KRIEGER: Ghost of season past lingers

By Dave Krieger, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Friday, April 4, 2008

Joe Mahoney / The Rocky

Catcher Yorvit Torrealba comforts starting pitcher Mark Redman during the first inning of the Rockies' home opener Friday at Coors Field. Colorado lost 8-1 to the Diamondbacks, and Redman was yanked in the sixth after surrendering nine hits.

Chris Schneider / The Rocky

Rockies reliever Taylor Buchholz was frustrated in his one-inning outing, in which he gave up a hit and a run in the Rockies' loss Friday.

Fun as it is to talk about the Rockies' amazing run last year, it might be about time to stop.

Alas, the Rocks have two more days of looking-backward ceremonies planned, including tonight's raising of the National League pennant at Coors Field and Sunday's ring ceremony. Perhaps by then they will resemble the team that pulled off the feats they celebrate.

But it is worth noting that the rest of baseball has begun the new season, and the Rocks might want to follow suit. Underachievement early can force you to do unlikely things late. This bunch has some experience with that.

In their most anticipated home opener since the first one, the Rocks laid an egg, bowing meekly to the Diamondbacks 8-1.

It looked like they were trying to rock the full house with every outsized swing, striking out 11 times as a result. This is an understandable, even endearing reaction to the excitement of Opening Day.

"I get in trouble with that a lot, trying too hard," said shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who took a collar at the plate and had an unusually uncertain day in the field. "I want it bad, and sometimes I'm at my best when I'm relaxed and just letting the game come to me."

Still, it's also fair to point out that the Rocks' prolific offense has been missing in action for four games now, three of them on the road.

After four games, they are batting .185 as a team. Six of eight everyday starters are below .200. And the pitchers they have faced so far will not be confused with Arizona's Brandon Webb, who gets the start tonight.

"Well, it can't get any worse," said left fielder Matt Holliday, who took the golden sombrero Friday, dropping his average to .071. "It's part of the game. When your timing is off and they have pitchers locating pitches, it's not a good combination."

Four games, of course, are a blip in baseball's six-month marathon, representing a grand 2.5 percent of the schedule. Nevertheless, as the Rocks learned last year, every game counts, whether it's in April or September.

"I think we're taking some big swings early," manager Clint Hurdle said. "I just think a lot of guys are trying to land a knockout punch rather than pepper the body and get him to drop his hands and then you knock him out.

"But it's early. We're coming out of the chutes. A lot of guys, I think, are trying just to make a little too much happen too soon, so we've got to find a way to slow things down."

Considering the way the Rocks have been celebrated since their fantastic finish last year, this was a predictable reaction. They want to live up to a performance that may never be replicated.

"Here's the deal with our team," reliever Matt Herges said. "Our lineup, I think, is as good as anybody. Sure, right now, we're not clicking. But there is no panic.

"We got one of the best lineups I've ever seen. I know Detroit's pretty good. Boston's got a pretty good lineup. We're right there. I mean, we're as good as anybody. It's going to happen."

In fact, Detroit is off to an even rockier start at 0-4, and with a payroll nearly twice Colorado's. If the Tigers lost four straight in June, it would not get nearly the attention of a stumble out of the gate. This is true for the Rocks, too.

But when Tulowitzki, who had the best fielding percentage of any starting big-league shortstop last year, struggles in the field as he did Friday, something else may be going on.

"I just didn't get some good hops on some balls, misread 'em, misplayed 'em, and my throws were bad," he said. "It's something I need to work on and get better at."

You don't have to be Sigmund Freud to see these guys just need to relax.

"It's part of taking the next step," Hurdle said. "The challenge of taking the next step is how you're going to come out. You're going to find your own comfort zone, find your own pace and play with a good rhythm. I think we're trying to find that right now."

Last fall's run was impossible. That's why it's so hard to let go of, why every celebration rekindles the euphoria that accompanies the unbelievable. That's also why it is impossible to live up to.

"Four games into it, no panic," Herges said. "Everyone's still confident. Nobody's really hanging their heads. The season's not lost yet. We're going to snap out soon. It's not devastating. We wanted to win Opening Day here for our fans, but we'll turn it around."

All due respect to the retrospective ceremonies still to come, but the sooner the Rocks forget about last year, the sooner they'll be able to start this one.