Ubaldo Jimenez News: Pro Sports Daily

Jimenez named Rockies opening-day starter

Comment

March 11

Denver Post

"Ubaldo Jimenez heard the whispers. He read the papers. And yet being told he was the Rockies' opening day starter still came as a surprise. At least the way it unfolded. Jimenez was called into manager Jim Tracy's office at roughly 12:15 this afternoon. He found Aaron Cook there. Cook, in a sign of leadership, wanted to be in the room to symbolically pass the baton to the Rockies' new ace. "I had a lot of respect for Cookie before. I have even more now," said the 26-year-old Jimenez. "As a pitcher you dream about this. It is an honor." It's been understood that Jimenez would get the ball April 5 in Milwaukee where he will likely face the Brewers' Yovani Gallardo. Jimenez went 15-12 last ..."

Rockies won't let Giants get look at Jimenez

Comment

March 1

Denver Post

"Don't think the Rockies have forgotten their cage match with the Giants last September. San Francisco threatened to throw pixie dust in the Rockies' eyes, ruining their fairy-tale run to the playoffs. In the end, the Rockies vanquished San Francisco and earned the National League wild-card berth. That stretch left an indelible mark on Rockies manager Jim Tracy and influenced his first ordering of pitchers this spring. Fifth starter Jason Hammel will pitch in the team's Cactus League opener Thursday, facing the Diamondbacks. Opening-day starter Ubaldo Jimenez will make his first start Friday against the Angels rather than pitch against the Giants that same day. "That is by design," Tracy ..."

Could Ubaldo be Rockies' first 20-game winner?

Comment

February 24

Denver Post

"In their first 17 seasons, the Rockies have never had a 20-game winner. The high-water mark is 17 victories, last achieved by Jeff Francis in 2007. Of course, 20 victories isn't the benchmark mark it once was. The Giants' Tim Lincecum won the 2009 National League Cy Young Award with just 15 victories — the fewest for a Cy Young starter over a non-shortened season. Still, nothing says ace like a 20-game winner. And Rockies fireball right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez definitely thinks of himself as ace material. "If my team thinks that I am an ace, why shouldn't I think the same?" Jimenez said told The Post's Troy E. Renck. "I want to live up to their expectations. If I am able to consistently ..."

Jimenez building on a strong foundation

Comment

February 24

Denver Post

"Ubaldo Jimenez spent the winter disorganized and perplexed. Not about his career. About his new house. It's an eight-bedroom, two-kitchen, one-swimming pool casa in Santo Domingo. "It was a lot of work, packing and taping up the boxes. My mom is still at it," said Jimenez, whose parents and close family friends live in the digs. "I love the swimming pool. I was in there the first day it was finished." The symbolism is impossible to miss. Jimenez is moving up in the world. First stop, financial security for him and his family. Next stop, superstardom. Jimenez is on the brink, everyone from teammates and opponents say. "I need better fastball command to take that next step," said Jimenez, ..."

Jimenez stretching toward stardom

Comment

February 21

InsideTheRockies.com

"Manager Jim Tracy stopped short Saturday of revealing the obvious. But he left little doubt Ubaldo Jimenez would make his first Opening Day start when the Rockies begin the regular season April 5 at Milwaukee. "Not just yet," Tracy said when he asked if he had officially informed Jimenez of that assignment. "But in due time, I'm probably going to tell him something. You can take an educated guess on that and I'd say be close to being right." Jimenez, 26, went 15-12 last year with a 3.47 ERA, the lowest in franchise history by a Rockies starter. He led the team in starts (33), innings pitched (218) and strikeouts (198), ranking sixth in the National League in the latter two categories. "He ..."

Rockies, Phillies confident in Game 4 starters Jimenez, Lee

Comment

October 12

Denver Post

"Right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez gets Rockies manager Jim Tracy's nod to start on the mound for today's Game 4 of the National League division series against the Philadelphia Phillies. "You've got an opportunity with Ubaldo Jimenez and Aaron Cook, if there is a fifth game, to bring both back on their normal rest," Tracy said. "I think Ubaldo is battle-tested enough." Phillies manager Charlie Manuel is countering with Cliff Lee, one of his three left-handed starting pitchers. Lee gave Rockies batters fits in Game 1, pitching a complete game in his postseason debut. "I'm very confident with Cliff," Manuel said. "I've liked putting left-handers on the Rockies. I think we've got three of the top ..."

Lee-Jimenez rematch for Game 4

Comment

October 12

Philadelphia Inquirer

"What Phillies lefthander Cliff Lee called "the never-ending chess match" of hitter vs. pitcher goes to a different level Monday in the National League division series.Lee will pitch against Colorado righthander Ubaldo Jimenez for the second time in six days. Facing the same team in consecutive starts presents a strategic question for each pitcher.Should he plan on making significant changes, or follow the same approach?"They're going to watch the video of the last game and make adjustments," Lee said tonight. "They'd be a fool not to. That's the nature of this game. If you're not making adjustments, you're losing ground."This situation rarely arises during the regular season.Jimenez faced ..."

Jimenez has come a long way

Comment

October 8

Denver Post

columnist Jim Arstrong

"Long before he was a Game 1 starter in the playoffs, Ubaldo Jimenez was a kid on a sandlot in the Dominican Republic. Which brings us to Rolando Fernandez, the proudest man in Citizens Bank Park on Wednesday. Fernandez signed Jimenez years ago after watching him throw during a tryout camp in San Cristobal, Jimenez's hometown. Jimenez was 17 years old. He stood 6-feet-1 and weighed 170 pounds. The night Fernandez handed him a signing-bonus check for $30,000, Jimenez and his family threw a party that could be heard for blocks. "To see him now, at 25, be the guy opening this series, it's amazing," said Fernandez, the Rockies' director of international operations. "It's just incredible how ..."

Time for Jimenez to wow 'em

Comment

October 7

Denver Post

columnist Mark Kiszla

"If the baseball gods possess any sense of justice, the Rockies will be knocked out of the National League playoffs with the no-argument thwack of the bat with which Philadelphia slugger Ryan Howard smacks a no-doubt home run. The Phillies are the defending World Series champions for a reason. They are a better baseball team than Colorado. Period. And that reality is not changing, no matter how loud you shout "Tulo!" If you believe winning in the playoffs is more about matchups than magic, your Rockies are in deep trouble, unless you're counting on all those lefties from the Philly pitching rotation to disappear faster than you can say Penn and Teller. Of course, the impossible has been ..."

Jimenez emerges as ace for Rockies

Comment

October 7

Denver Post

"Ubaldo Jimenez lives in a modern, brick apartment building in the shadow of Denver's skyscrapers just blocks from Coors Field. His place has the potential to be a bachelor's happenin' crib. Except that the digs are much like Jimenez himself: modest, simple and understated. Save for the megasized computer monitor sitting on the kitchen counter, the apartment is devoid of frills. And there is a bigger reason Jimenez's two-bedroom rental is homey rather than hip. This summer, the 25-year-old Rockies pitcher moved his family from the Dominican Republic to the foot of the Rockies. Into his personal space he has nestled his mother Ramona, father Ubaldo Sr., 5-year-old niece Crisley and Goliath, ..."

Jimenez in playoff form

Comment

October 3

Denver Post

"Ubaldo Jimenez's postseason dress rehearsal contained one lousy scene, but overall it was a smashing success. Jimenez, scheduled to be on the mound for the Rockies' opening playoff game on Wednesday, pitched six innings, allowing one run on two hits. He struck out 10, tying a season high and one short of his career high. Jimenez finished the regular season 15-12 with a 3.47 ERA, the lowest ERA for a starter in franchise history. "I feel really good right now, very strong," said Jimenez, who threw 115 pitches. "I think I'm ready for (postseason)." It wasn't all perfect. In a commonplace scene for a Jimenez-pitched game, one ugly inning threatened to derail him. Friday night it is was the ..."

At last, Rockies can play an ace

Comment

August 24

Denver Post

columnist Dave Krieger

"For 17 years, the Rockies have been searching for the rarest, most valuable commodity in baseball. They once spent $121 million trying to buy one on the open market, a disaster that set them back years. Call off the search party. For the first time in their history, the Rocks have a legitimate ace. Never before have they been able to match up with a flamethrower like San Francisco's Tim Lincecum. They could hope to get lucky with finesse, and occasionally did, but they could not fight fire with fire. Sunday afternoon, before a full house at Coors Field, Ubaldo Jimenez announced to the baseball world that, at 25, he's ready to join that elite class. He started with a 99-mph fastball to ..."

Jimenez heating up, nabs 10 strikeouts

Comment

July 18

Denver Post

"Rockies manager Jim Tracy recently said that he expects to see Ubaldo Jimenez to do something special every time he takes the mound. Tracy got an eyeful Friday night. With his fastball consistently crackling at 98 mph and his 85-mph slider dipping out of reach of Padres bats, Jimenez struck out a season-high 10 in Colorado's 5-3 victory. Winless in his last four starts, Jimenez got his first victory since June 18, improving to 7-9. He gave up just three hits in seven innings, but was far from content. "I have to be better about shutting the door, that's what I still need to learn to do," Jimenez said. Added Tracy: "Ubaldo did a very competitive job. In my opinion, he's just inches away ..."

High praise for upwardly Mobile pitcher Jimenez

Comment

June 18

Denver Post

"Last month, a day after watching Ubaldo Jimenez beat the Giants 11-1, Giants starter Randy Johnson offered the following, unsolicited comment: "That Jimenez kid has got some of the most electric stuff I've seen. He's got a chance to be a great pitcher." Told about the impromptu praise from baseball's latest 300-game winner, Jimenez was flattered. "That means a lot, coming from one of the greatest pitchers ever," said Jimenez, who starts today against Tampa Bay. "That's where I want to get to; to be a pitcher like him or Pedro Martinez." Jimenez seems headed in the right direction, evolving from flamethrower to pitcher. His last two starts offer proof. In St. Louis he pitched eight innings ..."