Free Agency has begun, and as of 12:01 AM ET, players with the requisite amount of service time were eligible to file for free agency.

The Rockies were aware of this, and immediately got the hot stove blazing with what they consider to be a strong signing.

In an effort to expand their positional versatility and provide further opportunities for manager Jim Tracy to tweak his lineups on a daily basis, the Rockies announced that they have signed Ty Wigginton to another 2-year, $8M contract. 

"Ty really showed himself to be a gamer this past season. Having him taking consecutive ABs in the late innings will really put this club over the top. I can't imagine this club in 2012 without 2 Ty's on the roster. He meant so much to the organization and to me personally, well.... hell, I'd invite Ty to midwife my next child. There's room in our closet for you, big guy." -- recent groundbreaking acquisition Jason Giambi.

Wigginton, 34, impressed the Rockies' brass with his ability to play multiple positions, hold his glove on the correct hand, and bat from the right side of the plate. In fact, he impressed GM Dan O'Dowd so much during the 2011 season that the Rockies opted to sign Wigginton again - not to an extension, but actually to an entirely new contract. Wigginton will take up 2 spots on the 25-man and 40-man rosters, and will be eligible to start in 2 lineup slots during any given game, exercising the new "Ghost Runner" rule that MLB quietly instituted for managers such as Tracy and Tony LaRussa.

After his opening day disaster, Ubaldo Jimenez was evaluated by team trainer Keith Dugger for what's being described as "vague elbow something". The Rockies are skipping his next start against the Pirates as a precaution. "I mean, really, it's the Pirates."

Prior to the 6th inning, Ubaldo topped out at roughly 96mph on a fastball that normally screams in at 100mph, especially on the first start of a fresh season.

Right after taking the mound for the 6th, the gas pedal was suddenly let off, and Ubaldo was hitting around 90-92 on average.

"It was strange...he normally is burning that fastball in the upper 90s through the 7th. He wasn't showing specific signs of struggling, but we could tell something was off. Although we had to use our own guns, as the stadium boards were kind of MIA."

Later, after the start, before preparing for his standard 6 mile run, Ubaldo came to Dugger saying that things with his elbow weren't feeling completely shipshape. Ubaldo was immediately started on a citrus regimen to combat scurvy. 

For his entire career, Ubaldo's been the picture of health. He has yet to take a trip to the disabled list. He has, however, visited many a hospital in all of his charity work as a clown for children. Children with diseases.

Other fireballers in the league seem to find themselves in injury trouble, such as former Brave/Astro/Met Billy Wagner, oft-injured Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya, and Phillies' veteran Jamie Moyer.

On the other hand, Ubaldo has never really been seen as someone with the mechanical problems that lead to injury, despite his wicked velocity and seeming slingshot motion. His actual work with a slingshot has been referred to as "Bart Simpson-Esque".

Look for the Rockies to take it easy on Ubaldo this week. With the extra day off because of Manager Jim Tracy's desire to keep the rotation in strict order, Ubaldo's next outing on the mound will be after Esmil Rogers' next start.

Something to think about: It's only the first start of the season, April 1, and there's a chance that this vague elbow complaint might just be a bit of internal frustration acting up. Ice yourself, Ubaldo, take your run, feel better. We'll get 'em next time.