Colorado Rockies spring training preview and game thread: Butler vs. Walker

Today at 1 p.m. Colorado time the Rockies take on the Mariners in Scottsdale, Arizona.The final meaningless game of 2015 somehow means a lot.

Eddie Butler, who is currently slotted to pitch the third regular season game on Wednesday, gets the start in today's game. According to the Denver Post's Nick Groke (and broken down here), however, the job is still Butler's to lose. If he "falters" today, Christian Bergman, who is currently tabbed as the swingman in the Rockies bullpen (a role that suits him), will take Butler's place in the rotation. Butler, in turn, would be optioned to Albuquerque. Taking Butler's place would then be Scott Oberg, who is not currently on the 40 man roster. Purchasing Oberg's contract would then necessitate that the Rockies designate someone for assignment to make room.

A major league roster is a tangle of interdependent units.

It's unlikely that the Rockies are going to give Butler too many opportunities to waver today. In last night's game against the Mariners, the Rockies limited starting pitcher Jordan Lyles to two innings and 40 pitches. Expect the same for Butler this afternoon.

The Rockies couldn't solve J.A. Happ in yesterday's matchup agains the Mariners. Today, they'll face the young right-hander Taijuan Walker.

We'll see the Mariners later this season, as they will travel to Coors Field in early August for three games of interleague play. The Rockies will travel to Seattle for three more in September.

The Mariners and Rockies will roll out these lineups today, both of which resemble a regular season everyday lineup. Both teams will employ the designated hitter. Expect the regulars to get only a couple of plate appearances before exiting.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p>1:10pm MT first pitch for the final game of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoxSpring?src=hash">#RoxSpring</a>. letsgooo <a href="http://t.co/uIWywAndC6">pic.twitter.com/uIWywAndC6</a></p>&mdash; Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) <a href="https://twitter.com/Rockies/status/584402310018703361">April 4, 2015</a></blockquote>

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Today's game isn't televised, but you can listen Seattle's radio feed here.