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Story stays hot with 4th spring HR vs. Cubs By John Schlegel and Thomas Harding / MLB.com | March 11th, 2017 MESA, Ariz. -- The Cubs' Kyle Schwarber socked his first home run of the spring, and the Rockies' Trevor Story hit his

fourth, as Chicago rallied for a 4-3 victory over Colorado at Sloan Park on Saturday afternoon.

Home runs in the bottom of the eighth from the Cubs' top two prospects -- Eloy Jimenez, a solo shot, and Ian Happ, a

two-run blast -- off Rockies reliever Miguel Castro proved to be the difference.

Schwarber, who hit leadoff and started in left field for manager Joe Maddon, ripped a Tyler Chatwood offering over the

right-center-field fence to tie the game with what was his first home run since last Spring Training. He missed most of the

2016 season after injuring his left knee in a collision on April 7.

• Chatwood embraces role as senior Rox starter

Story, who now has five hits in Cactus League play with four of them over the fence, gave the Rockies the lead in the fifth,

as he absolutely crushed a Hector Rondon offering to left.

After allowing a leadoff single to Schwarber in the first, Chatwood handled the Cubs the first time through the lineup

before Schwarber's blast in the third. The Rockies right-hander lasted four innings, allowing one run on three hits while

striking out three.

"To have strikeouts, you throw strikes -- you've got to get ahead, and I was able to throw some really good changeups

today," Chatwood said. "I had been working on it."

MEDIA CLIPS – March 12, 2017

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Jon Lester made the start for the Cubs, and he had to deal with some first-inning issues. Rockies leadoff hitter Charlie

Blackmon greeted him with a double to left-center field, and he scored when No. 2 hitter DJ LeMahieu singled. Lester

wound up going three innings, allowing just the one run on four hits while walking one, hitting a batter and striking out four.

"I was glad they let me go that third inning even after the first," Lester said. "That was nice. I threw a lot of heaters, which

was good. Hopefully, we build up the arm strength there and get that going."

• Lester settles in to escape trouble vs. Rockies

Rockies Up Next: Lefty Tyler Anderson will start for the Rockies against the Reds on Sunday at 2:10 p.m. MT. Left-

hander Harrison Musgrave, who pitched in Double-A and Triple-A last year and has a shot at a rotation spot, is also set

to pitch.

Cubs Up Next: Jake Arrieta will take the mound for the second time this Spring Training, as the Cubs travel across town

to meet their Mesa neighbors, the A's, on Sunday at 3:05 p.m. CT. With many regulars in the lineup Saturday, the Sunday

game will give them an opportunity for back-to-back games.

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Black on Arenado's slide: 'Can't coach that out' Rockies manager texted star third baseman after seeing aggressive play By Thomas Harding / MLB.com | @harding_at_mlb | March 11th, 2017

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Nolan Arenado's head-first slide into first base was inspiring for Team USA in the World

Baseball Classic on Friday night. Meanwhile in Arizona, the play inspired the Rockies to thank their lucky stars Arenado

was unhurt.

Arenado's dive to beat a throw, after he struck out swinging and the ball bounced to the backstop, allowed an important

run to score from third in Team USA's 3-2, 10-inning victory over Colombia in Miami. Concurrently, the Rockies were in

the midst of a 5-4 victory over the Reds in Surprise, Ariz.

Considering that Arenado missed 37 games in 2014 with a broken finger on a head-first slide into second, and the team

lost shortstop Trevor Story for two months last year to a thumb injury on a head-first slide followed by a defensive play

gone awry, such plays don't go unnoticed. Arenado finished the game 0-for-4.

It didn't take long for Rockies manager Bud Black to learn of Arenado's daring move. Head athletic trainer Keith Dugger

saw to that as soon as he saw the highlight.

"I heard about it almost as soon as it happened," Black said Saturday, smiling. "Right away, we knew he was fine. People

who saw it live were probably like, 'Oh no.'"

Black said he texted Arenado, and he was sure Dugger did the same. But with the emotion of representing the country,

there was no way the Rockies could be angry. They'd love for Arenado to let it all hang out in a big Rockies game.

"You can't coach that out," Black said. "You want that aggressiveness in your players. What you do try to coach out is the

head-first slide. But it's hard for some guys. You were taught to slide feet first. But in competition, they're trying to get to a

base as quickly as they can, and instinct takes over.

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Qualls to resume throwing on Monday Entering second season with Rockies, veteran reliever limited by sore forearm By Thomas Harding / MLB.com | @harding_at_mlb | March 11th, 2017

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Rockies right-handed reliever Chad Qualls, who hasn't pitched in a Cactus League game since

March 1 because of soreness in his right forearm, said on Sunday that he plans to resume throwing Monday.

"Hopefully it's nothing big, and it's early in camp," Qualls said. "I've never been in this situation, either. I'm kind of going

stir crazy seeing everybody else get ramped up. I want to be a part of it."

Qualls, 38, joined the Rockies last year on a two-year, $6 million contract. He went 2-0 with a 5.23 ERA in 44 games in

2016, missing nearly a month with colitis late in the season.

Due $3.75 million this year, Qualls is trying to ensure a spot in a bullpen that added free agents Greg Holland and Mike

Dunn and is depending on younger pitchers to take a step forward.

Qualls, who said he worked this offseason to build velocity, threw two scoreless outings, but felt his forearm tighten after

the second game.

"My whole career, if I feel sore or tight or anything, I'd pitch beat-up, banged up," Qualls said. "It's something I thought

would just magically disappear. It always has. But this hung around, so I went to the trainers and let them know it was

tight. They were really precautionary and shut me down."

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Rockies' young arms have chance to impress Two spots in Opening Day rotation are potentially up for grabs in spring By Thomas Harding / MLB.com | @harding_at_mlb | March 11th, 2017

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- The Rockies don't need to look externally for pitchers to fill their rotation.

With right-hander Chad Bettis set to undergo chemotherapy for testicular cancerand left-hander Chris Rusin about a

week away from throwing because of a right oblique injury, two rotation spots have opened. And while there is plenty of

time before the regular season opens for conditions to change, the Rockies' immediate reaction is to stick with pitchers

who are big on talent and low on experience.

Right-handers Jon Gray and Tyler Chatwood and lefty Tyler Anderson are expected to start the regular season in the

rotation.

Jeff Hoffman and Kyle Freeland were first-round Draft picks and are the club's No. 2 and No. 7 prospects, according to

MLBPipeline.com, respectively. Antonio Senzatela, No. 9, has impressed this spring, registering scoreless outings in two

of his last three spring appearances. German Marquez is the club's No. 4 prospect, and the Rockies thought enough of

him to give up Corey Dickerson for him, acquiring Jake McGee, as well, in a trade with the Rays. Harrison Musgrave,

the club's No. 28 prospect, doesn't have the eye-popping velocity some of the others do, but he ascended to Triple-A

Albuquerque in 2016.

Chatwood has 90 career games and 89 starts, which are 23 games and 19 starts more than the combined possible

starters.

According to scouts from multiple teams and other sources with knowledge of the club, immediate word is the Rockies

lean toward staying with pitchers within their system.

Pitching coach Steve Foster understands the Rockies will always scout other clubs. But he's not looking over his shoulder

for reinforcements. He's not giving big pep talks, either.

"When they know that you believe in them and you're giving them opportunity, that weighs on the mind of that young

player," Foster said.

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But the challenge is to earn a spot. Now pitchers are starting to throw four innings or 60-70 pitches, whichever comes first,

meaning it's time to earn Major League spots. All the pitchers have had their ups and downs during the spring, but now is

the time to show what they can bring to the table in the regular season.

"These next three weeks will be performance-based and critically evaluated," Rockies manager Bud Black said.

Black noted that the some of the better National League rotations have experience. The Dodgers and Giants, who have

dominated the National League West recently, fit the profile. But he mentioned the Mets, who made the 2015 World

Series, among teams that have won with young rotations.

"It doesn't mean you can't do it with lesser service-time guys, but they have to pitch well," Black said. "Experience tells us

there will be ups and downs. You hope the ups hang around longer and the downs are minimal."

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Chatwood embraces role as senior Rox starter Right-hander allows one run over four innings vs. Cubs on Saturday By Thomas Harding / MLB.com | @harding_at_mlb | March 11th, 2017

MESA, Ariz. -- Tyler Chatwood didn't look like a guy carrying the weight of being likely the most experienced pitcher in

this year's Rockies rotation on Saturday afternoon.

The right-hander held the Cubs to one run, Kyle Schwarber's third-inning home run, and struck out three in four innings

of his team's 4-3 loss at Sloan Park.

Chatwood, 27, entered Spring Training the most experienced starter. When it was revealed that Chad Bettis, who turns

28 in April, will miss the beginning of the season while undergoing chemotherapy for testicular cancer, Chatwood became

the Rockies' oldest starter. And at least for now, there isn't a plan to grab more starting experience before the season

starts.

But Chatwood, who went 12-9 with a 3.87 ERA last year and had the Majors' lowest road ERA (80 or more innings) at

1.69, said he's in it with those younger pitchers.

For example, Chatwood learned a changeup grip from lefty Tyler Anderson, a rookie last season, and used it for first-

inning strikeouts on Saturday against Anthony Rizzo and Ben Zobrist.

"Everybody has their own strength," Chatwood said. "We pick each other's brains. That's what good staffs do -- feed off

each other, learn from each other and try to use that to widen your arsenal of pitches."

Chatwood joined the Rockies in a trade with the Angels for catcher Chris Iannetta before the 2012 season. Although he

had made 27 appearances, 25 starts, for the Angels, it was with the Rockies that he completed his development. He is an

example of the club's program of either developing their pitchers from scratch or obtaining them before they had ingrained

big league habits and letting them demystify pitching at altitude.

"Pitching is all about executing your pitch, whether it's a fastball or changeup or whatever," Chatwood said. "As long as

you go out there trying to execute your pitch and not trying to pitch to the ballpark, you're going to have success."

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Rockies manager Bud Black said after allowing a single to Schwarber to start the game, Chatwood was "really sharp --

changeup was outstanding, fastball had good location after the first couple of guys and he threw a couple good

curveballs. He mixed pitches, threw strikes, worked quickly and had a very good outing."

Worth noting

• It was another struggle for reliever Miguel Castro, who yielded eighth-inning homers to Eloy Jimenez and Ian Happ in

a three-run frame to take the loss. In his previous outing, Castro threw three wild pitches.

"He seems just uncomfortable, can't get any of his secondary pitches over," Black said. "Seems when things do go

against him, it sort of snowballs for him. It's tough for him to get back. He's a good kid, but there's work to be done."

• The Rockies, who have been careful for the last week with catcher Tony Wolters because of a slight hyperextension of

the right elbow, had a scare when catcher Tom Murphy was backlashed by Rizzo's bat in the first inning. Schwarber had

stolen second but was ordered back to first on batter's interference. More important, Murphy stayed in the game after

briefly being attended to by the trainer.

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Wolters keeps approach at plate simple Rockies catcher had successful second half of 2016 with bat By Thomas Harding / MLB.com | @harding_at_mlb | March 11th, 2017

SCOTTSDSALE, Ariz. -- Analysts and poets alike are fascinated by the sophistication and beauty Rockies catcher Tony

Wolters displays handling each pitch. But with the bat, Wolters is simple -- and simple is good.

Wolters, who hasn't played since last Sunday because of a hyperextended right elbow but should return in the next couple

of days, has quietly become a lower-order threat. After hitting .216 last year before the All-Star break, he hit .321 in the

second half. In five Cactus League games before being rested -- manager Bud Black said the Rockies are being extra-

cautious with him -- Wolters was 6-for-13 (.462) with a double, a home run and four RBIs.

Wolters, who was acquired via waivers from the Indians last year as Spring Training started, unexpectedly made the

Rockies' Opening Day roster. Acclimating to the Majors and the residual effects of offseason left meniscus surgery were

part of the reason for the slow offensive start. But by midseason, the knee was stable and Wolters found his swing.

"He's swinging the bat well," Rockies manager Bud Black said. "For him, it's not to let the swing get too big based on that

home run [this spring]. He's a line-drive hitter, has to use the whole field. Just stay who he is."

Wolters, 24, found that low-stress offensive approach last season, since his main responsibility was always on his mind.

Wolters finished fifth in the Majors in "called strikes above average" (CAA), a pitch-framing stat, despite catching just 501

1/3 innings. According to Fangraphs, his two Defense Runs Saved (DRS) was fifth among catchers who logged at least

500 innings.

"The No. 1 priority of a catcher is catching," Wolters said. "There are going to be some days where I don't even go into the

[batting] cage. It's not that I don't care about hitting. But I'm stressed out because there's a good lineup coming in, and we

need to get them out.

"I always prioritize, defense first, offense second. I'm always going to be like that. But once I see enough pitches,

offensive will become more natural."

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Trevor Story nails large home run vs. the Cubs, but Rockies bullpen suffers late Cubs 4, Rockies 3 at Sloan Park By NICK GROKE / The Denver Post | March 11, 2017

MESA, Ariz. — Trevor Story‘s team-leading fourth home run of the spring bounced somewhere over the Sloan Park grass

berm, over the sun umbrellas in left field Saturday. It was a large home run. The Rockies’ shortstop, it seems, has

recovered his stroke.

Story’s solo shot in the fifth inning off Cubs right-hander Hector Rondon helped lead the Rockies (8-6) to a two-run lead

after seven innings, but Chicago (5-7) rallied in the eighth for three runs for a 4-3 Cactus League victory.

“Trev has a powerful swing,” Colorado manager Bud Black said. “When he gets the ball in the air, he has power.”

Story tore a ligament in his left thumb Aug. 30 and missed the rest of the season. Even then, he finished with 27 home

runs, trailing only Nolan Arenado (41) and Charlie Blackmon (29) on the team. His on-base percentage, though, lagged

some at .341.

“We’ve seen that in spring training,” Black said. “What he wants to do is turn himself into a complete hitter, where he’s

hitting for average and power, maybe cut down on the strikeouts a bit.”

FOR STARTERS: Tyler Chatwood, the most-tenured pitcher in the Rockies’ rotation, was the first to go as long as four

innings this spring. He excelled, collecting four strikeouts against just three hits. After he gave up a leadoff single to Kyle

Schwarber, Chatwood retired the next eight batters, including consecutive strikeouts against Anthony Rizzo, Ben Zobrist

and Addison Russell.

“To get strikeouts, you throw strikes,” Chatwood said. “You’ve got to get ahead. And I was able to throw some really good

changeups. I’ve been working on it.”

HITS: Lefty reliever Mike Dunn, whom the Rockies signed to a three-year, $19 million contract in December, struck out

Schwarber and Bryant on six pitches, then got Rizzo to fly out in a quick sixth inning. … Right-handers Adam

Ottavino struck out two in a hitless fifth inning and Scott Oberg struck out two in a one-hit seventh inning.

MISSES: The last piece of the bullpen, though, struggled. Miguel Castro gave up three runs on three hits — including

home runs to Eloy Jimenez and Ian Happ — and threw a wild pitch in a sideways eighth inning as the Cubs rallied. “He

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just seems uncomfortable,” Black said. “He can’t get any of the secondary pitches over. And it seems when things do go

against him, it snowballs on him and he gets off track. There’s some work to be done.”

BOXSCORE: Cubs 4, Rockies 3

UP NEXT: Rockies host the Reds on Sunday at 1:10 p.m. at Salt River Fields, with lefty Tyler Anderson starting for

Colordo. Wandy Peralta is scheduled for Cincinnati.

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About that Nolan Arenado head-first slide into first base at World Baseball Classic… Should Nolan Arenado have slid head-first into first base at the World Baseball Classic? By NICK GROKE / The Denver Post | March 11, 2017

MESA, Ariz. — Nolan Arenado struck out for Team USA in the sixth inning Friday night and turned the game around in the

first round of the World Baseball Classic. After he whiffed on a slider low and away, the Colombia catcher let the ball past

him to the backstop. And Arenado hauled on down the line.

Trailing 2-1 in Miami, with two outs and a runner at third, reaching first was critical. Reach base, and the run scores for a

tie game. Get thrown out, and the inning is over. And Arenado, it’s fair to say, is not the fastest player in America.

But he made it — barely. Arenado slid head-first through first base, his helmet tumbling in the dirt ahead of him. The run

scored. And Team USA went on to defeat Colombia 3-2 in 10 innings.

The Rockies, though, would love it if Arenado made it back to Arizona without any broken bones. His head-first slide

certainly caused Colorado to catch its breath.

“I heard about it almost as soon as it happened,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “Word travels fast. As soon as it

happened, Doogie (head athletic trainer Keith Dugger) saw it, he told us in the dugout. Right away we knew he was fine.

Then when I saw it later when we got back, I knew what was coming, but in real time, if you saw that …”

Black trailed off trying to avoid the idea of losing Arenado to a broken hand from a head-first slide in the WBC.

“Guys were saying they’d never seen him really go head first anywhere. So all of a sudden he’s gonna slide head first and

into first base?” Black said. “People who saw it live were probably like, ‘Oh no.’ ”

In 2014, Arenado slid head-first into second base at Atlanta and broke a finger on his left hand. He missed more than a

month. Black said the Rockies already sent him a message about the slide with a soft nudge. He is the most valuable

player. But they won’t try to put up a hard stop sign on his hustle.

“You can’t coach that out,” Black said. “You want that aggressiveness in your players. What you do try to coach out is the

head-first slide. But it’s hard for some guys. You were taught to slide feet first. But in competition, they’re trying to get to a

base as quickly as they can, and instinct takes over. And how do you practice that?”

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Footnotes. Catcher Tony Wolters injured his right elbow swinging a bat last week, but his injury is not considered serious,

Black said, and he should return Sunday or Monday. … Catcher Tom Murphy smacked his right hand on Anthony Rizzo’s

bat while trying to throw to second to catcher a basestealer in the first inning Saturday. He was in pain and checked out a

trainer. But he remained in the game. … Former Rockies pitcher Eddie Butler threw two innings of hitless relief for the

Cubs against Colorado, forcing five groundouts and one fly-out.

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When Rockies reliever Adam Ottavino isn’t on the mound, he’s exploring his love of photography Rockies reliever also works as a contributing photographer for “The Players’ Tribune” By Zach Alvira / The Denver Post | March 9, 2017

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — When Rockies reliever Adam Ottavino isn’t peering in from the mound, he often can be found

peering through the viewfinder of his digital camera.

“I have always wanted to take pictures from when I was little,” he said. “Anything I can get to, I will try to take pictures of

it.”

Ottavino’s love for photography stems from a childhood full of experiments with different art forms. From painting to

drawing to crafts projects, Ottavino credits his love for the arts to his parents.

His mother, Eve, is a school teacher, and his father, John, is an actor. They always encouraged him to try new artistic

things. And photography brings together his passion for the arts with another love, gadgets.

“Every type of gadget or electronic item, I was always into,” he said. “Once I got an iPhone, I had a camera with me all the

time and it made it easier.”

Ottavino’s camera of choice these days is a Leica M240. The images he captures range from ballparks to people to

landscapes, including landmarks such as Horseshoe Bend in the Colorado River near the Grand Canyon.

Ottavino hasn’t had many opportunities to shoot live-action sports due to his schedule. However, when an opportunity

presented itself, he took it without hesitation.

“For The Players’ Tribune, I shot the Patriots-Giants game a few years ago,” he said. “It was difficult, a lot more difficult

than I thought it would be. I am trying to do basketball and other sports, too, when I get the chance.”

Ottavino continues to serve as a contributing photographer for The Players’ Tribune, providing feature content. One of his

most memorable shots came from Chase Field in Phoenix, home of the Diamondbacks.

The shot of an American flag flying was taken looking straight down from a catwalk high above the field. It is an interesting

perspective, but sometimes the simplest photos can mean the most.

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Colorado Rockies: Three Things We Learned on March 11 By James Keating / Purple Rox Pile | March 11, 2017

Something that plagued the Colorado Rockies in 2016, came back to bite them again in a 4-3 Spring Training loss to the

Chicago Cubs. Here are three take aways from game action on March 11.

The Bullpen Collapses with Victory In Hand

Clinging to a 3-1 lead heading into the bottom half of the 8th inning, the Colorado Rockies found themselves only three

outs away from another solid Spring win. Talented reliever Miguel Castro took to the hill. However, the ineffectiveness

that kept Castro from staying in the Majors permanently in 2016 reared its ugly head again in this one.

In total, Castro gave up three hits, two of which were home runs in the frame. So far this Spring, Castro has only logged

four innings, but the resulting 15.75 ERA is leaving a bit to be desired. Hopefully, Castro and the Rockies staff can find a

solution.

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In good news for the bullpen, relievers Mike Dunn and Adam Ottavino pitched great. Dunn has retired all 16 batters he

has faced this Spring. Ottavino is also sporting a 0.00 ERA in four innings pitched.

The Revenge of Eddie Butler

Once prized as not only a Rockies top prospect, but one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball, Eddie Butler faced

his old team for the first time.

As you recall, Butler was shipped off to Chicago this winter. Butler never quite figured things out for the Rockies in his

young career, bouncing around from rotation, to bullpen, to Triple-A to Double-A. Apparently, the Cubs saw something

with him they could potential fix.

Butler came on to pitch the top of the ninth after Chicago’s thunderous bottom of the eighth. Butler cruised and retired all

three batters he faced to end the game. No, Butler’s performance doesn’t officially count this time. Here’s to hoping he

finds success, but also hoping it doesn’t come against Colorado.

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Line-Up Staples All Contribute

Of the six potential Opening Day starters in today’s lineup, all six collected hits. The biggest highlight came when Trevor

Story launched his fourth home run of the Spring. Also, leadoff man Charlie Blackmon had a double to start the game.

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Colorado Rockies: Who Takes The Rotation Spot of Chad Bettis? By Kevin Henry / Purple Rox Pile | March 11, 2017

When Chad Bettis made the announcement on Friday that his cancer had returned and he would need to pursue

chemotherapy, thoughts and prayers immediately started for the Colorado Rockies starting pitcher.

However, not long after that, thoughts also turned to the business of baseball and who would be taking the 27-year-old

right-hander’s place in the Rockies rotation.

We’ve talked for weeks now about who might be the fifth starter for the Rockies. However, Colorado now needs to find

two starters for its rotation with the absence of Bettis.

Barring any injury or unforeseen circumstances, Jon Gray, Tyler Anderson and Tyler Chatwood are locked in as three

starters for Colorado when the season begins. Who will man the other two spots?

In this article, we talked about how 22-year-old Antonio Senzatela had been impressive in recent spring training action

and had definitely caught the attention of manager Bud Black and the Rockies coaching staff. While he’s been solid in

spring training, he also has no experience above the Double-A level. It’s very possible that Senzatela, who has a 41-19

mark and 2.45 ERA in the minors since 2015, could shock the world and start the season in the Majors.

Who else is in the running to start the season in the rotation? Let’s break down some of the candidates. They are listed in

no particular order.

Jeff Hoffman

Hoffman came to the Rockies in the July 2015 trade that sent Troy Tulowitzki and LaTroy Hawkins to the Toronto Blue

Jays. The now 24-year-old right-hander was a highly rated prospect who was expected to impact Colorado pitching

sooner than later.

Hoffman did just that last season, earning his first Major League start on August 20 against the Chicago Cubs. It would be

his worst outing of the season as he gave up seven runs (six earned) in four innings of work.

In all, Hoffman saw action in eight games last season and drew six starts. As a starter, he was 0-4 with a 5.27 ERA. In his

two games coming out of the bullpen, Hoffman posted a 2.25 ERA in four innings.

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One startling stat about Hoffman last season is that he surrendered 37 hits in 31.1 innings while opponents batted .287

against him. He also struck out 22 batters while walking 17.

That’s the bad news. The good news is that he ended the season with a bang, logging seven strikeouts while giving up

just two hits and one run in five innings of a no-decision against Milwaukee on October 1.

Hoffman has had his moments for the Rockies in the spring and will benefit from the experience he gained last season.

There’s still plenty of room for growth and Hoffman may learn under a trial by fire if he grabs one of Colorado’s two open

rotation spots.

German Marquez

Like Hoffman, German Marquez gained valuable experience for the Rockies last season with his first moments of pitching

at the Major League level. Like Hoffman, he came to Colorado as part of a trade, this one sending Corey Dickerson to

the Tampa Bay Rays.

After a September callup, his first three outings for the Rockies all came out of the bullpen where he gave up six runs and

six hits in 5.1 innings of work. The next three appearances, however, were all starts.

Marquez had his best outing in his first start, earning his lone win with a five-inning effort against the St. Louis Cardinals.

He allowed just one run and four hits while striking out three and walking one.

As good as that start was, Marquez struggled just as bad in his next start at San Francisco. After 4.1 innings, the Giants

had racked up 12 hits (including two home runs) and six runs.

It was a mixed bag for Marquez, who finished with a 5.23 ERA in 20.2 innings of action. This spring, the ERA has climbed

up to 7.94 (through games of March 10) and his WHIP stands at 2.12.

Having just turned 22, Marquez still has plenty of ceiling left in his career. He’s also obviously focused on making an

impact at the Major League level, having turned down an opportunity to pitch for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic

so he could spend more time in Rockies camp.

He has the stuff. He’s proven it at Double-A where he earned the Eastern League’s Pitcher of the Year honor. When it

translates to the Major League level, Marquez will make his presence felt on the mound. That could well be this season.

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Kyle Freeland

We made a bold prediction in our spring training preview article that Freeland would capture the fifth starter spot. He’s

done little in spring training to shake us from that opinion.

Through games of March 10, Freeland has made three outings, starting one. His ERA sits at 3.86, with all of the runs he’s

surrendered coming in his first appearance of spring in a blistering by the Los Angeles Dodgers on February 28.

However, since then, Freeland has allowed just two hits in five shutout innings. The former eighth overall pick has also not

surrendered a walk during that stretch while striking out two.

Need a history lesson on Freeland? Nolan Lees of Rox Pile broke it down this way in this article…

Freeland had a strong debut in 2014, but his 2015 season was mostly a wash. He developed shoulder fatigue and bone

chips in his elbow which pushed his season debut into late July. And when he finally got back on the mound, Freeland’s

pitches lacked the command and sharp movement that had made him so effective in high school and college.

Freeland had a bounce back season in 2016 though. Colorado challenged him by assigning him to Double-A Hartford,

and he responded with a 3.87 ERA in 88.1 innings. When the Rockies rewarded him with another promotion to Triple-A,

Freeland continued to throw the ball well, going 6-3 in 12 starts.

There’s plenty to like in Freeland and he will show it off at Coors Field sooner than later.

Chris Rusin

There are two things that stand out about Chris Rusin in the battle for a rotation spot.

First, the 30-year-old Rusin is the elder statesman of the group.

Second, he has 49 career starts under his belt, by far the highest number of any of his competitors.

Those are the positives. However, there are some negatives that must be examined here as well.

Rusin is currently nursing an injury and Bud Black has said there’s no real timetable for him to be back to a normal

throwing routine.

“He’s getting better,” Black recently told Rox Pile. “We’ll start progressing him with some stuff in the weight room but he’s

still a couple of weeks away from games.”

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With Rusin still a couple of weeks away from game action, that will cut the time short before the start of the season. Can

Rusin recover quickly enough to find his edge in limited spring training innings?

Also, there’s the fact that Rusin struggled last season as a starter yet was solid coming out of the bullpen. In seven starts,

the southpaw went 1-4 with a 5.08 ERA. In 22 relief appearances, Rusin posted a 2-1 mark and 2.58 ERA. It’s a

noticeable difference and one to keep in mind in this discussion.

Last season, Rusin bounced back and forth between jobs. Under Black, it appears that Rusin will compete for a starting

job while Jordan Lyles holds down the long reliever role. It could help settle Rusin into a better routine which could

benefit his performance.

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Colorado Rockies Rumors: Two Relievers “Available” For Trade? By Kevin Henry / Purple Rox Pile | March 11, 2017

Since the day he arrived in Denver, Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black has said that the Rockies bullpen will be better

with a healthy Chad Qualls and Jason Motte. However, it is rumored that those two veteran relievers are on the market if

another team is interested.

In this article by Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, it’s reported that Qualls and Motte “are said to be available” should

another team come calling. While they may be available, it may be a stretch that any other team would be interested in

their services.

Both are in the second year of a two-year contract they signed with the Rockies. Both also struggled last season, both on

the mound and to stay on the mound.

In 30 games, Motte posted a career-high 4.94 ERA and allowed six homers in just 23.2 innings of work. The 34-year-old

right-hander started last season on the disabled list and spent time on the disabled list during the season with rotator cuff

inflammation and strain.

Qualls will turn 39 in August and had a 5.23 ERA last season while opponents batted .305 against him. Issues with colitis

caused Qualls to miss a significant period toward the end of last season as he pitched in just eight games after August 20.

Colorado strived in the offseason to improve a bullpen that posted a league-worst 5.13 ERA in 2016. Among the biggest

moves of the offseason, the Rockies signed left-hander Mike Dunn and former All-Star closer Greg Holland. Black is

also expecting a bounceback season from Jake McGee and is pleased to have late-inning specialist Adam

Ottavino healthy and participating in spring training.

“With Dunn, Holland, McGee, Ottavino, Qualls, and Motte, we have six guys who have been battle tested,” Black told Rox

Pile after a spring training recent game in Arizona. “These guys have been through it, which we like. Healthy Dunn.

Healthy McGee. Healthy Holland. Ottavino healthy for a full year. Motte and Qualls bouncing back. We got action.

“They have to perform. Those guys know it. We feel as though where they are right now physically, we feel pretty good

about that group.”

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There’s also a plethora of young talent available to the Rockies in the bullpen, including Carlos Estevez, Miguel

Castro and Jairo Diaz, who could be one of the most interesting factors in the bullpen in his return from Tommy

John surgery.

Where does that leave Motte and Qualls? Possibly heading toward a new home if the right deal comes along.

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Rockies’ Chad Bettis is using cancer as motivation to get back on the field By Aniello Piro / Mile High Sports | March 10, 2017

Colorado Rockies pitcher Chad Bettis has been thrown a curveball midway through Spring Training. After receiving

promising news about his battle with testicular cancer just a couple of weeks ago, Bettis announced Friday that he will

undergo chemotherapy after discovering that the cancer has spread.

“It’s unfortunate and it sucks, honestly,” Bettis told the media Friday morning.

Bettis said that in a recent checkup, doctors discovered that his lymph nodes had swollen, and after further examination,

determined that the cancer had indeed spread.

The reoccurrence of the cancer and possibility of chemo were both things Bettis had hoped to avoid, but always knew

were possibilities.

“The mindset was always there, that maybe I would have to go through something like a round of chemo initially.” Bettis

said. “It was already in my head initially…It puts me at a really high cure rate which is much better for me.”

With that said, instead of dwelling on the situation at hand Bettis is using his recent diagnosis as motivation to come back

better than ever.

“It’s also what’s still driving me to get back out there, optimistically this year.” Bettis said. “Everybody has supported me

and is there fighting with me.”

Bettis was set to be a focal point in the Rockies young, promising rotation this season. Although his absence will certainly

present challenges for Colorado, Manager Bud Black remains confident that Bettis will bounce back and help contribute to

the Rockies in the future.

“Chad’s handled this great,” Black said. “Even from the beginning, he’s been so strong … We still feel good about what’s

going to happen eventually.”

The 27-year-old Bettis was solid for the Rockies last season, notching together a record of 14-8 with an ERA of 4.79.

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Colorado Rockies Spring Training 2017: Progress Report 3 By Sarah Ford / BSN Denver | March 12, 2017

As Colorado Rockies spring training 2017 rolls on, we want to make sure we are giving you regular progress reports as

opposed to just individual game notes. We will still be providing those more from time to time, but if you follow the Rockies

at this time of year looking less at the box score and more at how what is happening now might affect the upcoming

season, these reports should be far more helpful.

With each, we will give you an update on players who stock is going up and those who are going down, with specific

attention paid to those on the bubble at any given position. It’s always nice to check in on Nolan Arenado and Carlos

Gonzalez, but almost nothing they do this spring is going to change their perceived role heading into the season.

After taking a look at individual performances, we will wrap up with some miscellaneous notes from the week.

Stock Up

Kyle Freeland +1 (+1) – Freeland continues to put an underwhelming start behind him and is looking like the top prospect

with high command and weak contact he was billed as. Since giving up four earned runs in his first start of Spring

Training, Freeland hasn’t allowed one run in five innings of work.

Raimel Tapia (+1) – Tapia hasn’t made tons of noise so far this spring, but on Friday night he lined a scorching double off

the wall in center to bring around the tying run for the Rockies. He’s traditionally a slow starter, but signs show he’s

starting to heat up. If that happens, it’s going to be a lot of fun to watch.

Jordan Patterson +3 (+1) – Speaking of hot, Jordan Patterson. He’s hitting .308 so far, and his SLG sits at .769 after

adding another pair of doubles on Friday night for a total of six (team lead) this spring to complement his two home runs. If

he keeps this up he’ll be tough to overlook, especially with David Dahl currently sidelined.

Scott Oberg +1 – Oberg has allowed four hits and a run in three innings pitched so far this spring, but what was more

telling was his ability to dig out of a hole in the 7th inning appearance against the Cubs. With the bases loaded and the

Rockies leading 3-1, Oberg struck out Jeimer Candelario and Tommy LaStella before retiring John Jay on a weak

groundout to escape the inning unscathed. Shades of the ability to escape jams we saw last season.

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Christian Adames +2 (+1) – Adames stays hot, and now owns a .409 average and .709 SLG percentage through 12

games.

Stock Down

German Marquez -2 (-1) – With the Rockies now needing to fill two rotation spots rather than one, Marquez isn’t inspiring

much confidence that he should be someone the team turns to. He gave up four hits and four runs in a start Friday night.

Just one run was earned, but Marquez hurt himself with two throwing errors while trying to pick runners off of second, and

failed to gain control through his three innings pitched. He now has a 7.94 ERA in 5.2 innings.

Jeff Hoffman 0 (-1) – Hoffman is still trying to find his groove so far this spring, and hasn’t been particularly bad in any one

start, but gave up two in his last and is yet to inspire confidence that he is ready to dominate.

Miguel Castro -1 (-1) – Castro had another rough outing Saturday, costing the Rockies the game when he gave up three

runs to the Cubs in an inning that featured a long home run, wild pitch and a hit batter.

Notes:

Jon Gray had another great start, throwing three innings with just two hits and a pair of strikeouts.

Tyler Chatwood also had a good outing against the Cubs on Saturday, giving up just three hits and one run with four

strikeouts in four innings pitched against most of the Cubs’ “A” lineup.

Trevor Story has four home runs in eight games so far this spring, but just one non-homerun hit and has struck out seven

times in 22 at bats.

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Tony Wolters Nearing Return By Steve Adams / MLB Trade Rumors | March 11, 2017 at 5:17pm CDT

The Rockies have been without catcher Tony Wolters since March 5 due to a hyperextended right elbow that he

suffered on a swing, but he could return to the field on either Sunday or Monday, tweets MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. The

24-year-old Wolters hit .259/.327/.395 in 230 plate appearances as a rookie last season and drew excellent marks for his

pitch-framing skills. He’s expected to split time behind the dish with fellow youngster Tom Murphy in 2017 as half of the

Rockies’ primary catching tandem.