SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Troy Tulowitzki hit his third home run of the spring, Eddie Butler threw five effective innings in an audition for a rotation spot, and the Colorado Rockies beat the San Francisco Giants 5-2 on Wednesday.
Giants starter Tim Hudson retired 10 in a row before Corey Dickerson’s single. Tulowitzki followed by crushing a first-pitch sinker onto the left-field berm in a three-run fourth.
Tulowitzki went 2-for-3 and is hitting .375 in his return from season-ending hip surgery.
Hudson allowed three runs and six hits in six innings. The 39-year-old right-hander also doubled off the left field wall.
The 24-year-old Butler, who was 8 when Hudson made his big-league debut, allowed one run and five hits and needed only 56 pitches against San Francisco’s likely opening-day lineup.
The right-hander is one of four in competition to start after the release of Jhoulys Chacin and with Jorge De La Rosa injured.
“Competition makes us way better,” Butler said. “Look, at least one of us has to go down to the minors. And it’s going to be tough to say who.”
Butler, who lowered his earned-run average to 2.63, could have escaped without allowing a run. Nori Aoki’s deep fly to right with two outs in the fifth bounced off Carlos Gonzalez’s glove for an RBI-triple.
Butler praised the work of veteran catcher Nick Hundley.
“It’s unbelievable. I think I only shook him off one time,” Butler said.
Hudson’s double included what he called a “shabby” slide into second.
“About three steps past first, I was highly regretting that decision,” Hudson said of going for two.
Hudson was stranded at second, and that gave him the first test of baseball’s new 2:25 clock between innings.
“I think when I got out to the mound, the clock was like at 47 (seconds) – and I was out of breath. And I hadn’t made a pitch yet,” Hudson said. “But from what I understand, it’s not a hard count. I took three or four warmup pitches, then I spent the last 20 seconds trying to not pass out.”
Righty Chad Bettis will take his turn on the mound for Colorado on Thursday night against the Texas Rangers.
