Bettis Blister Flares Up; Rockies in a "Gray" Area for Saturday Starter
Chad Bettis was looking forward to a bullpen session on Wednesday, hoping that the blister on the middle finger of his right hand had calmed down and he could get ready to return to the Rockies rotation,.
Not so quick.
Between 30 and 35 pitches into his throwing session, the blister, which is under a callus, flared up.
The side session came to an end.
The discussion on who will step into the rotation when the Rockies need a fifth starter on Saturday began.
The odds are Jon Gray will get recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque and get the nod.
Gray has made two starts since his June 30 assignment to Albuquerque, the Rockies hoping he could find keys to consistency that had been missing in the first three months of the seasons. Gray was either dominating or dominated.
In two starts at Albuquerque, Gray is 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA.
The other options could be a recall of Jeff Hoffman, but his work has been limited, and he is just getting back into the Isotopes rotation after a stint with the big-league team working out of the bullpen, or go with a bullpen day. The concern is the game got out of hand, and the Rockies did not have necessary relief help for Sunday's final game before the All-Star Break.
No Gray Area
| Wins | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Opponent | W | L | ERA | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | |
| 4/4/2018 | @SD | W 5-2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 4/25/2018 | SD | W 5-2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| 5/1/2018 | @ChC | W 3-1 | 1 | 0 | 0.45 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 5/8/2018 | LAA | W 4-2 | 1 | 0 | 0.33 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| 5/25/2018 | Cin | W 5-4 | 1 | 0 | 1.36 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| 6/6/2018 | @Cin | W 6-3 | 1 | 0 | 1.89 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| 6/22/2018 | Mia | W 11-3 | 1 | 0 | 1.8 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 |
| W | L | ERA | INN | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | |||
| Totals | 7 | 0 | 1.8 | 45 | 35 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 9 | 57 | ||
| Non-Wins | ||||||||||||
| Date | Opponent | W | L | ERA | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | |
| 3/29/2018 | @Ari | L 8-2 | 0 | 1 | 6.75 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| 4/9/2018 | SD | L 7-6 | 0 | 1 | 5.63 | 5 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| 4/14/2018 | @Was | L 6-2 | 0 | 1 | 6.23 | 5.2 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 4/20/2018 | ChC | L 16-5 | 0 | 1 | 7.09 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 5/13/2018 | Mil | L 7-3 | 0 | 1 | 4.85 | 5.1 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 5/19/2018 | @SF | L 9-4 | 0 | 1 | 5.34 | 3.2 | 9 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| 5/30/2018 | SF | L 7-4 | 0 | 0 | 5.68 | 3.1 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| 6/12/2018 | @Phi | L 5-4 | 0 | 1 | 5.68 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| 6/17/2018 | @Tex | L 13-12 | 0 | 0 | 5.89 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| 6/28/2018 | @SF | W 9-8 | 0 | 0 | 5.77 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| W | L | ERA | INN | H | R | ER | HR | BB | IBB | |||
| Totals Team 1-9 | 0 | 7 | 5.77 | 47 | 73 | 52 | 50 | 8 | 20 | 62 |
The Isotopes have had the past three nights off because of the Triple-A All-Star Game. Gray last pitched on Sunday, which, if he does get called up to start on Saturday, would mean he had five full days off between starts.
Bettis was an early feel-good story for the Rockies. Limited last season after a battle with testicular cancer, he showed up at spring training this year in shape and ready to complete.
He dominated in his first five starts, but after that it was a struggle, due at least in some part to the blister situation, although the blister did not become a public issue until his eighth start of the season, at Dodger Stadium. It appeared to calm down, but it flared up again, when he pitched against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on July 1, after which he was placed on the disabled list.
The Tale of Two Season (Segments)
| Date | Opponent | W | L | ERA | GS | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4/2/2018 | @SD | W 7-4 | 1 | 0 | 3.6 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| 4/7/2018 | Atl | W 3-2 | 0 | 0 | 2.53 | 1 | 5.2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 4/12/2018 | @Was | W 5-1 | 1 | 0 | 2.04 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 4/17/2018 | @Pit | W 2-0 | 1 | 0 | 1.44 | 1 | 7.1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 4/23/2018 | SD | L 13-5 | 0 | 0 | 2.4 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 4/29/2018 | @Mia | L 3-0 | 0 | 1 | 2.43 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 5/5/2018 | @NYM | W 2-0 | 1 | 0 | 2.05 | 1 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Totals | Team: 5-2 | 4 | 1 | 2.05 | 7 | 44 | 32 | 10 | 10 | 4 | 14 | 27 | |
| Date | Opponent | W | L | ERA | GS | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | |
| 5/11/2018 | Mil | L 11-10 | 0 | 0 | 12.6 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| 5/17/2018 | @SF | W 5-3 | 0 | 0 | 8.18 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 5/22/2018 | @LAD | L 5-3 | 0 | 0 | 6.75 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| 5/28/2018 | SF | W 6-5 | 0 | 0 | 6.95 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 6/3/2018 | LAD | L 10-7 | 0 | 0 | 7.16 | 1 | 5.2 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| 6/9/2018 | Ari | L 12-7 | 0 | 0 | 7.67 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 6/15/2018 | @Tex | W 9-5 | 1 | 0 | 7.71 | 1 | 5.2 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 6/20/2018 | NYM | W 10-8 | 0 | 0 | 8.57 | 1 | 4.2 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 4 |
| 6/26/2018 | @SF | L 3-2 | 0 | 0 | 7.82 | 1 | 6.1 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| 7/1/2018 | @LAD | L 6-4 | 0 | 0 | 7.71 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| W | L | ERA | GS | INN | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | |||
| Totals Team 4-6 | 1 | 0 | 7.71 | 10 | 51.1 | 63 | 44 | 44 | 11 | 24 | 42 |