"Pitcher Aaron Cook will likely need the Rockies to reach the playoffs and possibly advance to the second round to have a chance of returning this season. He suffered a non-displaced fracture in his right leg Wednesday night when he has hit by a wicked one-hopper off the bat of the Reds' Joey Votto in the sixth inning.

Even if Cook heals quickly in three weeks, he won't be able to throw much during this time because he can't push off.

Clearly, the calendar is working against him.

"I would consider it a longshot that he's back in the regular season. I don't know any other way to see it," agent Joe Bick told The Denver Post this morning. "He's in reasonably good spirits. It's just obviously frustrating to have this happen the way he has pitched in his last two games."

Cook delivered huge performances in wins over the Padres and Reds, helping keep the Rockies alive in the playoff chase. They trail the National League West division-leading Padres and wild-card leading Braves both by 4.5 games entering today's series finale against the Reds at Coors Field."