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Power has already shifted in the NL West race and the season hasn't even started yet. Yesterday's news of Patrick Corbin's torn ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow probably sliced their chances of making the post season in half, and that might even be generous.
Corbin is going to seek a second opinion but I think we all know how this works and it almost never ends well. The exact severity is still to be determined but it's safe to say he's not going to be pitching again for quite a while.
Any argument as to why the D'Backs might be a playoff team this season would have Patrick Corbin at or near the top of the discussion, and if he's eliminated from the equation, things just got a whole lot more difficult for that team.
As much as this could help the Rockies, I actually do feel bad for Corbin himself and his fans. Anybody who follows the Rockies first hand knows how devastating it is to lose a high impact player like this, but according to at least one Arizona fan, I should be putting those feelings aside and jumping for the ceiling. So I guess I'll just have to leave Corbin out of it and focus on how nice it if for this to happen to the folks who made the asinine decision to drill Troy Tulowitzki in a spring training game last week.
Thomas Harding has a whole host of news more directly related to the Rockies in this link. There's discussion about how Blackmon is doing in his quest for an outfield role, Justin Morneau's approach against lefties, Jordan Lyles and ground balls, Adam Ottavino's willingness to pitch in any role, and more.
Troy Renck writes about Chad Bettis working on his changeup and his fight for a roster spot as a member of the bullpen. For the most part, this is just your typically spring training "he's got a new pitch" article, but Bettis is a guy who could make big strides if he's able to make this work due to the timing problem it would cause hitters when coupled with Bettis's already electric fastball.
Jordan Lyles was unable to finish off what could have been an excellent spring training start yesterday afternoon.
Around MLB
Thanks to MLB choosing to start the season in Australia, the first game that counts is less than a week away. The Dodgers and D'Backs will kick off the season Friday night / in the wee hours of Saturday morning at 2:00 a.m. mountain time.
Josh Hamilton has been down with a calf strain for the last three weeks, but he's expected to be in the lineup for the first time all spring against Tim Lincecum and the Giants this afternoon. I hope he homers off him in every at bat.
Manny Machado is still recovering from the horrendous knee injury he suffered last season, and he may not be ready for opening day.
Kurt Mensching of the Detroit Tigers SB Nation site talks about how likely the Jose Iglesias injury makes a Stephen Drew signing. It's not as clear cut as you might first think.
Jimmy Rollins doesn't seem to be seeing eye to eye with his manager. Winning probably won't cure this either as I don't think the Phillies will be doing much of that this summer. I think they are in for a very long season in Philadelphia.