It took some pieces to fall into place but, yes, Cook will get the assignment against Hamels in Game 2 of the National League Division Series this afternoon at Citizens Bank Park. And it will be on him to help Colorado even the best-of-five series after the Phillies won the opener, 5-1, yesterday.
In two starts after being activated, he allowed one run in 13 innings.
While the Rockies will obviously miss having the lefthanded De La Rosa to throw against the Phillies' lefty-laden lineup, Cook is the kind of pitcher who has the ability to thrive in a cozy park like the Phillies' home field.
When he's on, he throws a lot of sinkers. That helps keep the Phillies, who tend to rely on home runs, from hitting the longball. And he throws strikes, which limits the number of baserunners in case somebody does hit one out.
"I'm a ground-ball pitcher, so if I'm getting fly balls I'm not really doing my job," he said. "[In Coors Field] you have to learn to pitch to contact and keep the ball on the ground as much as possible.
"When I come into a place like this, I really don't worry as much about the ballpark or the power alleys or how short the fence is. I really worry about getting my sinker down in the zone and getting the ball in play."
Cook acknowledged there were times when he wondered whether he would be healthy enough to contribute in October.
"Missing a month to 6 weeks, you never know how you're going to rebound," he said. "After I got past [the first start], I knew my arm was healthy and it was just a matter of trusting that it was healthy and going out and making pitches."
