MOVING UP:
Steve Finley: As we pointed out in the comments to yesterday's game, Finley has come to camp on a mission to prove he belongs. Yesterday batting leadoff he went three for four with a double and a stolen base. From what I was told however, his Veteran Presence was clearly lacking, as he was playing like a 27 year old. Just kidding. There should be no worries on the veteran front, his sample tested positive with plenty of VP after the game.
MIXED BAG:
Alex Gomez: He's been making some scary good contact this Spring, although a sharp foul off his bat in the fourth was just plain scary as it nailed Glenallen Hill in the elbow forcing the coach to leave the game. Add in a costly sun aided miscue in right field that was pivotal for Seattle's early scoring, and you could see that there must have been some bad mojo waiting around for Alex yesterday. Of course, these unfortunate random events aren't going to do anything to damage his seemingly strong chances for making the roster. I think I'm going to dub these types of random events, The Bees of Spring, after the infamous Darren Oliver hair gel incident of two years ago. How's that for strange cultish events we real Rockies fans latch onto. Don't let the bees get you down, Alex.
MOVING DOWN:
Jeff Salazar: You may have noticed I haven't done a Colorado Springs Sky Sox pre-preview yet. Part of the reason is that I don't know who will win the starting cf spot, as Jeff Salazar and Cory Sullivan seem to be in a neck and neck battle for the spot as both have faded from the pack in quest of the big league back-up role.
Alright, that's actually a lie as to why I haven't done the pre-preview. The truth is that I'm seriously flaky when it comes to finishing things I start on this blog sometimes as I get distracted by new projects way too easily. We'll try to get better.
Others of Note: Spilborghs, Gomez and Finley are a step ahead of John Mabry, who's a step or two ahead of Sullivan and Salazar in the competition for those last two bench slots. Ramon Ramirez had a rough inning, giving up three hits and a run, but his spot in the pen isn't going to fall into jeopardy unless he really falls apart. Manny Corpas is oddly having to fight for a spot despite having the best stuff of any of our relievers, and showing enough command to be effective with it. I'm not sure I understand the reasoning behind that. I mean, just because he has a minor league option doesn't mean that the team should feel inclined to use it. David Ohno pointed out Ian Stewart's quietly impressive Spring, most of his hits have been off of lesser pitching, but the swagger seems to be coming back.