Rockies get off to fast start

MONTERREY, Mexico -- There were good times galore for the fans, Mexican hero Vinny Castilla, Dante Bichette and the rest of the Colorado Rockies as America's pastime opened in Mexico for the first time.

It wasn't quite as festive for the defending NL champion Padres. They were the "home" team, even though they were 1,000 miles from San Diego, but weren't even the crowd favorite.

Five brothers with their hair colored purple saluted Castilla. Peppy music blasted from the speakers. Two women wearing giant straw sombreros danced in the aisles. And the Rockies won 8-2 Sunday night in baseball's first season opener away from the United States and Canada.

"I feel really excited I played in front of fans in my own country," said Castilla, who went 4-for-5 and scored a run.

The fans felt the same way, with several running onto the field at game's end. A handful went up to Castilla for autographs. He obliged.

"I tried my last two at-bats to hit a home run," said Castilla, whose 170 homers make him the prodigious Mexican power hitter. "It didn't happen, but I'm happy for the win. It was a good night for me."

Bichette also went 4-for-5 with a homer and four RBIs, helping Jim Leyland win his debut as Rockies manager.

Bichette said his great night "was all because Vinny's hitting behind me. It's Vinny's day."

"Whatever hesitations there were about playing down here, were all wiped away," Bichette added.

If and when baseball expands again, "The best place for that is here in Monterrey," Castilla said.

Darryl Kile, who led the majors with 17 losses in his first season with Colorado, limited San Diego to two runs and five hits in 6 1-3 innings. He also had two of Colorado's 18 hits.

"With all the people out there to see Vinny, it was hard to get focus," Kile said.

San Diego's highlight was Tony Gwynn's RBI single in the first inning, leaving him 71 hits short of 3,000.

While excited to be involved in the season's first game, Gwynn said the team's opener should have been in San Diego. Playing this game as the International Opener was baseball's idea, inspired in part by the Padres moving a series to Monterrey in 1996 and one to Honolulu in '97.

"With the year we had last year and then having to come down here, traveling 2,000 miles (round trip) to have the opener, I don't get it," Gwynn said. "I understand baseball going global. I understand planting the flag in new places, but our flag's already planted here."

So the Padres will raise the pennant and receive their NL championship rings Tuesday afternoon in San Diego before the second game of this series.

They do so with one loss, because ace Andy Ashby was chased after allowing six runs on eight hits in one-plus innings, matching his shortest start ever. It was reminiscent of the pounding he took in Game 2 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium, when he allowed seven runs on 10 hits in 2 2-3 innings.

"You want to go out and start on the right foot," said Ashby, who struggled with his location and got behind in counts. "It's depressing, and kind of embarrassing. You wait six weeks for this, then stink it up."

The 27,104 fans who packed Estadio Monterrey got to cheer Castilla, who's from the southern state of Oaxaca. Although he didn't homer in the bandbox stadium, Castilla delighted the crowd with three singles and a double.

The five brothers who colored their hair also wore white shirts with purple lettering that spelled out "Vinny's" on the front and "Rules" on the back.

"The only thing missing is a home run," said fan Luis Farias, 30.

It was Bichette who lofted a solo shot into the right-center stands in the sixth off Carlos Reyes.

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