Don't Count Spilborghs Among The Ian Desmond Doubters
Former Rockies outfielder Ryan Spilborghs joined CBS4 sports anchor Michael Spencer for Xfinity Monday Live from the ViewHouse Centennial.
CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4) - "There's a buzz at Salt River Fields."
That's Ryan Spilborghs' take on the Rockies spring training experience so far at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Arizona.
A lot of that buzz is due to new manager Bud Black, who takes over a team that finished six game under .500 in 2016.
"There's a different feel behind Buddy (Black)," said Spilborghs. "It's somebody from the outside. Somebody that has pretty good credentials. I think that's part of it that's making this feel a lot better."
The Rockies made several additions to their roster in the offseason. None bigger than Ian Desmond, who will be playing first base for the first time in his career this season.
Desmond is also battling a broken hand that will sideline him for 4-6 weeks, but despite the injury, Spilborghs doesn't think Desmond's transition to first base will be as big of an issue as some of Desmond's doubters.
"I think a little bit too much has been made about him playing first base. He's a freak athlete, and when you talk to DJ and Trevor and Nolan and they're watching him pick the baseball at first base they're like, 'Man, he can do it,'" said Spilborghs.
The Rockies will open the season in Milwaukee on April 3 and will play their home opener on April 7 against the Dodgers.
Michael Spencer is a Sports Anchor at CBS4. Read his bio or connect with him on Twitter @MichaelCBS4.