After Aaron Cook went on the disabled list with a sprained right big toe earlier in the week, a new starter would be necessary for Sunday's game. At first Jhoulys Chacin looked to receive the call-up again, but on Thursday night Chacin made his scheduled start for the Sky Sox. With that start having eliminated Chacin, the only other candidate was Esmil Rogers.
Rogers started the season with the Rockies and made three relief appearances before heading to Colorado Springs. He returned on May 1 for a start and made another start on May 7. He then spent the rest of the month in the bullpen before returning the minors. In early July he was back up briefly and made two relief appearances. This start will be his fourth go-around with the team and will most likely be sent back down again. We'll probably see him in September.
For the Sky Sox in July, Rogers has gone 2-0 with a 3.60 ERA and 24 K in four starts.
The Pirates' Paul Maholm is, well, Paul Maholm. The Rockies really need to bring it against Maholm today before the off-day and then a three-game series with the Mets at Citi Field.