Marquez to get another start for Rockies
DENVER -- German Marquez will try to rebound from a poor outing when he makes his third career outing Sunday for the Colorado Rockies against the Milwaukee Brewers in the final game of the regular season. The Brewers are planning a bullpen game with Tyler Cravy, who threw 20 pitches in two perfect innings Friday night, making the start. Cravy is 0-1 with a 2.39 ERA in 19 games, including one start on May 6 at Cincinnati. Cravy took the turn of Wily Peralta, who was on the paternity list, and gave up five runs in four innings and took a 5-1 loss. "It's basically going to be a bullpen day," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said of the rubber game of the series with the Rockies. "We're looking for a couple innings (from Cravy), and then we're going to use a bunch of relievers." Starters Matt Garza and Jimmy Nelson are rested, but Counsell said the plan going into the Brewers' road trip that began Monday at Texas was to cover the innings of the final game with relievers. "We had to make sure we got through the first two games (at Coors Field) basically with enough pitching, and we did," Counsell said after the Brewers beat the Rockies 4-3 in 10 innings on Saturday night. Marquez, 21, began his career in the majors with three relief appearances last month before making his first start against St. Louis on Sept. 21. He held the Cardinals to four hits and one run in five innings and became the second-youngest pitcher in franchise history to win his first start as the Rockies beat the Cardinals 11-1. On Tuesday at San Francisco, Marquez gave up six hits but only two runs in four innings. However, he then allowed six straight hits to start the fifth before being lifted from the game. He ended up yielding six runs and 12 hits in four innings. Marquez worked on finishing his pitches in what was described as a very sharp bullpen session Thursday. He is 1-1 with a 6.14 ERA overall but has impressed the Rockies with his easy velocity -- a fastball that sits at 95-96 mph -- a polished curveball and a developing slider as well as his composure and poise on the mound. The Rockies acquired Marquez in the January deal with Tampa Bay that also brought reliever Jake McGee to Colorado for outfielder Corey Dickerson and minor league third baseman Kevin Padlo. Marquez spent most of this season at Double-A Hartford, where he was named the Eastern League pitcher of the year. He pitched briefly at Triple-A Albuquerque before the Rockies recalled him Sept. 6, two days before his major league debut. Marquez could contend for a spot in the Rockies' Opening Day rotation next season. Asked whether his outing against the Giants could be a teaching tool, an opportunity for Marquez to rebound from adversity, Rockies manager Walt Weiss said, "All of this is an opportunity to get better for young players. That's what some of September's about. Guys get opportunities to make an impression -- he's already made an impression with his composure, the way he operates out there. These are all opportunities for growth." |