Possible platoon in left field with Desmond, Tapia, rookie
As spring SCOTTSDALE, ARI Z .» training crescendos toward opening day in a few weeks, expect Colorado’s outfield situation to remain somewhat fluid.
The unit’s projected starters are David Dahl in center and Charlie Blackmon in right, while right field is setting up to be shared among veteran Ian Desmond, the emerging Raimel Tapia and rookie Sam Hilliard (if he makes the roster).
“There could be a mix there, whether it’s a straight platoon or not,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “(Desmond) has proven, especially last year, that he really hits lefties. So once the season is underway, it should be a mix.”
In addition to those daily matchups that Black will certainly weigh while filling out the lineup card — Desmond slashed .297/.350/.626 against left-handers last year compared to .226/ .282/.375 against righties — there’s also the consideration of health.
Dahl will inevitably need days off, as will Blackmon, in order to keep the slowed 33-year-old fresh throughout a long season.
Garrett Hampson and Yonathan Daza could provide further depth for all of those needs.
“With getting guys days off, getting guys their starts, playing the hot hand, (all our main outfield) guys are going to play,” Black said. “It could be similar to what happened last year as the season got underway and you saw some (platoon) things we were trying to do.”
Injury updates. Southpaw prospect Ben Bowden, in his second big-league camp after being put on the 40-man roster in November, has yet to pitch this spring training because of tightness and inflammation in his lower back.
The 25-year-old has been rehabbing for the last several weeks and began light throwing Saturday. Bowden, who had lower back surgery in 2017 to correct a herniated disc, said the team is being cautious in his return even though there are some days where the left-hander feels “pretty good.”
“I can function, and there’s times I can feel absolutely fine, but the next morning I wake up feeling worse,” Bowden said. “It’s tough being patient, but I have to and I’ll continue to. … If I rush my rehab, especially with my back history, it’s not going to do myself or anybody any good.”
In other pitching injury news, right-hander Tim Melville is also in mid-rehab for a broken rib. The right-hander believes the injury occurred in his final start of last season, but because the pain was so mild, he didn’t think anything of it.
Melville worked out as usual all offseason, but when he got to Salt River Fields in January and began throwing, he noticed the issue (pain in his rib along his back, by his lat muscle) crop up again.
“I didn’t think it was that significant, so I went into the offseason and did my normal workout routine,” Melville said. “I threw about five bullpens, and it started getting sore again. I got it checked out. The area had tried to heal, but it wasn’t fully healed yet.”
Melville, in camp as a nonroster invitee after re-signing on a minor-league deal with the Rockies in the offseason, will have another CT scan in about three weeks to determine when he can resume throwing.