Tsao victorious in debut
Rookie recovers after allowing leadoff homer
By Irv Moss, Denver Post Sports Writer
Mighty Eric Young.
As any long-standing Colorado Rockies fan would expect, the diminutive
Milwaukee Brewers second baseman hit the second pitch of the game by Rockies
starter Chin-Hui Tsao into the left-field seats for a home run Friday night
at Coors Field.
It was supposed to be Tsao's show in his major-league debut, but for the
moment the spotlight turned back to Young. And his home run brought back
memories of an April day in 1993 when Young led off the bottom of the first
inning with a home run for the Rockies in the first major-league game played
in Denver.
"I was just joining the show," Young said when asked if he was trying to grab
the spotlight from Tsao.
The home run might have sent a shock wave toward the young Taiwanese pitcher,
but it didn't stop him from winning his big-league debut. With the help of
back-to-back home runs by Preston Wilson and Larry Walker in the fourth inning,
the Rockies came back to beat the Brewers 7-3 to make Tsao a winner.
A paid crowd of 39,013 and a television audience in Taiwan watched Tsao
recover from early nervousness. John Vander Wal, another former Rockie, also
hit a home run to lead off the sixth inning, but Tsao bowed his neck and
protected a one-run lead going into the seventh.
Reliever Javier Lopez came on in the seventh after Young's one-out single and
retired Scott Podsednik on a pop up to second and Geoff Jenkins on a strikeout.
A balk by Lopez put Young in scoring position at second base, but he was
stranded there to preserve the decision for Tsao. The Rockies added three
runs in the seventh for insurance.
Tsao said through interpreter Justin Yeh, "The home run was a reality check
for me."
"He said that he has been playing baseball since grade school and he never
has been so nervous in his life," Yeh said. "He said he felt like he got a C
grade tonight, but hopefully he'll get better the next time."
Tsao said he began to relax and pitch his game after the third inning.
Rockies catcher Charles Johnson agreed.
"He didn't let the home run rile him," Johnson said. "You could tell by his
stuff that he settled in and started making his pitches. I didn't say
anything to him after the home run. You have to go out and keep pitching, and
that's what he did."
Young said he still gets chills every time he plays in Denver because of the
memory of his 1993 home run.
"I was thinking he would give me a fastball," Young said. "I thought it would
rattle him, but the home run didn't seem to bother him."
Walker was impressed with Tsao's composure.
"He walked into the clubhouse with that look on his face that said, 'It's
about time you guys called me up,"' Walker said. "He seemed confident. He was
bouncing around in here like a little kid in a candy store."
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