Jamie Moyer helped himself nicely in his attempt to make the Colorado Rockies rotation out of spring training on Wednesday, breezing through two scoreless innings.
Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post reports that his fastball topped out at 82 mph and that he kept the Giants hitters off-balance, allowing just one hit and throwing only 22 pitches. All in all, for those who have watched the veteran left-hander over the years, it was a pretty typical Moyer outing.
That’s a good sign for the 49-year-old, who is attempting to return to the majors after missing the entire 2011 season due to Tommy John surgery. Jhoulys Chacin, Jeremy Guthrie and Drew Pomeranz likely have rotation spots locked up, and Juan Nicasio, who is recovering from a broken neck, has looked great so far this spring. That leaves Moyer to compete with Guillermo Moscoso, Alex White, Tyler Chatwood and possibly Josh Outman for the final rotation spot. And don’t forget, Jorge De La Rosa is expected back from injury perhaps as early as July.
The competition is fierce, but don’t bet against Moyer. I spoke with him in Scottsdale this spring and he is as determined as ever, saying “I don’t think I’d be standing here if I didn’t think I could play.”
It’s a pretty remarkable story, and you can read all about it here, but here are a couple tidbits:
- Moyer is a Pennsylvania native and he considers the World Series title with the Phillies in 2008 among his favorite career moments. When the Phillies won the title in 1980, he cut high school to attend the parade, then in 2008, he was in the parade. Pretty cool.
- The Moyers have eight children. Dillon, a sophomore at UC-Irvine, and Hutton, a high school senior, are infielders who will both be eligible for the 2012 draft, so there could potentially be three Moyers in pro ball.
- His three favorite teammates? Nolan Ryan, Cal Ripken Jr., and Andre Dawson. All Hall of Famers who he “put on a pedestal,” for the examples they set on and off the field.
There’s much more, so check it out.
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