With last night’s disappointing 14 inning defeat to the Pittsburgh Pirates still fresh in their minds, the Colorado Rockies turn to an unlikely hero to salvage the four game series in Pittsburgh; 2006 second overall selection Greg Reynolds. Reynolds has suffered a plethera of injuries in his luck-cursed MLB career, including taking a pitch off the elbow last year in AA, but has reinvented himself as a finesse righty and enjoyed a strong spring. With staff ace Ubaldo Jimenez making his first trip to the disabled list with a cuticle injury, Reynolds earned the first callup of the season. This will be Reynolds’ first MLB appearance since his very rough 2008 season.
Reynolds’ opponent on the mound today is Pirates RHP Charlie Morton. Morton was 2-12 in 2010, with a 7.57 ERA. His first start of the season went well, however, as he pitched six complete innings and only allowed a single run against the St. Louis Cardinals (though he did walk five batters in those six innings).
With both bullpens completely burned out, both dugouts are hoping for solid starts from the unknowns they are placing on the mound. It could be a painful game to watch on both sides.
The Rockies’ offense needs to rebound after being shutout for the final 13 innings of last night’s marathon. They had their chances, but never seemed to find that one base hit to turn the tide. OF Carlos Gonzalez left nine runners in scoring position by himself. Don’t expect that trend to continue.
First pitch is at 5:00 p.m. MDT.