Patience runs out at right time for Rockies’ Helton
| September 2, 2009 | 10:33 AM
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The Colorado Rockies’ Todd Helton ranks fifth among major-league hitters in pitches per plate appearance. Helton sees an average of 4.32 pitches each time he steps to the plate. Only Phildelphia’s Jayson Werth, Boston’s Kevin Youkilis, Washington’s Adam Dunn and Florida’s Nick Johnson see more pitches among qualified hitters.
Helton has earned his reputation as one of the best two-strike hitters in baseball with a career of patient at-bats that, even when they fail, rarely let a pitcher off the hook easily. Pitchers know this, which is why Helton often finds himself in two-strike counts. A pitcher can throw a first-pitch strike to Helton because unless it’s just right, he’ll often let it pass — which is what made his third at-bat in Tuesday’s 8-3 win against the New York Mets so special.
Helton came into the game 4-for-5 with two RBI and three walks against Mets starter Mike Pelfrey. In his first two plate appearances Tuesday, Helton added another walk and a single to the total and did so in typical Helton fashion: the walk came on six pitches after Helton took a fastball for a called strike and the single came on the third pitch after Helton looked at two fastballs, the first for a called strike.
When Helton stepped in again in the fourth inning, Pelfrey was in trouble. After striking out Jorge De La Rosa to start the inning, Pelfrey walked Carlos Gonzalez on four pitches and walked Seth Smith after a frustrating eight-pitch at-bat. Pelfrey had started Helton off with fastballs the first two at-bats and he desperately needed to throw a strike given the situation. Another walk to Helton, and the bases would be loaded with one-out for Troy Tulowitzki who is known for swinging at first-pitch fastballs. So Pelfrey, trying to get the inning under control, came back with another first-pitch fastball to Helton, who usually obliges, especially when a pitcher is wild. But this time he sat on the pitch and crushed it into the right-field seats for a three-run home run and a 7-2 Rockies lead.
Carlos Gonzalez’s home run in the second inning — a line-drive bullet into the second deck — was hit harder and gave the Rockies the lead, but Helton’s was the killer blow. The Rockies’ offense has been struggling for nearly three weeks now. If Helton can continue to take advantage of his reputation among pitchers and punish them for daring to throw him a strike, the Rockies might have more nights like they did Wednesday.
Journals, Sports, Steve Foster
carlos gonzalez, colorado rockies, mike pelfrey, todd helton
