Saturday 4X4: Arenado Weathers the Storm

During the season-opening series in Arizona, Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado felt some soreness in the back of his left knee during pre-game activities. It's still there, but Arenado has put the concerns to rest.

"I've already seen doctors," he said. "It's just a little soreness. It's going to go away soon. It's nothing to worry about."

He did, after all, play all nine innings in the sub-freezing temperatures of Friday's home opener.

"If I could play (Friday), I can play through anything," he said.

What's more, he even stole a base -- the 12th of his career -- on Friday. Arenado is now 12-for-23 in stolen bases.

Atlanta provided the opposition in the Rockies home opener for the first time on Friday. It, however, wasn't the first time the Braves felt the Rocky Mountain chill. The 27-degree temperature at first pitch was the second lowest in Rockies history, and the lowest ever for a home opener. It was, in fact, the fifth time the Rockies have started a home game with a temperature below freezing, and the Braves have been the opponent in three of those games.

It was last August. Chad Bettis was making his first start of the season, having won his battle with a recurrence of testicular cancer, which was discovered during physicals in the spring. And he didn't come away with a victory but he won the battle -- pitching seven shutout innings in his return to the Rockies active roster. He came out of the game after the seventh, at which time it was a scoreless tie.

Saturday night, Bettis will hook up with the Braves at Coors Field again.

The Rockies go into Saturday's game having split their first eight games of the season. April can be a challenge for the Rockies. They have had a winning record in the opening month of the season in only 10 of their first 25 seasons.