Brothers one-third of Rockies' stout 'pen trio

PHILADELPHIA -- Even though Rex Brothers' availability was in question on Thursday night after three consecutive days of work, Rockies manager Walt Weiss is thrilled to have the 25-year-old lefty in his bullpen to go with closer Rafael Betancourt, who missed a month due to an appendectomy, and Matt Belisle. They give Weiss the type of late bullpen trio that every manager looks for to close out games.

"It's good to have Raffy back, and even in the last couple of games has allowed us to use Rex in ideal situations," Weiss said.

"It's been nice to set up our bullpen the way we have. Since Raffy has been back, and last night, we did well, and it set up very well. But no one is perfect, especially in that role. But I've said it before, give me a one-run lead, and I'll go with Raffy every time."

Betancourt's blown save on Wednesday in a 4-3 loss to the Phillies was only his second of the season in 18 attempts. Entering Thursday, Belisle had allowed just four runs in his last 19 1/3 innings, while Brothers has been equally effective, including 3 1/3 scoreless innings in this four-game series at Citizens Bank Park.