Worth noting

• Righty Chris Volstad, who is striving for a rotation spot but could be used in the bullpen, struck out one in two scoreless innings on Monday. Volstad gave up four runs in three innings against Team USA in his last outing. Volstad has relied too heavily on secondary pitches and saw his career run awry with the Marlins and the Cubs. The Rockies have stressed the importance of staying with what they believe is an effective sinkerball.

"With that big sink he's got, those guys have the luxury of not having to be too fine," manager Walt Weiss said. "If it's over the plate with that big, sinking action, the hitters have to scrape it out of there."

• Veteran first baseman Todd Helton likely will not pull many assignments like Monday's -- facing White Sox left-hander Chris Sale, a long-limbed, hard-throwing lefty with an unusual delivery. Helton, who sustained a twisted knee Friday but felt better Monday, went 0-for-2.

"That's a tough slot to try to hit against, but we need to start getting him some at-bats here," Weiss said. "It was his day to play."