Baseball

New beginnings: Estes hoping to resurrect career as a starting pitcher for Rockies

At 24, left-hander Shawn Estes was an all-star pitcher for the San Francisco Giants - and a 19-game winner. Seven years later, when he should be in the prime of his career, Estes is scrambling to survive in baseball. Last month, he was signed to a minor-league contract by the Rockies. He will report to spring training today with pitchers and catchers and undergo a physical on Friday. When the pitchers and catchers open workouts Saturday, Estes will begin making a case for himself to be part of the Rockies rotation. Jason Jennings is considered a lock for one of the starting jobs, but Estes and nine others are contending for the four remaining slots. Estes said he welcomes the challenge, feeling the disappointments of the last two seasons - he was a combined 13-23 with the Mets, Reds and Cubs - served as a reality check. "I went into a little tailspin," he said. "I can't put my finger on what it was, but a big part was probably physical. I made that a priority in the off-season." The last two off-seasons, Estes, who had lived in San Francisco, worked out on his own, and while he always feels he pushes himself, he now admits he might not have pushed himself as well as he should have. This winter, he has spent the off-season in the Phoenix area, and become involved in a conditioning program that is run by Brett Fischer, who used to work for the Cubs. Estes got the idea after watching former San Francisco teammates who worked with Fischer have career years in 2003. Russ Ortiz led the NL with 21 victories for Atlanta. Bill Mueller won the AL batting title for Boston. And Joe Nathan had a 2.96 ERA in 78 appearances for the Giants. "I felt I needed to do something, and I figured it worked for me," said Estes. "I've always felt one thing I can control is working hard, and I always wanted to feel I worked harder than the next guy. I felt that was a mental edge. It's like, you work harder so you expect more rewards. "When you work on your own, that edge can get away from you. You don't push yourself hard enough. I lost confidence. I wasn't able to grind through it. When you work out with other guys, you compete against each other. It's, 'Do you want to stand out or do you want to be mediocre?' " Estes said the off-season work was rewarding. Watching videotape, he said he noticed tightness in his hips and upper legs, which hampered his delivery and affected his velocity. A drill that has him jump forward and sideways over hurdles was designed to help regain the explosiveness in his legs. Pitching for the Rockies, Estes will need physical and mental strength. Winning a spot in the rotation will set him up for the season-long battle of Coors Field, the hitter-friendly home of the Rockies. Estes has had mixed results at Coors Field. He is 2-3 in eight starts, and has worked at least six innings in four of the starts. He said he signed with the Rockies by choice, although it was more than a month after the Rockies made initial contact that Estes called manager Clint Hurdle to discuss the idea. The Rockies were talking about a minor-league deal from the start, and Estes wanted to see if there might be a guarantee somewhere. "When it was obvious the doors were shut on that route, as far as I was concerned, the Rockies were my best option," he said. "I felt even if I was a nonroster (invitee), I would have a good chance to make the rotation. Plus they are in the National League West, train in Arizona, and I love the city of Denver." Estes even said he liked Coors Field, regardless of what damage it might inflict on a pitcher's statistics. "There's not a better place (to re-establish a career)," he said. "The bottom line is going out and winning. That has to be the focus. I've seen guys have success in Colorado. Kevin Ritz and Pedro Astacio won 17 games there. Jason Jennings was the rookie of the year. The important thing is dealing with adversity. Things can happen to you there, but the important thing is how you respond."