Home Runs, Bat Flips, Struts, and a Bike Accident

I never hit a home run in my short baseball career, so I’ll never understand that feeling. And I am usually a big fan of a little bit of swag, whether a bat flip, a little admiring, or anything more creative. But I would like to think that if I was on a team that scored 7 runs, total, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and that just scored more runs in one game than they did in an entire road trip, I would probably just put my head down and start jogging.

Nevertheless, the Rockies strutted their way to an 18-9 victory over the New York Mets tonight. Carlos Gonzalez, never short of self-confidence, clubbed a deep home run to tie the game at 6 in the 5th inning, one which he admired for a few steps as the Coors faithful cheered, and tied a career high with 6 RBI in the game. Later that inning, Dexter Fowler, who had just been dropped to the 8th spot in the lineup, hit a home run that he was apparently quite sure of, as he went all Bret Boone on us with an admittedly sweet bat flip. On the one hand I enjoyed it because I like Dexter and he plays for my team; on the other hand it kind of reminded me of when Carlos GO GO Gomez flipped his bat against the Rockies one season ago, when I actually said out loud, “You’re flipping your bat? Are you (bleeping) kidding me?”

Every player deserves to take a bit of a longer look if it’s a no-doubt home run, but you have to be established at a certain level, methinks, to get away with an exaggerated bat flip. CarGo is at that level; Dexter, who has been scratching to keep his playing time and has been moved twice in the lineup because of a lack of production, probably isn’t. But hey, it was still fun to watch.

Eric Young Jr. was the first to bring the attitude in the 11 run 5th inning, busting it up the line on a weak grounder to the pitcher, ducking the tag after an errant throw, and the nodding towards the dugout assuredly. On the way to their 18 runs Marco Scutaro added 4 hits, Todd Helton had 3, and Ramon Hernandez put the game away in the 7th inning with a grand slam. And yes, he did take a long look at that one as well. If the Mets come out angry in tomorrow’s game, we’ll know why, because the Rockies made sure they knew how great they thought they were tonight. The Mets also helped the cause by committing an astounding 6 errors.

Oh, and Scott Hairston hit for the cycle, and he and his brother Jerry, who will be in town on Monday, continue to strike fear into the Colorado faithful.

I would love for the Rockies to make this the stamp on the 2012 season; a confident/cocky offense that makes teams fear Coors Field and at least somewhat neutralizes the otherwise stingy pitching in the NL West. If this becomes a launching point for this homestand, or longer, then I love the swag. But if they go quiet tomorrow or strike out 12 times against Johan Santana on Sunday, then the highlights of the cocksure Rockies tonight will make me cringe.

Speaking of pitching, the Rockies had less than good news in that regard. Besides the struggles of Esmil Rogers and Josh Roenicke out of the bullpen, they had two starting pitchers sustain injuries. Tonight’s starter Drew Pomeranz left after four innings due to stiffness in his left forearm. It seems that we can breath easy, for now, because manager Jim Tracy assures us it is not near his elbow. As for the other injury…

…Remember how fascinated we all are that Jeremy Guthrie rides his bike? He’s green! He’s an intellectual! He’s interesting! Let’s be sure to talk about how great it is that he rides his bike every single time he pitches! 

What a difference one crash makes. The chain on Guthrie’s bike broke earlier today, causing him to fall and injure his right (throwing) shoulder. There is no serious damage, so while Guthrie will head to the DL, it is relatively good news considering what it could have been. He will miss 1 or 2 starts. Former Oakland Athletic Guillermo Moscoso will make his Rockies debut tomorrow night in Guthrie’s stead.

In the mean time, people will now ask if Guthrie should be allowed to ride his bike, equating the practice with skiing, snowboarding, mountain climbing, sky diving, extreme miniature golf, and spelunking. Because, you know, that makes sense.

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