Good vibes for NL champions

Enthused Rockies show positive signs in opening victory

By Tracy Ringolsby, Rocky Mountain News

Published February 27, 2008 at 4:41 p.m.

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Photo by Barry Gutierrez / The Rocky

Rookie Jayson Nix, who is in a battle for the second base job, flips his bat after hitting a foul ball in the second inning Wednesday. Nix scored a run in the Rockies' victory.

Photo by Barry Gutierrez / The Rocky

Brothers Diego Guerrero, 7, left, and Carlos Valdez, 10, do a little spring training of their own during the Rockies opener.

Photo by Barry Gutierrez © The Rocky

Rockies players, including, from left, Todd Helton, Jayson Nix, Troy Tulowitzki and Matt Holliday stand with the team for the national anthem before Wednesday’s spring training opener in Tucson. The defending National League champions beat the White Sox 7-3.

Jeff Francis simplifies everything.

"Everybody's aspiration in spring training is to be in the World Series," he said.

Not everybody gets there. One team from the American League and one from the National League advance to baseball's big event.

The Rockies got there for the first time in 2007, where they were swept by Boston.

Now comes the challenge of getting back to the October stage.

"The expectations outside the organization might be a little different, but for us, the expectations are the same, to win," Francis said. "Other people want to see us do it again and make sure it was not a fluke."

It is a long way to the World Series, but the Rockies took another ministep in that direction Wednesday, opening their exhibition season with a 7-3 victory against the Chicago White Sox at Tucson Electric Park.

The victory won't mean a thing in the big scheme of things. The exhibition-opening crowd of 3,245 - 46,796 fewer fans than Game 4 of the World Series at Coors Field - underscores that.

But the way the Rockies played was reinforcement they still understand the approach that took them to the World Series.

They came up with key defensive plays - such as Matt Holliday's running catch into left-center field to haul in Orlando Cabrera's bases-loaded drive to end the second inning.

"Anytime you win your league, you go from hoping to feeling, 'We have won,' " manager Clint Hurdle said. "You have tangible evidence."

Left-hander Mark Redman provided the Rockies with the first strong piece of evidence in his bid for the fifth starter job.

After Francis, who will start the season opener in St. Louis on March 31, and Josh Towers, another fifth spot candidate, each gave up one run in two innings, Redman held the White Sox scoreless for his two-inning effort.

But it wasn't without a challenge.

Paul Konerko greeted Redman in the fifth with a flyball to center that Dexter Fowler lost in the sun for a single and Jermaine Dye followed with a single to right. Redman regrouped and got A.J. Pierzynski to fly to left and Josh Fields grounded into a double play.

"For his two innings, he was the sharpest guy out there," Hurdle said. "It was a good sign that he was about to make the key pitches."

And there were good signs, such as second-year shortstop Troy Tulowitzki hitting the second pitch of his first at-bat for a home run.

" 'Tulo' doesn't miss a beat, does he?" said Francis, who equaled the franchise record with 17 wins last year. "He picks up where he left off."

And there was Holliday unloading a towering double off the batter's eye that rises high above center field.

"Obviously, I take the field the same way every game, but to be on the bench for an exhibition game and feel the spirit of the team was special," Tulowitzki said. "It's exciting to be in the dugout with all the guys. It brings back memories."

What it gave the White Sox was a respect for the way the Rockies have gone about their business since the World Series appearance.

The White Sox won the World Series three years ago but are coming off back-to-back third place finishes in the AL Central.

"I think they've been in spring training since December," said Konerko, impressed with the Rockies' approach in a spring training opener.

And it provides a glimpse into the future when Fowler, admittedly embarrassed by losing that Konerko ball in the sun, came back to drive a two-run, two-out single into left field, hitting left-handed, in the sixth and get a run-scoring single hitting right-handed in the eighth.

"These guys definitely look after me in batting practice," Fowler said of his effort to hit the ball the other way. "They see that I stay back. I'm just blessed to be out there. I'm having fun."

So are the rest of the Rockies.

But good times are tempered by reality.

They have another month to spend in Arizona, getting ready for the real season, then it is a 162-game challenge to get back in the postseason.

Then comes facing up to expectations created by a season in which they won a franchise regular-season record 90 games - seven more than any other season - and advanced to the postseason for the first time in 12 years and the second time in franchise history.

"There's a lot of confidence in the air," Francis said. "This team feels good about itself. You look around and we have a lot of good players. It's nice to be part of it."

Rockies 7, White Sox 3

Colorado ab r h bi Chi. W. Sox ab r h bi

Taveras cf 3 0 0 0 Bourgeois cf 4 0 1 0

Fowler ph-cf 2 0 2 3 Cabrera ss 3 0 1 1

Tulowitzki ss 2 1 1 1 Rouse ss 2 0 0 0

Herrera pr-ss 1 0 0 0 Thome dh 3 0 0 0

Helton 1b 2 1 0 0 Ramirez ph-dh 0 0 0 0

Koshansky 1b 2 0 0 0 Konerko 1b 3 0 2 0

Holliday lf 3 0 2 0 Eldred 1b 2 1 1 0

Smith lf 2 0 0 0 Dye rf 3 0 1 0

Atkins 3b 2 0 1 1 Negron rf 1 0 0 0

Kata pr-3b 2 1 1 0 Pierzynski c 3 1 1 0

Hawpe rf 3 0 1 1 Lucy c 2 0 1 0

Barker pr-rf 2 1 0 0 Fields 3b 3 0 1 1

Torrealaba c 3 0 0 0 Huffman 3b 2 0 1 1

McKenry c 2 1 1 0 Uribe 2b 3 1 1 0

Nix 2b 1 1 0 0 Getz 2b 1 0 1 0

Stewart 2b 1 0 0 0 Anderson lf 4 0 1 0

MGiles dh 3 0 0 0 Danks p 0 0 0 0

Gaetti ph-dh 1 1 0 0 Jenks p 0 0 0 0

Francis p 0 0 0 0 Logan p 0 0 0 0

Towers p 0 0 0 0 Wasserman p 0 0 0 0

Redman p 0 0 0 0 Day p 0 0 0 0

Koronka p 0 0 0 0 Sisco p 0 0 0 0

Speier p 0 0 0 0 Harrell p 0 0 0 0

Totals 37 7 9 6 Totals 39 3 13 3

Colorado200 003 020 - 7 9 0

Chicago White Sox010 100 100 - 3 13 1

E - Field, Cabrera, Huffman. DP - Colorado 1, Chicago 1. LOB - Colorado 9, Chicago 15. 2B - Holliday, Hawpe, McKenry, Pierzynski, Anderson, Uribe, Cabrera, Bourgeois, Lucy. HR - Tulowitzki. SB - Herrera.

Colorado IP H R ER BB SO

Francis 2 3 1 1 1 1

Towers 2 3 1 1 1 1

Redman, W 2 3 0 0 0 0

Koronka 2 3 1 1 2 1

Speier 1 1 0 0 0 1

Chicago IP H R ER BB SO

Danks 2 3 2 1 1 3

Jenks 1 1 0 0 0 0

Logan 1 0 0 0 1 1

Wassermann 1 0 0 0 1 1

Day, L 1 2 3 3 3 0

Sisco 2 2 2 1 0 0

Harrell 1 1 0 0 0 0

HBP - by Francis (Thome), by Speier (Getz). PB - Pierzynski.

T - 3:01. A - 3,245.

BOOK WORK

Right-handed pitcher Casey Weathers, the Rockies' first-round draft pick in June out of Vanderbilt, spent the offseason getting his final semester of class work out of the way so he could earn his degree in communications.

"It's something I wanted to do and knew I needed to get it done or it would be more difficult," he said.

NUMBERS GAME

16 years of spring training in Tucson for the Rockies, the fourth-longest tenure of the 12 teams that train in Arizona. The Cubs have been in Mesa since 1979. San Francisco moved to Scottsdale in 1981 and Oakland moved to Phoenix in 1982.

HE SAID IT

"What really hits you about this team is it is Feb. 27 and on the bench, guys are really into the game and doing the right things."

Jeff Francis, left-hander, on the attitude during the Rockies' exhibition opener.

QUICK HITS

* Former Rockies shortstop Juan Uribe is being given an opportunity to win the second base job with the White Sox and was in their starting lineup Wednesday.

* The Rockies and White Sox have agreed to play morning "B" games at Hi Corbett Field on March 6 and at the minor league complex at Tucson Electric Park on March 10.

* The Rockies are 11-0-2 in their past 13 exhibition games against the White Sox. But they are 0-3 all time against the White Sox in the regular season - and they play at Chicago from June 13-15.

Thursday's games

* Rockies (Aaron Cook) vs. Chicago White Sox (Jose Contreras), Hi Corbett Field, 1:05 p.m. (no TV or radio).

Also scheduled to pitch for the Rockies: Victor Zambrano, Brian Fuentes, Taylor Buchholz, Luis Vizcaino, Matt Herges and Darren Clarke.

* Rockies (Kip Wells) vs. Arizona (Micah Owings), Tucson Electric Park, 1:05 p.m.

Also scheduled to pitch for the Rockies: Ramon Ramirez, Manny Corpas, Micah Bowie, Pedro Strop, Juan Morillo, Chris George and Alberto Arias.

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