingers.

Charlie Blackmon

Blackmon has been impressive all spring, but you really have to value night's like tonight where he battles and succeeds against one of the toughest lefties in baseball in CJ Wilson. He's knocking on the door. Not sure when he'll get an answer, but he's knocking.

Misses

Jason Hammel

Statement: I'm not worried about Jason Hammel. End of statement.

Hammel had little command of all of his pitches, against a really good lineup, in a ballpark where the baseball flies like crazy. When you mix those components together, it often equals disaster. Tonight was indeed a disaster, but every pitcher has one or two every season, it's unavoidable, so getting one of the way now isn't the worst thing in the world.

Repeating statement: I'm not worried about Jason Hammel.

Foul Tips

Eric Young

Young did reach base three times tonight, which is exactly what you want from your lead-off man. Unfortunately, he made an out on the bases twice. One was just a lack focus rounding first base, not knowing what was happening ahead of him. The other was a straight caught stealing.

Young's greatest strength is his speed, but poor instincts and focus are offsetting that and hurting his value to the team. He also made two very poor throws to first base, which won't ease any of those concerned about his defense.

Granted, Young is just getting his feet under him this spring due to his leg injury, but he has to step up soon. I mean really step up. He can't just show he's healthy and be penciled on this roster, he has to prove he's ready to play good, solid baseball. If he doesn't, the Rockies will be left making a big decision.

Spring Training Game 6: Hits, Misses & Foul Tips

Indians 6, Rockies 2 (boxscore)

Hits

Heaven & Helton

This is my 500th post since opening the blog last February. I'm not sure what that says about my social life, but I appreciate all the folks who continue to support the site and make the time and effort worthwhile.

Jason Giambi/Ryan Spilborghs

A couple of hits apiece for the Rockies veteran reserves. That's about the extend of the positives on another uninspiring day of baseball in very early March.

Misses

First Inning

The Rockies started out a little sloppy on Friday afternoon, going down in order offensively in the top and committing two errors in bottom half.

The first error was charged to Jhoulys Chacin for an errant pickoff attempt. It sounded as if it was a play 1B Mike Jacobs could have made, but the error almost always goes on the throw in those situations. The second error went to 2B Chris Nelson, whose rely throw to third on Orlando Cabrera's triple squirted away from Thomas Field. Another play that sounded like it could have been made, but Nelson gets the error.

The Rockies would commit five errors in total. That's completely unacceptable at any level of baseball, at any time of the season. It's hard to dress up sloppy play as anything other than that, even in spring training. But at least those involved here aren't likely to be factors at the big league level. Aside from Chacin, of course.

Mike Jacobs

Jacobs later had a "mental mishap" as it was called by the Indians audiocast, when he failed to cover first base on a chopper that was easily flagged down by Chacin. Things like that bug me.

Foul Tips

Jhoulys Chacin

Sloppy or uneven might be the best words to describe Chacin's outing today (3 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 1 K). Sure the defensive didn't make matters an easier for him, but he did bring trouble on himself by creating traffic the first two frames.

Bottom line, though, he got his work in and his best inning by far was his final one. That's always a good sign in the spring.

Spring Training Game 1: Hits, Misses & Foul Tips

Rockies 8, Diamondbacks 7 (boxscore)

Hits

Salt River Fields

I don't think I need to add anything to what you've already seen or heard. It's a magnificent facility/complex. I mean for crying out loud they have a field just for bunting drills. I'm going to think about that field every time I see a failed bunt attempt during the regular season No excuse for that anymore... not that there ever was a good excuse before.

Rockies bunting

Willy Taveras executed the Rockies lone bunt attempt today. The ball was thrown away down the left field line as Arizona catcher John Hester tried to pick off the lead runner. The Rockies ended up plating four runs in that inning.

Moral: Big innings await you when you execute the little things.

Ubaldo Jimenez

Pitching was fine. Even better was the sight of him signing a ton of autographs after his TV interview. Classy young man.

Jordan Pacheco/Charlie Blackmon

Pacheco had a solid single back through the box in his lone AB. Blackmon ended up playing the role of hero with his HR in the 10th. We're going to hear a lot more from these young men before the spring is over. Very impressive.

Mike Jacobs

He's a strong dude. I'll put the over/under on his home run total at Colorado Springs at 35. Of course that's assuming that's where he ends up.

Cole Garner/Jonathan Herrera

Good days at the plate, and teamed up for a really nice 7-4 putout at second when Tony Abreu tried stretching a single to a double.

Anti-wave commercial

So much win! Actually all of the commercials were full of win. Once again a great job by everyone involved in that process.

Misses 

Ian Stewart

Rough afternoon for the Rockies starting 3B. It'll mostly be remembered for his first inning collision with Carlos Gonzalez on a pop foul a little ways down the line. That was definitely a scary moment that saw his knee just miss Cargo's head by mere inches. Add in the one pitch 4-6-3 DP in the second inning and a later strikeout and I guess you could say his performance was as close to disastrous as you can get in February.

Billy Buckner

Not a very smooth inning or impressive debut for Buckner. He's a Triple A roster filler at best.

Adam Jorgenson

You feel bad for a kid when he gets his chance to make an impression and the end result is what we saw today. I doubt he'll get another chance in a big league game this spring.

Foul Tips

Greg Reynolds

Greg's performance doesn't really qualify as a hit or miss, but I just felt the need to comment on him. He made a bad pitch to Kelly Johnson that he was able to extend on and drive to LF. It probably wouldn't be a HR most places, but it's safe to assume it would be a Coors and in Arizona. That's all that counts.

He had another AB in his 2nd inning where he didn't put a batter away after an 0-2 count, but aside from that I was happy with how he looked. He didn't spiral after allowing the HR, which is something we saw in his few ML appearances. Like I said, not really a hit or miss, but worth mentioning.