Colorado Rockies

DENVER - The subject matter being studied under the microscope has changed over the years. Seldom have the up-close inspections affected Cole Hamels' on-field performance. Hamels zoomed through the farm system after the Phillies made him a first-round pick in 2002, proved he belonged in the big leagues as soon as he arrived, and was the best pitcher in the postseason when his team won the World Series in 2008. The only double bogey of Hamels' career was the 2009 season, and even Tiger Woods fails to make the cut sometimes.

DENVER - Jamie Moyer has agreed to terms on a minor league contract with an invite to the Colorado Rockies' spring training, pending a physical. The 49-year-old lefty didn't play last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow. Moyer has played 24 major league seasons, starting with the Chicago Cubs in 1986. He went 9-9 with a 4.84 ERA for the Phillies in 2010. Moyer, who was 56-40 in 4 1/2 seasons with the Phillies, is 267-204 in his career with a 4.24 career ERA.

In a move to bolster their rotation for the stretch run, the Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired veteran righthander Greg Maddux from the San Diego Padres, the Los Angeles Times reported last night. The newspaper cited an anonymous person close to the deal. It was not known who San Diego would receive in return. The 42-year-old Maddux is 6-9 with a 3.99 ERA this season. He is 353-223 in a 22-year big-league career, having won four consecutive Cy Young Awards from 1992 to 1995.

Going from the World Series-champion Boston Red Sox to the lowly Colorado Rockies - and their hitter-friendly ballpark - doesn't bother Blaine Neal. Fact is, Neal, a Bishop Eustace graduate, sounded excited after learning yesterday that the Rockies had claimed him off waivers from the Red Sox. "I'm happy because I'm going to get an opportunity to pitch," said Neal, 27, who was 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA in eight appearances with the Red Sox this season. At one point, he went seven days between appearances.

WALT WEISS is the new manager of the Colorado Rockies. The Rockies hired the former major league shortstop late Wednesday night to replace Jim Tracy, who resigned Oct. 7 with 1 year and $1.4 million left on his contract rather than return to a club where its assistant general manager had moved into an office in the clubhouse. The 1988 AL Rookie of the Year with Oakland, Weiss played shortstop for the Rockies from 1994-97 and was a special assistant to general manager Dan O'Dowd from 2002-08.

He grew up following the Phillies, but now his job is to help his employers - the Colorado Rockies - knock Philadelphia out of the National League division series. So far, Will George has done his part. George, 48, is a Colorado scout who, many moons ago, was a Pennsauken High pitcher who later was Cal Ripken's roommate on Baltimore's single-A, double-A and triple-A teams. He is a man who has played a major role in the Rockies' development, a man who has filed major-league scouting reports this summer with a heavy heart.

Kevin Malone resigned yesterday as general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, ending a 2 1/2-year tenure in which his mouth and questionable baseball decisions kept embarrassing the team. Malone quit five days after threatening a Padres fan who heckled Dodgers outfielder Gary Sheffield in San Diego. "I absolutely refuse to allow myself to become a distraction," Malone said at a news conference, reading from a letter addressed to Dodgers chairman Bob Daly. "He really believed he was a distraction, and we agreed with that," Daly later told reporters.

Wipe that astonished look off your face, Joe Girardi said. The Colorado Rockies are for real. Girardi had a career-high six RBI to tie a club record yesterday as the Rockies rallied to beat the visiting San Diego Padres, 12-7. With 37,193 fans looking on and regular umpires back on the job, Colorado recorded its second series sweep of the season and ran its record to an unprecedented 7-1 in its third year of existence. "We're making a statement to ourselves first, and to other people second, that we're for real," Girardi said.

LOS ANGELES - Two years ago, the Colorado Rockies won 14 of their last 15 games to make it to the playoffs, where they faced the Phillies in the first round. This season the Rockies went 74-42 after a horrendous 18-28 start to make it to the playoffs, where they'll face the Phillies in the first round. The more things change, the more they stay the same . . . Here's a look at the similarities and differences, then and now: 1B Todd Helton Todd Helton 2B Kaz Matsui Clint Barmes SS Troy Tulowitzki Troy Tulowitzki 3B Garrett Atkins Ian Stewart LF Matt Holliday Seth Smith & Ryan Spilborghs CF Ryan Spilborghs Dexter Fowler RF Brad Hawpe Brad Hawpe C Yorvit Torrealba Yorvit Torrealba & Chris Iannetta SP Jeff Francis Ubaldo Jimenez Franklin Morales Aaron Cook Ubaldo Jimenez Jorge De La Rosa Jason Marquis C Manny Corpas Huston Street Notes: Carlos Gonzalez also rotates among all three outfield positions; De La Rosa left Saturday's game in the fourth inning with a tight groin.

The thing that Troy Tulowitzki loves most about the Colorado Rockies is that nobody is hung up on individual statistics. So long as the team wins, everybody is happy. They've been winning a whole lot lately. The numbers Tulowitzki is putting up have a lot to do with it. The sweet-swinging shortstop clobbered home runs in each game of a doubleheader yesterday, and the visiting Rockies wrapped up a four-game sweep of the New York Mets in style. They won the opener 6-5, hanging on through a wild ninth inning, before taking the second game, 9-4. "A lot of times you can come on the road, you get down late - sixth, seventh inning - and you shut it down, get ready to go home," Tulowitzki said.

WALT WEISS is the new manager of the Colorado Rockies. The Rockies hired the former major league shortstop late Wednesday night to replace Jim Tracy, who resigned Oct. 7 with 1 year and $1.4 million left on his contract rather than return to a club where its assistant general manager had moved into an office in the clubhouse. The 1988 AL Rookie of the Year with Oakland, Weiss played shortstop for the Rockies from 1994-97 and was a special assistant to general manager Dan O'Dowd from 2002-08.

Rather than wait for the ax, Colorado manager Jim Tracy resigned on Sunday, stepping down after his Rockies set a franchise record for losses. The Rockies said a search for Tracy's replacement would begin right away (the snow comes early in those high peaks), but they have no time frame for making a hire. (Translation: Anybody want this job?) Colorado finished last in the NL West this year while going 64-98. The Rockies went 294-308 under Tracy, who was promoted from bench coach in May 2009, the same year he was voted the NL manager of the year after guiding his team into the playoffs.

DENVER - The subject matter being studied under the microscope has changed over the years. Seldom have the up-close inspections affected Cole Hamels' on-field performance. Hamels zoomed through the farm system after the Phillies made him a first-round pick in 2002, proved he belonged in the big leagues as soon as he arrived, and was the best pitcher in the postseason when his team won the World Series in 2008. The only double bogey of Hamels' career was the 2009 season, and even Tiger Woods fails to make the cut sometimes.

DENVER - The subject matter being studied under the microscope has changed over the years. Seldom have the up-close inspections affected Cole Hamels' on-field performance. Hamels zoomed through the farm system after the Phillies made him a first-round pick in 2002, proved he belonged in the big leagues as soon as he arrived, and was the best pitcher in the postseason when his team won the World Series in 2008. The only double bogey of Hamels' career was the 2009 season, and even Tiger Woods fails to make the cut sometimes.

DENVER - Colorado Rockies reserve first baseman Jason Giambi is looking forward to the three-game series at Citizens Bank Park against the Phillies beginning on Tuesday, and for a number of reasons. Giambi is one of the few opponents who can be found saying a positive word about the Philadelphia fans. A former New York Yankee, Giambi says there are similarities between those two teams' fan bases. "I like playing in Philly," Giambi said during a homestand against the Angels earlier this month.

DENVER - Jamie Moyer has agreed to terms on a minor league contract with an invite to the Colorado Rockies' spring training, pending a physical. The 49-year-old lefty didn't play last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow. Moyer has played 24 major league seasons, starting with the Chicago Cubs in 1986. He went 9-9 with a 4.84 ERA for the Phillies in 2010. Moyer, who was 56-40 in 4 1/2 seasons with the Phillies, is 267-204 in his career with a 4.24 career ERA.

The thing that Troy Tulowitzki loves most about the Colorado Rockies is that nobody is hung up on individual statistics. So long as the team wins, everybody is happy. They've been winning a whole lot lately. The numbers Tulowitzki is putting up have a lot to do with it. The sweet-swinging shortstop clobbered home runs in each game of a doubleheader yesterday, and the visiting Rockies wrapped up a four-game sweep of the New York Mets in style. They won the opener 6-5, hanging on through a wild ninth inning, before taking the second game, 9-4. "A lot of times you can come on the road, you get down late - sixth, seventh inning - and you shut it down, get ready to go home," Tulowitzki said.

Roy Halladay is going to do something Tuesday that he's never done before. For the first time in his illustrious career, the Phillies' ace will pitch in the town where he was born when he goes against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field in Denver. Other than requiring some extra tickets for family and friends, Halladay, who will turn 33 on Friday, said the start in Denver will not be a big deal for a couple of reasons. "I've been gone so long that now it's a normal road trip, which is good - less distractions," Halladay said.

LOS ANGELES - Two years ago, the Colorado Rockies won 14 of their last 15 games to make it to the playoffs, where they faced the Phillies in the first round. This season the Rockies went 74-42 after a horrendous 18-28 start to make it to the playoffs, where they'll face the Phillies in the first round. The more things change, the more they stay the same . . . Here's a look at the similarities and differences, then and now: 1B Todd Helton Todd Helton 2B Kaz Matsui Clint Barmes SS Troy Tulowitzki Troy Tulowitzki 3B Garrett Atkins Ian Stewart LF Matt Holliday Seth Smith & Ryan Spilborghs CF Ryan Spilborghs Dexter Fowler RF Brad Hawpe Brad Hawpe C Yorvit Torrealba Yorvit Torrealba & Chris Iannetta SP Jeff Francis Ubaldo Jimenez Franklin Morales Aaron Cook Ubaldo Jimenez Jorge De La Rosa Jason Marquis C Manny Corpas Huston Street Notes: Carlos Gonzalez also rotates among all three outfield positions; De La Rosa left Saturday's game in the fourth inning with a tight groin.

In a move to bolster their rotation for the stretch run, the Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired veteran righthander Greg Maddux from the San Diego Padres, the Los Angeles Times reported last night. The newspaper cited an anonymous person close to the deal. It was not known who San Diego would receive in return. The 42-year-old Maddux is 6-9 with a 3.99 ERA this season. He is 353-223 in a 22-year big-league career, having won four consecutive Cy Young Awards from 1992 to 1995.