Rockies’ New Model Failing Its Road Test

Powered by Todd Helton and invigorated by a 25-man roster that included 18 players new to the organization on opening day, the Colorado Rockies had their best May in history even with Larry Walker sidelined for most of it because of a stress fracture in his elbow.

The Rockies had a winning streak end at six games Saturday in a 2-1 loss at Milwaukee. They are still within 4 1/2 games of the first-place Arizona Diamondbacks as a refurbished National League West contender. That’s providing they can find a way to win beyond Coors Field, where they are 19-6 compared to their record of 10-17 on the road.

The winter makeover under new General Manager Dan O’Dowd was designed to make the Rockies a more road-friendly team with better pitching and a faster, more versatile offense. But hitting coach Clint Hurdle, trying a little dry humor in a recent meeting with his hitters, said if they don’t start winning away from Coors Field, “I’ll be the first hitting coach to use an alias on the road.”

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Ben Oglivie may need an alias. In an unusual in-season move, the San Diego Padres on Wednesday banished their hitting coach to their Arizona rookie team and replaced him with triple-A manager Duane Espy.

Padre players had been voicing displeasure about an absence of communication from Oglivie since spring training and several, during a recent series in Atlanta, sought the guidance of former hitting instructor Merv Rettenmund, now with the Braves after leaving San Diego in a contract dispute.

That alone, Manager Bruce Bochy said, isn’t unusual because hitters are always calling people for help.

“A lot of guys call their dad,” Bochy said. “Others call their mamas. Tony [Gwynn] uses [wife] Alicia. Ultimately, you become your own coach because you know yourself better than anyone else.”

The Oglivie demotion, however, was confirmation of a problem.

“Ben is the nicest guy in the world,” Gwynn said, “but as a hitting coach in this day, you have to be more talkative and aggressive. Ben was there for you if you sought him out, but the game has changed. Players want to be pampered and helped. That wasn’t Ben; it wasn’t a fit.”

Ultimately, General Manager Kevin Towers said, it should be Bochy and himself who take the heat for hiring Oglivie, a decision that seemed designed to benefit one player, the multitalented but disappointing Ruben Rivera, a Panamanian like Oglivie.

Rivera, sidelined early by an arthritic wrist, continues to struggle. His batting average of .258 is an improvement on the .195 of last year, but he continues to strike out once every four at bats, and his power--he has three homers compared to 23 last year--is significantly down.

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The 30 major league managers have survived the season’s first two months, but industry sources say the heat is building under Pittsburgh’s Gene Lamont and Tampa Bay’s Larry Rothschild.

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The Cincinnati Reds call relief pitcher Danny Graves, 26, “The Baby-Faced Assassin” because he looks 15 and is an absolute killer on the mound. Graves is 7-0 and nine for nine in save opportunities. No Red pitcher has started a season 8-0 since Mike LaCoss in 1979.

“Regardless of how he looks, he’s like nails on the mound, totally in control at all times, not afraid of anything,” Manager Jack McKeon said, explaining why he wants only Graves in bases-loaded situations. Graves faced that crisis 10 times last year and got out of it with no runs on eight occasions. He’s one for one this year.