What do you say about the Rockies after their sweep of the Pirates? You could say this:
Suddenly, the Rockies are playing their best baseball of the season — at least at home, where they are 9-1 in their last 10.
At home, the Rockies are 29-21; on the road, the Rockies are 14-36. Now, that's shouldn't really be a surprise to anyone here. We have to go all the way back to the middle of June when the Rockies took two of three from the White Sox to win a series on the road. They also took two of three from the Dodgers in early June and two of three from the Padres and Astros in back-to-back series in April.
But that doesn't mean a whole lot for this upcoming series at home against the Dodgers. Maybe Troy Tulowitzki's return to the lineup tonight will. Though I think that was the same thought many had the last time Troy returned to the lineup. Troy had a hit in six of his last seven games before going on the DL, two of those being two-run homers. Yet, he only had one multi-hit game since his return on June 20, and that was in the next day's game. Will Tulo be the everyday shortstop upon his return? Maybe not.
But with Clint Barmes and Jeff Baker swinging hot bats and the team playing well, Hurdle is in no rush to say Tulowitzki is the everyday shortstop.
Hurdle is never in a rush to say or do something, but hot bats don't last forever, obviously.
Cook's next trip to the mound will be Friday, starting the opener against Cincinnati. That's a good way to start the series, but the question with the Rockies, as it always has been, is, how do they finish the series?
Here are some lovely photos of some lovely girls with some er, uh, uhm, hrrrm, ehh, Rockies players who can play lovely baseball. From time to time, that is.