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Apr 14th 2012, 17:28

Many baseball fans may have thought it a gimmick for the Colorado Rockies to invite 49-year-old pitcher Jamie Moyer to spring training this year. Cue the AARP/Social Security/Grandpa jokes, right? How many times do I have to hear fans around me at the games and the sports bar joke about how they could throw as hard as Moyer and that they should be pitching for the Rockies?

Well, the joke has been on the doubters so far this season. Not only has Jamie Moyer made the roster of the Rockies, but he has pitched very well in his two starts. Unfortunately, poor hitting and clumsy fielding behind him have cost him at least one win.

It's rather amazing that hitters haven't figured out how to hit Moyer consistently. The man throws fastballs in the 75 mph range, and I've yet to see a pitch of his go much faster. Occasionally, he might toss one in the 68 mph range. How can it be that he's not been run out of the park in the first inning of ever game? I sat behind home plate for his start against the San Francisco Giants and I still don't know how they managed to not murder the ball on every pitch across the plate.

Watching Moyer, the vast majority of the balls have been in play. Hitters are definitely making contact, but solid contact is infrequent. Moyer will give up a home run or two when he pitches, but it's highly unusual to see more than a few batters in a row be able to hit him well. The key is having a good defense behind him because they are gonna see a lot of balls, but so far the Rockies have failed miserably there. In his two starts the Rockies have committed five errors behind him. That's just inexcusable.

On top of that, the Rockies' anemic offense throughout most of the first week of the season has also failed him. They scored just five runs over his two starts. Moyer is a pitcher that, perhaps more than most, is gonna need some decent run support. I'm not asking for ten runs a game. Moyer has only give up five earned runs this year. Clearly simply scoring three or four runs while he's in the game could be enough to win now that the middle relief staff seems to be hitting its stride.

I have no doubt that the Rockies will eventually put it all together behind Moyer. I don't honestly care about him becoming the oldest pitcher to win a game in the MLB. I care more about why Moyer was brought to Colorado. The Rockies need him to pitch five to seven quality innings every time he starts, and to bring that as long as he can this season. The starting rotation is a work in progress. Juan Nicasio was very shaky in his start against the Diamondbacks last night and his mental recovery from his fractured vertebrae may still be ongoing. Jhoulys Chacin is very young and showing it. The Rockies are still waiting for Jorge De La Rosa to get back from Tommy John surgery.

It's not a joke that Moyer is pitching for the Rockies. He's a quality arm delivering good innings of work. The Rockies could win these games that Moyer pitches if they bring their bats to the game. Moyer might be the difference between a bad season and a good season. That's nothing to laugh about.

Julie is a Featured Contributor and has followed baseball her entire life. She's been a fan of the Colorado Rockies ever since moving to Denver in 2001. Her goal this year is to watch 100 of their games. She's seen six games in the first week.

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