OTTAVINO TRYING TO FIX MECHANICAL DIFFICULTIES
SAN FRANCISCO» Adam Ottavino is Colorado’s mercurial relief pitcher.
He’s fully capable of shutting a team down, and even quickly striking out the side, as he did in the seventh inning Wednesday against San Francisco.
Or he can let loose four wild pitches, as he did Sunday at Dodger Stadium.
Rest assured, the veteran righthander does not have a case of “the yips.” What he does have are some mechanical flaws in his delivery.
“No, it’s not the yips, that’s crazy,” Ottavino said with a big laugh. “I just haven’t been in a good groove. I have had some good games here and there, but I just haven’t been in my same groove. We are working to figure some things out. I’ll get there.”
Ottavino has seen his ERA steadily climb. At the end of April it was 1.42, at the end of May it was 2.57 and now it sits at 5.08 as the Rockies open the second half of their season Friday night at Arizona.
“The good ‘Otto,’ is a guy I’ve seen with a fastball-breaking ball combination that is dominant,” manager Bud Black said. “When that happens, I see bad swings against him, pitches in good locations, and for the most part, strike one. I see him attacking the zone.”
And what has Black observed when Ottavino has pitched poorly?
“In the rougher outings, I’ve seen a guy that’s looked a little bit uncomfortable with his mechanics; leaving the fastball and breaking ball out of the zone,” Black said. “I see Adam struggling a little bit with his release point.”
Ottavino’s long delivery, with its crossfire action across his body, can get out of whack. The Rockies are attempting to get it back on track.
“Adam’s delivery requires timed-up body parts,” Black said. “When he’s on, he’s been great, throughout his career. When he’s off, the base on balls comes into play and his pitches get scattered.”
All-star Arenado.
Nolan Arenado, baseball’s human highlight reel, is making a strong run to start in his first All-Star Game.
The Rockies’ third baseman had trailed Kris Bryant of the Cubs throughout the voting process, but Arenado has pulled ahead of the reigning National League MVP.
Vote totals released Thursday morning by Major League Baseball showed that Colorado’s four-time Gold Glove winner had 2,426,431 votes to Bryant’s 2,322,249, giving Arenado a 104,182-vote lead.
Arenado trailed Bryant by about 58,000 votes Monday. If he wins, he will be the first Rockies third baseman to be voted in as a starter.
Vinny Castilla started in the 1995 game in place of Matt Williams.
The teams will be named at 5 p.m. Sunday on ESPN.
Into the future.
Two infielders prospects — Double-A Hartford’s Brendan Rodgers and Triple-A Albuquerque’s Ryan McMahon — will represent the Rockies organization in the AllStar Futures Game during AllStar Weekend.
Rodgers and McMahon will play for Team USA against the World Team on July 9 at Marlins Park in Miami.