Welcome to the 14th Purple Row edition (and 119th overall) of Tuesdays With Mitch, where we always forget how many outs there are. Let's get into it...
Remember last year when it seemed like every significant player on the Rockies was hurt for the whole year? Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez couldn't stay healthy. Michael Cuddyer played in just 36 games. Nolan Arenado missed 37 games. And the pitching staff was so beat it up that it felt like the injuries to the position players didn't even matter. Jhoulys Chacin only made 11 starts (back when we thought he was still good). Brett Anderson made eight starts. Jordan Lyles broke his hand in a random, freak injury and missed the rest of the year. Tyler Chatwood paid a visit to ol' Thomas John after four starts. Even prized prospect Eddie Butler hit the DL after making his big-league debut.
Last year sucked.
Well wouldn't you now it, injuries to this year's starting staff have again been an issue and have seriously hindered any chance the Rockies had of contending. Of course, this isn't exactly breaking news. We've known about the Rockies' injury history for a while. But this latest one, the news of Chad Bettis hitting the DL coming off yet another of his quality starts just feels like the most disappointing news of the year. I think this was my reaction when I read whatever tweet or headline informed me that Chad Bettis was no longer in the Rockies rotation:
Why, baseball gods, must you pick Chad Bettis for a stint on the DL? Why must you pick the brightest surprise of the entire 2015 season to go down with "elbow inflammation"? Yes, we could certainly think of injuries that would be more disappointing than this one (De La Rosa, Arenado, Tulowitzki, Gonzalez, etc.), but no Rockie this year had shown as much progress and given the Rockies something they desperately needed as Chad Bettis.
Since flirting with a no-hitter (and a perfect game) in Philadelphia, I've looked forward to every Bettis start. And you know what? They've all been pretty damn good. (Except one.)
CHAD BETTIS IN 2015
Date |
Opponent |
IP |
ER |
Hits |
Walks |
Strikeouts |
May 14 |
@ LAD |
5 |
4 |
7 |
4 |
3 |
May 19 |
PHI |
6 |
3 |
8 |
3 |
5 |
May 24 |
SFG |
8.1 |
2 |
6 |
2 |
7 |
May 29 |
@ PHI |
8 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
7 |
June 3 |
LAD |
6 |
1 |
5 |
3 |
5 |
June 10 |
STL |
5 |
3 |
6 |
2 |
6 |
June 15 |
@ HOU |
5 |
5 |
7 |
2 |
5 |
June 20 |
MIL |
6.1 |
1 |
5 |
2 |
5 |
June 26 |
@ SFG |
6 |
3 |
6 |
2 |
3 |
July 1 |
@ OAK |
5.2 |
3 |
7 |
4 |
4 |
July 7 |
LAA |
2.1 |
10 |
8 |
1 |
2 |
July 12 |
ATL |
6 |
3 |
6 |
5 |
8 |
July 18 |
@ SDP |
6 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
5 |
For team that's absolutely starved for starting pitching, you can see why the emergence of Bettis was the most pleasant (and out of nowhere) surprise in the Rockies' 2015 season. The "Bad Chettis" joke was replaced by Baaaaaad (in a good way) Chettis. But now he's on the DL with a whole bunch of other important Rockies. It's what they do.
Let's recap all the injuries Rockies' pitchers have dealt with this year:
- Jorge De La Rosa began the year on the 15-Day DL. The Rockies' best pitcher didn't start the season with the team. De La didn't start pitching consistently well until his fifth start of the season, something his groin strain likely played a role in. Oh, and his finger still swells up every damn game.
- David Hale also began the year on the 15-Day DL. For a Rockies team needing depth in the rotation, Hale's spring training injury immediately eliminated one option for a starter.
- LaTroy Hawkins was unimpressive early in the season, then he landed on the 15-Day DL on April 22nd with a biceps strain. He went a month and half and 45 games between appearances.
- Adam Ottavino learned he was out for the year on April 26th. This was a big one. The Rockies had found their dominant closer. He was untouchable. He was done for the year and part of next year after ten appearances in 2015.
- Brooks Brown hit the 15-Day DL on May 4th. A young, hard-throwing reliever. Hard to get too worked up about this one. These things happen.
- Ken Roberts moved to the 15-Day DL on May 23rd. Same situation as the Brown injury. These things happen. Roberts wasn't exactly a key piece.
- Jordan Lyles: Sprained left big toe. May 26th. Out for the year. Again. Random, freak injury. Again. This was another big one, as Lyles had developed into a mostly-reliable, middle-of-the-rotation starter.
- Rafael Betancourt, who had turned into an awesome story by pitching so well coming off Tommy John surgery at age 88, hit the DL with "vertigo symptoms" on June 7th. Vertigo symptoms? Vertigo symptoms!
- Brooks Brown. Same injury as before. June 17th. 15-Day DL. A nice, underrated piece of the bullpen hasn't been able to stay healthy.
- Christian Bergman landed on the DL on June 29th. The Rockies long-relief guy going down is not insignificant. Bergman has been important while providing length out of the pen.
- David Hale moved back to the 15-Day DL on July 10th. After overcoming his initial injury and making eight, sometimes-decent starts, Hale is back on the DL, leaving the Rockies with a four-man rotation for a while.
- Chad Bettis. July 19th. Why?
So again, a handful of these are to be expected each year. And a handful of the above injuries weren't overly impactful. But to have 12 of those bullet points on July 21st sure seems like a lot. And some of those-- De La Rosa, Ottavino, Lyles, Hale, Bettis-- have been daggers that left the Rockies with no shot to contend in 2015.
And yes, I realize it's impossible to talk about injuries without sounding like a whiny fan making excuses. But after hearing that Bettis, of all people, went down with some kind of mysterious elbow injury, and after all that other crap that has preceded it, I'm fine with the "Whiny, Excuse-Making Fan" stance.
Woe is me. Woe are we. Woe are the Rockies.
Now we proceed to the weekly departments...
.@TigerWoods It's better to be over 50, than it is to be over par. #DisruptAging #TheOpen
— AARP (@AARP) July 16, 2015
New FIFA cover is looking hot. (@cjzero) pic.twitter.com/SoWgvPC0G8
— Steve McPherson (@steventurous) July 20, 2015
The award for my favorite umpire ever goes to...
@CespedesBBQ swaggy ump: pic.twitter.com/6lXpDEDlJX
— apruzzese (@Tony_Showtime) July 16, 2015
Ram 1 Drone 0 pic.twitter.com/BAWR9tuTWe
— Car Crash TV (@Crashingtv) July 15, 2015
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