Colorado Rockies morning after: Adam Ottavino is mad … and he should be

SEATTLE — Adam Ottavino is one of the most dominant pitchers in Major League Baseball today. The Colorado Rockies reliever also has a memory that keeps him laser-focused on what is to come, not what has been. Well, most of the time.

Perhaps that’s why Ottavino was so blunt on Sunday after learning he had not made the National League All-Star squad, despite having a 1.79 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 63 strikeouts in 40.1 innings this season. If you were upset after hearing Ottavino wouldn’t be heading to Washington as a member of the National League squad, trust me, the man they call Otto was even more bent about it.

Standing in front of his locker and finishing up a dish of ice cream, Ottavino said he has been happy with the way he has season has gone so far. But then, just as quickly, he referenced a stretch of two September games in 2012 against the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres.

That’s right. 2012.

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Meaningless games during a 64-98 season, you say? Hardly. Ottavino remembers them well. He remembers he gave up 10 combined runs in those two games.

He also remembers that he wasn’t a part of last season’s Wild Card roster in Arizona. He remembers the four wild pitches he threw in a game in Los Angeles in June. He remembers giving up three runs to the Diamondbacks in two-thirds of an inning on September 1.

Lessons from the past. Yes, you could say the man is driven to do better. No matter how great the current is, there is always a moment from the past that is pushing him to do better and be better.

“It’s not done. It’s not in the books. Plenty of time,” Ottavino told Rox Pile and other media members. “I’ve given up 10 runs in two games in September before and that hurt real bad. Last season, I didn’t recover enough to get on the playoff team. There’s so much baseball to play so I’m not really thinking about what has happened. I’m thinking about what we need to do still to win the division. That’s where my head is at.”

But what about now? What about this season and how glorious it’s been for Ottavino in a relief role? Why didn’t he earn the Midsummer Classic honor?

“Because I’m on the Rockies. I kind of gave up some runs last week so you gotta be pretty much perfect. That’s it,” Ottavino shrugged. “Pitchers don’t get any credit playing for the Rockies.”

Ouch. And he’s exactly right. Pitchers who do well at Coors Field never get the credit they deserve while hitters who do well at Coors Field are good simply because they play at altitude. If, as national reasoning goes, all hitters hit well because of the “Coors” effect, shouldn’t pitchers who excel at a mile high get some kind of kudos?

Colorado manager Bud Black knew the news would be tough to hear. However, he does believe something will happen over the next week that will give Ottavino the honor he has earned this season.

“One of the first things I did today was I brought Otto into the office and I told him that — as of now — he’s not on the team,” Black said. “I thought he was All-Star worthy and I thought the way he pitched this first half of the season was of All-Star caliber. I’m still thinking this is going to happen for him by the end of the week.”

Will that be enough for Ottavino, knowing he wasn’t originally selected to the team? Don’t expect him to do any cartwheels. He knows that, however good he has been, he has to be almost flawless for the Rockies to get back to a second consecutive Rocktober. And, even if he is, no one outside of the Mountain time zone may give him any credit.

“I’m happy overall with the way I’ve performed,” Ottavino said. “I’ve kept my mind in a good spot. I had my heart broken at the end of a couple of years so I’m not trying to get too far ahead, honestly. I don’t think I’ve really accomplished anything yet. I’m having a good year but I can do more. I gotta do more.”

Next: Yes, the Colorado Rockies are buyers

The man is deserving of an All-Star spot … and he’s driven to make sure everyone sees that the rest of the season.