by Patrick Saunders The Denver Post , The Denver Post

Hey, Rockies fans, pay close attention to how he does on his upcoming rehab assignment. Cross your fingers that his right elbow doesn't flare up. Pray that he returns to the big-

league club with a nasty slider and a chip on his shoulder.

Because Corpas could be key - perhaps the key - to the second half of the Rockies' season. This team will desperately need a tough, battle-

tested reliever to provide a sturdy bridge to closer Huston Street.

This is no knock on Joel Peralta, who has performed admirably, but Corpas could give the Rockies the late-inning one-two punch a playoff contender needs.

I say "could" because so much depends on Corpas' edge, attitude and mechanics.

Remember the Corpas of 2007? Remember the kid we used to call Manny, not Manuel? He went 4-2 with a 2.08 ERA in 78 regular-season appearances. In nine postseason games, he pitched 10 1/3 innings, saved five games, struck out seven, didn't walk a batter and posted an ERA of 0.87.

Back when Manuel was being Manny, he so confounded the Philadelphia Phillies that they resorted to filing a formal complaint before Game 2 of the divisional series. The Phillies whined that Corpas was doctoring the Baseball when he poured water on his head and jersey in an effort to cool down.

Corpas was far less effective in 2008, his 4.52 ERA the worst of his young major-league career. He was out of shape, the edge was gone and his biting sinker was toothless. He didn't look any better in April and May of this season when he was sometimes roughed up like a batting-

practice pitcher.

But last month, I started seeing signs of the old Corpas. On June 17-18, immediately before a bone chip in his elbow locked up his right arm, Corpas flat-out dominated potent Tampa Bay.

Manager Jim Tracy agreed with me.

"He had a different face in that eighth inning than he did earlier in the season," Tracy said. "I saw uncertainty early in the season. Then, for the last dozen games or so, I saw a guy with a face on him that said, 'Get in the box, let's go, I've got some work to do.' He was doing nothing but pounding the strike with all of his pitches."

General manager Dan O'Dowd has said he would like to find bullpen help. Of course, so would every team in the wild-card hunt. There are no guarantees that the Rockies can find anybody better than Corpas.

But only if Manuel pitches like the Manny we used to know.

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Patrick Saunders covers the Rockies . Contact: 303-954-1428 or

psaunders@

denverpost.com

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