'Goofball' serious when he's hitting

Free spirit off field, Spilborghs is all business at plate

Jack Etkin, Rocky Mountain News

Published July 28, 2007 at midnight

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Chances are, outfielder Ryan Spilborghs would not have gone hitless Friday night had the Rockies played. The reason being, he has hit safely in 18 of 23 starts and was in the lineup against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Manager Clint Hurdle said he opted for Spilborghs because he has been swinging well lately and center fielder Willy Taveras was hitless in eight at-bats against Brett Tomko, the scheduled starter for the Dodgers.

That managerial decision became moot when the Rockies and Dodgers were rained out. The game will be made up when Los Angeles returns in September to Coors Field. To avoid a doubleheader, a possible makeup date is Sept. 17, a Monday when both teams have a scheduled off day.

With Tomko scheduled to pitch tonight, Spilborghs might not have to wait long for his 24th start this season and his next opportunity to add his energy and production to the Rockies efforts.

"He can do a number of different things to beat you," Hurdle said. "He doesn't overwhelm you. He grows on you."

Spilborghs, recalled from Triple- A Colorado Springs on May 19, leads the majors with 11 RBI as a pinch hitter. He's 8-for-20 in that difficult role with five hits in his past eight pinch-hit at-bats.

He has nearly as many RBI (35) as hits (38) and the same number of doubles (seven) as home runs. He's batting .322 overall and .330 when he starts, going 13-for-29 with runners in scoring position in those starts.

With 16 RBI this month, Spil- borghs is tied for 13th in the National League, despite playing in only 16 of the Rockies' 21 games and making only 10 starts. That's a rather high level of success for a fourth outfielder with only 285 at- bats in the majors.

"Once you realize and are comfortable with the role that you're in, I don't think there's any pressure on me to go and get a hit, especially when you're pinch hitting," Spilborghs said. " All you can ask for, and I know all the skipper wants out of me or any of us when we come up to pinch hit, is a quality at-bat. I'm not going out there trying to get a hit; I'm just trying to put together a good at-bat, hit the ball hard and if I get a hit, it's great."

Such rational analysis isn't necessarily the norm for Spilborghs. He remembers former Rockies right fielder Larry Walker telling him, "Always be yourself." In the case of Spilborghs, a native of Southern California, that meant a cheery, let-it-all-hang-out approach to daily living.

"I've always been a free spirit, kind of the goofball," Spilborghs said. "(Coming) from Santa Barbara, the Pacific Ocean - it's worse than eating paint chips. It messed me up. No, I'm just naturally energized."

Third baseman Garrett Atkins said Spilborghs "always brings a positive attitude, positive energy into the clubhouse every day whether he's in the lineup or not."

Outfielder Cory Sullivan said Spilborghs "lightens the mood around everybody."

Sullivan was Spilborghs' Colorado Springs teammate in early May when the Sky Sox were in Portland, Ore., and Spilborghs, who said he was tired of his long hair, opted for a Mohawk. A couple of weeks later, when Spilborghs was called up to the Rockies, he said his Mohawk had grown in, so he got another one. During the Rockies' 1-9 trip last month that included four walk-off losses, Spil- borghs, his Mohawk no longer well-defined and teammates criticizing his coiffure, made a decision.

"Obviously, hair's not going to make us win or lose," he said, "but on that road trip, after we'd seen everything . . . Mohawk's got to go. So I cut it, shaved it and as soon as I cut it, guys are like, 'Where's your Mohawk?' "

Spilborghs hardly was that distinctive as a young professional, having being drafted in the seventh round in 2002 out of UC Santa Barbara. But he advanced a level each year and split last season between Triple-A Colorado Springs and the Rockies, hitting .287 for them in three stints, with four homers and 21 RBI in 67 games.

As Spilborghs was rising through the minors, members of the Rockies' player development staff frequently said the whole is greater than the sum of the parts with Spilborghs and described him as an overachiever.

"I always felt in my heart that I could be a big leaguer, a good, productive one," Spilborghs said, "but I think it's fun when you surprise some people and I think it's quite a compliment. If somebody says 'overachiever,' that means I'm doing pretty dang good."

ETC.: Tickets for Friday's postponed game can be exchanged for tickets of equal value for any remaining home game at the Coors Field ticket office or at Rockies Dugout stores. Cash refunds are not available. . . . Right-handed starter Jason Hirsh (sprained right ankle) is scheduled to make his third rehabilitation start with the Sky Sox tonight, against Omaha. Hirsh hopes to throw about 85 pitches. . . . Injured closer Brian

Fuentes (strained left lat) threw long toss from about 120 feet Friday and is scheduled to attempt another long-toss session today in addition to a set of throws from the regulation pitching distance of 60 feet, 6 inches. Fuentes, though, will throw from a flat surface.

etkinj@RockyMountainNews.com. Pat Rooney contributed to this report.

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