Hollandsworth Feels Like Rookie With Rockies

Todd Hollandsworth is hoping this change of venue translates to a Rocky Mountain high, but who knows? It could be another L.A. low.

Some of it hinges on how the former Dodger outfielder performs over the final 34 games of the 2000 season while 1) adjusting to an overhaul of his swing and approach by Colorado batting coach Clint Hurdle and 2) platooning in some situations with Butch Huskey.

Some of it also hinges on how Larry Walker’s ailing elbow responds and how much the Rockies feel they need and are willing to pay a potential fourth outfielder at the end of the season, when Hollandsworth is eligible for free agency.

For the time being, more than anything, Hollandsworth said at his Coors Field locker, “I’m embracing this as a fresh start and an opportunity to get untracked. With the injuries and everything else that had happened in Los Angeles, things had become kind of bumpy.”

So bumpy that Hollandsworth, more than once, had asked to be traded in his frustration over the absence of a full-time role as he struggled to regain the form that earned him the National League’s rookie-of-the-year award in 1996. He was subsequently on the disabled list five times in three-plus seasons, never in more than 106 games, before traded on July 31, deadline day, for center fielder Tom Goodwin.

“At the time I was shocked more than anything,” Hollandsworth said. “Up until that last week I expected a trade at any time, but at that point I had given up on it and thought I’d be in Los Angeles until the end of the year. Devo [Devon White] had come back (from his shoulder injury) and I thought the organization had things the way they wanted them.”

You can never be sure with the Dodgers, of course. Now they are committed to pay center fielders White and Goodwin $8.25 million next year with no assurance either is the answer at the center field or leadoff positions.

“They’re trying to win and find the right combination and it hasn’t happened yet, and there will probably be other changes,” Hollandsworth said of the Dodgers. “In my situation there were some guys tied to multiyear contracts who were going to play regardless, and that’s part of the politics of the game. I had to make adjustments and tried to do that to the best of my ability and I obviously acquired some bad habits trying to do different things as my role changed.

“I never felt really comfortable at any time over the last couple years. I was able to click in here and there but never consistently, and that’s what Clint and I have been working on--coming up with an approach that I can take up there every time so that I can be productive on a daily basis. In L.A., it was always a search, but I feel like I’m a lot closer now than at any time this year, and that’s what I’m excited about.”

After batting .228 in 253 at-bats with the Dodgers this year, Hollandsworth has 18 hits in 63 at-bats with the Rockies, with Hurdle making significant changes to his stance and swing.

“I don’t think it ended well for Todd in Los Angeles,” Hurdle said. “He’s definitely been carrying some baggage and we’re trying to clean him out mentally, rebuild his swing, take some sandpaper to the rough edges. He’s only four years removed from rookie of the year, so he still has a high ceiling, a lot of top end to him. This is a golden opportunity for Todd, and a chance for us to catch lightning in a bottle.”

Amid the Hurdle adjustments, Hollandsworth will be platooned in some situations, but Manager Buddy Bell said: “He’s going to get the opportunity to see if he can find himself. We’re hopeful the change of scenery helps. He’s still a young player with tremendous tools and ability.”

The Rockies realized lightning this year in Jeffrey Hammonds, who is finally free of injuries and second in National League batting at .354, behind teammate Todd Helton, and they may be experiencing more lightning in Goodwin successor Juan Pierre. If Hammonds re-signs as a free agent, Pierre is the real thing in center and Walker, currently on the disabled list, sheds the elbow problem to regain his two-time batting champion form, Hollandsworth would be on the outside looking in again.

“It’s very similar to L.A., but at the same time it’s different,” Hollandsworth said. “With Larry on the disabled list, my opportunities to play here right now are greater than they would be in L.A., and I’m going to take the 35 or 40 games that are left, play them to be the best of my ability and see where it ends up. There are always injuries, and a fourth outfielder can wind up with 400 at-bats. You have to be prepared for every situation. I think there’s a good chance I can be involved here in years to come, but we’ll see.”

In the meantime, Hollandsworth is trying to shed that baggage, put the Dodger frustration behind him. He insists there is no bitterness.

“I don’t regret a day in L.A.,” he said. “I enjoyed the 5 1/2 years. I made a lot of good friends and consider it a first-rate organization. I had some tough and difficult days trying to understand and figure out what their direction was with me and how that was all going to play out, but I also had so many wonderful experiences there that I’d rather focus on those.

“I mean, every player at some point is going to encounter degrees of frustration. It can happen anywhere to anyone, and you are always hoping that you’ll get an opportunity to contribute to an organization in a place where you’re comfortable. This is a great city with great fans and a great ballpark. I feel confident that I’ve got that opportunity here.”