The Rockies have claimed Sean Thompson off of waivers from the Royals.  The 25 year old lefty has pitched in 20 games (17 starts) in the minors this season and he is 4-8 with a 4.04 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP.  In 93.2 innings he has allowed 94 hits, walked 45 batters and whiffed 62.  This was a nice low risk move by the Rockies as Thompson is a young lefty with some upside.

The Rockies have seen quite enough of Tom Martin show they designated him for assignment.  The Rockies will likely find a taker for Martin as he is lefthanded and teams are often on the hunt for pitchers like him.  Martin pitched in 26 games this season for the Rockies and he is 0-0 with a 4.91 ERA and a 1.60 WHIP.  In 25.2 innings he has allowed 32 hits, walked 9 batters and whiffed 10.  If the Rockies wind up letting Martin go it will be a case of addition by subtraction.

The Rockies have placed closer Brian Fuentes on the 15-day disabled list with a strained lower back.  Fuentes has pitched in 40 games this season and he has a 0-4 record with 20 saves, a 4.06 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP.  Fuentes has thrown 37.2 innings this season for the Rockies and he has allowed 33 hits, walked 11 and whiffed 31.  Manny Corpas has replaced Fuentes as the stopper on the Rockies and he’s done a good job so far in that role.

The Rockies need Josh Fogg and Tom Martin to pitch better in the 2nd half of the season.  Fogg is 4-6 with a 5.36 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP so far this season.  Fogg will need to start missing more bats with his pitches if he wants to have more success in the 2nd half of the season.  He has allowed 105 hits and 12 homers in 87.1 innings this season and he will need to improve on that if he wants to keep his starting job.  Tom Martin must thank God everyday that he is left handed because that is the only reason he has pitched in the majors so long.  Martin is 0-0 with a 5.25 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP so far this season.  He has allowed 31 hits in 24 innings this season and that’s way too many.

Manny Corpas, Jeremy Affeldt and Jeff Francis have all been pretty good this season.  Corpas has been the main set up man early in the season but he’s getting a mini-audition as the closer because Brian Fuentes has had a rough time as of late.  Corpas is 3-2 with 1 save, a 2.51 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP so far this season.  Look for Corpas to return to the set up role soon and for him to do a good job in the 2nd half of the season.  Jeremy Affeldt has always had the talent but he has never converted that into results until this season.  He is 4-1 with a 2.50 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP so far this season.  Affeldt has only allowed 22 hits in 36 innings this season and he could turn into a dominant relief pitcher if he can tighten up his control as he has walked 20 batters this season.  Jeff Francis is turning into the ace the Rockies have expected him to.  He is 8-5 with a 3.87 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP so far this season.  The Rockies will need him to keep up the good work if they are going to make the playoffs.