Francis set to return to mound for Rockies

By Tracy Ringolsby, Rocky Mountain News

Published August 5, 2008 at 6:32 p.m.

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Jeff Francis returns to the Rockies rotation Wednesday, filling one of the two holes in the five-man alignment.

At least that's what Francis and the Rockies are hoping.

This has been a lost season so far for the left-hander, who equaled a franchise record with 17 wins last year, started Game 1 in each of the Rockies' three postseason series, then drew the Opening Day assignment.

But the Opening Day start was rained out.

And there were not a lot of sunny days after that for Francis.

The fact the Rockies have struggled hasn't helped.

"There's probably a few guys on the team who felt that way, that they are not performing the way they know they can," Francis said.

But this is not a situation where misery loves company.

"Hopefully, I can look back when the season is over and realize it was a bad spell," he said.

The first challenge for Francis was to admit the inflammation in his left shoulder that he tried to pitch through for two months was bothering him and to accept going on the disabled list July 3.

Then came some time for complete rest to allow the inflammation to subside. Then came a rehabilitation assignment with Double-A Tulsa in which he felt better each time out.

Now he gets a chance to try to give a boost to the Rockies' hopes of making another late-season run to the postseason.

Francis will fill what has been a nightmarish spot for the Rockies, where Mark Redman, Kip Wells and Valerio De Los Santos each had a shot to step in and each failed.

When Francis was placed on the disabled list, Redman gave the Rockies a six-inning, two- run effort. In five starts Redman, Wells and De Los Santos have made since, the Rockies are 0-5, having allowed 22 runs (21 earned), 26 hits and 15 walks in 162/3 innings.

Francis got off to a decent start to the season, even if he was 0-2 in five starts. He pitched seven innings in each of the final three and wound up with a no-decision each time despite allowing only six runs.

But, in May, the aches began.

"I can't pinpoint a specific time it started to hurt," Francis said. "It was just a soreness, and when I would get loose, it would go away, but I'd still think about it. I'd wonder if it was going to flare up."

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