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With spring training now upon us, as beautiful as baseball is and can be, we also must deal with the elephant in the room that is decidedly not as fun: injuries. They're inevitable! Your favorite pitcher's arm is probably going to fall off or explode one day. Sorry. And yesterday, the Rockies' first injury—of a much more minor variety than an arm explosion—occurred.
David Hale pulls hamstring — Denver Post/Twitter
Nick Groke of the Denver Post reports on Thursday evening that Rockies RHP David Hale pulled his hamstring during live batting practice. The righty, who came over to Colorado last winter in a trade from the Atlanta Braves, is trying to see if there's a long reliever/spot starter role for him in Denver, but he's probably already on the outside looking in for an Opening Day big league job, even before the injury. Still, let's hope it doesn't linger throughout the entirety of camp. Here's more on Hale.
Blackmon tailoring aggressiveness to situation — MLB.com
Charlie Blackmon and others discuss the center fielder's ability to do things like bunt for hits and steal bases, and how that can help the Rockies' offense when put in the proper context and used in the right situations. Also, most importantly, Thomas Harding focuses on Blackmon taking and seeing more pitches, which is something the Rockies in general are very bad at doing right now. Here's more on Blackmon.
German Marquez, Rockies pitching prospect, turning heads — Denver Post
Patrick Saunders put up a quick thing about how easy and effortless German Marquez's delivery and power fastball has looked in bullpens very early this spring. The righty, acquired by the Rockies from the Tampa Bay Rays as part of the Corey Dickerson trade, probably won't start the season in Denver, but he is on the 40-man roster... Here's more on Marquez.
Tyler Anderson, Rockies pitching prospect, feeling 'total rejuvenation' — Denver Post
Nick Groke talks to Tyler Anderson about being healthy once again after the lefty prospect was shelved with an elbow injury last season. Anderson can make an impact in this organization still, and surprise perhaps even the big league club this year or next year, but obviously health comes first; now that it sounds like he has that, well, we can hope for better things to come for him on the field. Here's more on Anderson.
Casey Light breaks down the Rockies' shortstop problems entering spring training, most specifically the issues surrounding Jose Reyes, and whether or not Cristhian Adames and/or Trevor Story can meet expectations and needs in the big leagues. Here's more on that whole conundrum.