BASEBALL’S OTHER OPENERS : Rockies to Open Park if Weather OK

Coors Field, which seems to have had more openings than “Damn Yankees,” swings open its gates for the real thing tonight--weather permitting.

First, there was the replacement opening on March 31, when a near-capacity crowd of 47,563 watched replacement players from the Colorado Rockies and New York Yankees.

Then there was the exhibition opening last Thursday, when 35,343 braved temperatures dipping into the 30s to watch the real Rockies and Yankees.

The New York Mets visit the new $215 million facility tonight in a regular-season opener, a game that finally counts. But the weather threatens to intervene and push back the long-awaited event.

Underscoring Colorado’s capricious weather in April, the forecast calls for rain and snow showers and temperatures in the upper 30s.

Rockies Manager Don Baylor, although eager for the season to begin, might not mind a delay.

His pitching staff was battered in the final two exhibition games--against the Milwaukee Brewers in Denver--for a total of 24 hits and 20 runs, and his defense committed seven errors.

Asked if the abbreviated spring training was long enough, Baylor said: “The way we’re playing now, it’s not enough. We should have two more weeks, but we don’t have that luxury. We have to get our act together by opening day.”

The Rockies, with the additions of Larry Walker and Bill Swift, are expected to contend for the NL West title. But Baylor said his team must stop reading its press clippings.

“The predictors may say you should win,” he said, “but it’s not going to happen by just walking out on the field.”

Swift, 39-19 with a 2.70 ERA the last three seasons with San Francisco, is Colorado’s opening-day starter. The Mets will counter with Bobby Jones, 12-7 a year ago.

Elsewhere, Cal Ripken’s assault on Lou Gehrig’s consecutive game streak continues with No. 2,010 when the Baltimore Orioles play the Royals in Kansas City.

Rookie managers Bob Boone of Kansas City and Phil Regan of Baltimore make their debuts as does the new grass field at Kauffman Stadium.

Ripken, who has played in every Baltimore game for 12 consecutive years, enters the season 121 shy of Gehrig’s major league record of 2,130.