The incident is officially done and dealt with as of today, as Helton entered a guilty plea to his DUI charge. He received one year of probation, 24 hours of community service, and a $400 fine. One would hope that he would take it upon himself to contribute much more than those 24 hours and those 400 dollars given his stature in the Denver community, but that’s on him.

Helton. Image: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

One other thought: Helton’s disinclination to indulge anything like a “farewell tour” is probably benefiting all of us at this point. The last thing I want to see is Helton ending his career on a sour note. If he were being honored at each park, people might note their discomfort with celebrating somebody who so recently got a DUI. That would also make for a double distraction, which we all know is the last thing Helton would ever want to create.

It happened, we were all really disappointed, he apologized the best he could, and now we can all focus on baseball and watching the Toddfather go out on his terms where it matters most: on the field.

Helton heads to the DL. Image: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

I don’t know the answer, and obviously I am writing from an outsider’s perspective. I am also beyond weary to ever suggest that Todd Helton would ever intentionally do anything to negatively affect this franchise (note the adverb, please). Still, the Rockies just went through 5 games with a shallow bench because Helton was not available. If it matters, those games were against stiff competition in the forms of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Atlanta Braves. If stalling did not result in Helton’s successful return to the lineup, it was all going to look a little bit nonsensical. And that was before Torrealba played first base in the same infield with Eric Young Jr.

Note: if you think I am dwelling too much on what happened in extra innings yesterday, just do me one favor. Read this sentence again: Yorvit Torrealba played first base while Eric Young Jr. played second base.

So here we are, and Todd Helton heads to the disabled list. Per Troy Renck:

As reported earlier Helton to DL retroactive to April 30. Ryan Wheeler promoted. He will wear #12

— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) April 25, 2013

If somebody were in the business of taking bets on Rockies’ roster moves, Wheeler had to be considered the long-shot to get called up. And yet here he is, ahead of teammates Tyler Colvin and Charlie Blackmon.

Helton seemed to have found his stroke before this injury hit, working his way up to a .268/.333/.415. Here’s hoping that it is a minor issue that will not become a lingering problem for the veteran.