Gerardo Parra will provide Charlie Blackmon with some well deserved rest

Gerardo Parra to ease load on Charlie Blackmon | MLB.com
With spring training underway, the Rockies plans for some players are becoming more clear. Among them is Gerardo Parra, the newest member of the team's crowded out field. Part of Parra's job will be to spell Charlie Blackmon in center field, manager Walt Weiss told Thomas Harding of MLB.com. Center is the weakest outfield spot for Parra, but he is still more than capable of handling spot starts there.

New face of the Rockies is Nolan Arenado's game face - The Denver Post
Patrick Saunders wrote this nice piece about Nolan Arenado and how he is handling his increased profile and his new status as the face of the Rockies franchise. In 2016, Arenado will look to become a better leader, something that his dad thinks he will handle just fine, even if he is shy.

2016 Colorado Rockies Preview: Team in an Elizabethan Drama | Banished to the Pen
This is one of the cooler, more unique baseball articles I've read. Mikey Poley took a look at the 2016 season and made some Shakespeare comparisons. Poley doesn't think that it will be a particularly good season, and wonders if the Rockies have any plan at all, taking it one step farther than our own Matt Gross, who argued that the team does have a plan, it just isn't very good.

Orioles sign pitcher Yovani Gallardo | MLB.com
The Rockies chances of signing Yovani Gallardo are officially over, as he has agreed to join the Baltimore Orioles. It's a pretty team-friendly deal at three-years and $35 million made even more so by 2019 being an option year. The Orioles decided it was worth giving up the 14th overall pick in the draft in order to get Gallardo, who declined a qualifying offer from the Rangers.

Chad Bettis alters mechanics in bounceback '15 | MLB.com
Chad Bettis spoke to Thomas Harding about what caused his breakout year in 2015, an improvement he credits to some alterations made to his mechanics. Bettis was one of a few bright spots for the team in 2015 and the Rockies certainly hope that he can build off of that this year.

LaTroy Hawkins discusses lengthy career in Q&A | MLB.com
Former Rockies closer LaTroy Hawkins joined MLB Now and spoke to Brian Kenny about his career. This video is about seven minutes long, but well worth a viewing.

That's all for now from the second day of spring training. Just five more days until the first official full squad workout!