PHOENIX -- Patrick Corbin waited four years for his Opening Day start. He then made the most of the opportunity, as he tossed 5 2/3 quality innings in Thursday night's 8-2 win over the Rockies at Chase Field.
Corbin, who had been slated to start Opening Day in 2014 before tearing his ulnar collateral ligament, struggled to find his rhythm during a 21-pitch first inning in which he allowed a solo homer to DJ LeMahieu.
After that, Corbin settled in, not allowing another run until Nolan Arenado led off the sixth with a homer to left.
"I just felt good," Corbin said. "Even the homer in the first I thought was a decent pitch, but just kind of got over it and tried to go back at them and attack them with that slow breaking ball away and fastball down and away, and I was just able to get in a rhythm out there."
Corbin allowed two runs on seven hits and fanned eight, while walking one.
"It was great," Corbin said. "It was fun before the game when all the stuff was going on. Once you're on the mound, it's just like a packed-crowd game, or at least that's how I tried to handle it."

Corbin changed speeds nicely with his slider and pitched out of a fifth-inning jam when the Rockies had runners at first and second with one out and LeMahieu at the plate. Corbin threw a two-seam fastball to LeMahieu, who hit a grounder to second baseman Ketel Marte, playing behind the bag at second, for an inning-ending double play.
After Arenado's homer, Corbin struck out the next two hitters before giving up a single to Ian Desmond. D-backs manager Torey Lovullo then pulled Corbin, who threw 93 pitches.
"I thought he did a great job of slowing things down and executing the game plan," Lovullo said. "Looked like an aggressive fastball that he could go to both sides of the plate with."