Ray King was in town for the Colorado Rockies’ series against the Cardinals and it seemed like King let the crowd get to him Monday night.
The former Cardinals lefty reliever was called on in the 9th inning with two men on and Jim Edmonds up.
King, who was traded to the Rockies in the offseason after two years in St. Louis, couldn’t help his cause as he threw a wild pitch that moved the runners up, then he allowed a sacrifice fly to knock in a run and he walked a batter.
After that it was curtains for King, as he was yanked after only seeing two batters.
As for the fans’ reaction to King’s return, it was similar to when Edgar Renteria came back as a Boston Red Sox last season, many boos with some cheers mixed in. However, it seemed the boos were more evident with King, and this shouldn’t surprise anyone. It seems like Cardinals’ fans have taken on this attitude that if you’re not wearing Cardinals’ red, you’re fair game (though Juan Encarnacion and Jason Isringhausen have found that this isn’t always the case, either).
After an up-and-down season with the Cardinals last year, King was not used at all in the postseason. After the final postseason game, King spoke out against manager Tony La Russa’s decision and, as we saw with Kerry Robinson’s situation, you can’t do that. So King was traded in the offseason.
King, who said at one point that he would like to move up to a closer role, might have a tough time doing that if he continues performing like he did Monday and especially pitching in a pitcher’s nightmare of a ball park, mile-high Coors Field.
