DENVER (AP)—The Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies both had extra pep in their step Thursday and not just because Opening Day was 24 hours away.

Players on both teams said they felt fresher heading into April thanks to the state-of-the-art spring training complex they now share in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, which replaced their respective ballparks in Tucson, is the envy of Major League Baseball.

Players said its sellout crowds and regular season buzz helped prepare them for the real thing, and that starts Friday when Colorado ace Ubaldo Jimenez(notes) faces Arizona ace Ian Kennedy(notes) at Coors Field.

“I think the biggest difference was not having to travel three hours up and three hours back every day,” Colorado catcher Chris Iannetta(notes) said. “It takes a huge toll on your body. So, just the location of the facility, not necessarily even how nice it was, was a big help.”

At their workout Thursday, both teams raved about their new spring digs and said they felt better physically and mentally for not having to endure the long bus rides to and from Phoenix or face lineups of mostly minor leaguers because opponents would leave behind their stars when they trekked to Tucson.

“I think that’s probably THE question: how much is it going to benefit us?” mused Colorado closer Huston Street(notes). When you have sellouts, you can’t help it, you’re a human being, you enjoy it more. And when you enjoy it more, I feel like you get more out of it.

“They’ve given us no excuse,” Street added. “The facilities were perfect. The games felt like games, it felt like we were playing serious baseball with serious consequences. I think it’s going to help. I think it’s going to be a huge difference not only in the way we were able to approach the season but in the profound effect it’s going to have on us in being prepared.”

Although they share the complex, the Rockies got more of a bump than the D-Backs. Their expansive clubhouse and related training facilities stand in stark contrast to their crowded previous home at Tucson’s quaint but antiquated Hi Corbett Field.

“There were so many positives,” Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki(notes) said. “The facilities were top-notch. … And then getting a chance to play in front of crowds that were pretty big, I think that’s huge going into a season. You want to play in front of those crowds. You want to feel those nerves. So, I think we’re a step ahead of anybody else in that aspect.”

Well, except for the D-Backs.

Like the Rockies, the Diamondbacks had held spring training in Tucson since the franchise was born in 1998, but they had a spiffy ballpark they shared for years with the Chicago White Sox. Still, they were just as glad as the Rockies for the move into a bigger, better ballpark.

“Our environment was great,” D-Backs manager Kirk Gibson said. “You don’t do the bus trips. We played more games than anybody, so we still had a big workload. But it was a great environment to be in. … It was a major league atmosphere.

“But I think in the last week there was a lot more energy in the team in general because they know it’s getting close.”

With the bus rides history, the Diamondbacks capitalized on their time savings by getting in more work and playing more split squad games than anybody.

One Arizona player who’s been taking it easy is shortstop Stephen Drew(notes), who is recovering from a lower abdominal strain that he aggravated during spring training before being shut down again this week.

Drew was held out of the workout Thursday and might not play in this series, although Gibson said Drew would be available to pinch hit if he’s not in the starting lineup.

Without Drew, Gibson will have to juggle his lineup and he asked his staff to fill out lineup cards with their suggestions, which he was planning to peruse Thursday night.

The Rockies player who might have benefited most from the move to Scottsdale is first baseman Todd Helton(notes), who’s been bothered by a balky back in recent years.

“I played a lot more. I got to play consecutively a lot more and I know I can handle back-to-back days and my body feels up to the task,” Helton said. “But I’ll talk to you in June or July and let you know if I still feel that way.”

Third baseman Ian Stewart(notes) made the Rockies’ 25-man opening day roster. Stewart has been bothered by a troublesome left hamstring that threatened to land him on the DL to start the season.

This is a make-or-break year for Stewart, so starting out healthy is paramount.

“He’s a key player in this clubhouse,” Rockies slugger Carlos Gonzalez(notes) said. “We all know that if he plays the way he (can), we’re going to be the greatest team in baseball.”

NOTES: Rockies vice chairman Dick Monfort said the team has seen a double-digit bump in season ticket sales this year. … Monfort said his brother, owner Charlie Monfort, has fully recovered from his fall in Scottsdale last month that landed him in the hospital and will be at the ballpark Friday.

The 2011 Major League Baseball season hits the big screen Thursday, in limited release (six games), and optimism runs high in many markets.

That blockbuster feeling is not spreading into the Valley.

The experts say the Diamondbacks won’t be contending – and the club did little to dissuade them during an ugly spring training – but there were some positives.

Take a look at the good and the bad as the Diamondbacks head for Colorado for their Opening Day on Friday.

Following a quiet off-season and a disappointing performance during spring training, the Diamondbacks open the season Friday in Colorado with reasons for hope as well as trepidation:

Three up

1. Right-handers Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson finished their Cactus League seasons with strong outings. That should give the Diamondbacks some stability at the top of their rotation, though scouts consider the pair better suited for the middle of the rotation.

2. First basemen Russell Branyan and Juan Miranda hit well, giving the impression that whoever starts on a given day – GM Kevin Towers said the team had “dual starters” – will have a chance to provide solid production.

3. It feels easier to count on the Diamondbacks’ outfield. Center fielder Chris Young is coming off a strong year, right fielder Justin Upton may not be a superstar (yet) but is solid and Gerardo Parra seems to be coming into his own. Even Xavier Nady, who was brutal for most of spring training, hit much better in the final week of camp.

Three down

1. The back of the starting rotation did not inspire much hope. Joe Saunders had awful Cactus League results and Armando Galarraga won the fifth starter’s job in part because he pitched halfway decent late in camp but also because Aaron Heilman kept coughing up runs.

2. The bullpen has more questions than the club would like, considering the focus put on it during the off-season. Closer J.J. Putz was limited by back problems and threw only 1 1/3 innings in the Cactus League plus another 1 1/3 innings in exhibition games Tuesday and Wednesday. And right-hander Juan Gutierrez was typically inconsistent throughout camp.

3. The Diamondbacks have said they wanted to have a club that can pitch and play defense well, but the defense was perhaps worse than the pitching. The Diamondbacks committed 43 errors, tied for the most in the majors in both the Cactus and Grapefruit leagues. “My hope is that it’s a club that is a fundamentally sound club, which has not been the case this spring,” Towers said.

PHOENIX (AP)—Ryan Roberts(notes) was among the final players cut before the Arizona Diamondbacks set their opening day roster last season.

Motivated to avoid another trip to the minors, Roberts made across-the-board changes to his game in the offseason, and it paid off with a spring that made him a lock for this year’s team.

Roberts had an RBI double Wednesday to help Arizona beat Quintana Roo of the Mexican League 10-2 in its final game before the start of the regular season.

Roberts finished Cactus League play with a .519 average and a .609 on-base percentage, both tops in the majors. In two games against Mexican League teams, he was 2 for 4 with a home run, six RBIs and two walks.

“I’ve worked a little harder, changed my diet program, changed my workouts. I basically changed everything,” Roberts said. “With my swing, I’ve stopped trying to really drive the ball. I’ve stopped really trying to hit homers, just try to hit the ball up the middle and let everything else fall into place.”

Roberts will open the season as Arizona’s utility man.

“He’s played great. He came in, and he’s played with a lot of energy,” manager Kirk Gibson said. “He’s played a ton of positions, and that’s how we’ll use him in the season.”

“He may get a lot of at-bats. If he keeps swinging the way he did, he deserves to play,” he said.

Roberts hit .279 and appeared in 110 games for Arizona in 2009 but followed with a disappointing spring and regular season in 2010. He hit just .185 in spring training and was only in the majors for 36 games, during which hit .197 and had more strikeouts (17) than hits (13).

“He came in determined not to let that happen again,” Gibson said.

Justin Upton(notes) added a solo home run and Chris Young had three RBIs for the Diamondbacks.

Starter Barry Enright(notes) allowed two runs on six hits and struck out two in 3 2-3 innings, and Armando Galarraga(notes) followed with four perfect innings, including two strikeouts.

NOTES: Arizona finalized its 25-man roster after the game, optioning RHP Esmerling Vasquez(notes) and outrighting IF Tony Abreu(notes) to Triple-A Reno and releasing RHP Carlos Rosa(notes), who is expected play this season in Japan. LHP Zach Duke(notes) and IF Geoff Blum(notes) will start the season on the 15-day disabled list.

The Arizona Diamondbacks completed their 25-man roster Wednesday with four moves.

Infielder Tony Abreu was outrighted to Triple-A Reno and infielder Brandon Allen and right-handed pitcher Esmerling Vasquez were optioned to Reno.

The club released right-handed pitcher Carlos Rosa.

The team’s Opening Day roster:

Pitchers (12): Sam Demel, Barry Enright, Armando Galarraga, Juan Gutierrez, Aaron Heilman, David Hernandez, Daniel Hudson, Ian Kennedy, Kam Mickolio, Joe Paterson, J.J. Putz and Joe Saunders.

Infielders (7): Willie Bloomquist, Russell Branyan, Stephen Drew, Kelly Johnson, Juan Miranda, Melvin Mora and Ryan Roberts.

Outfielders (4): Xavier Nady, Gerardo Parra, Justin Upton and Chris Young.

Catchers (2): Henry Blanco and Miguel Montero.

Left-handed pitcher Zach Duke and infielder Geoff Blum will start the season on the 15-day disabled list.

PHOENIX – Ryan Roberts was among the final players cut before the Arizona Diamondbacks set their opening day roster last season.

Motivated to avoid another trip to the minors, Roberts made across-the-board changes to his game in the offseason, and it paid off with a spring that made him a lock for this year’s team.

Roberts had an RBI double Wednesday to help Arizona beat Quintana Roo of the Mexican League 10-2 in its final game before the start of the regular season.

Roberts finished Cactus League play with a .519 average and a .609 on-base percentage, both tops in the majors. In two games against Mexican League teams, he was 2 for 4 with a home run, six RBIs and two walks.

“I’ve worked a little harder, changed my diet program, changed my workouts. I basically changed everything,” Roberts said. “With my swing, I’ve stopped trying to really drive the ball. I’ve stopped really trying to hit homers, just try to hit the ball up the middle and let everything else fall into place.”

Roberts will open the season as Arizona’s utility man.

“He’s played great. He came in, and he’s played with a lot of energy,” manager Kirk Gibson said. “He’s played a ton of positions, and that’s how we’ll use him in the season.”

“He may get a lot of at-bats. If he keeps swinging the way he did, he deserves to play,” he said.

Roberts hit .279 and appeared in 110 games for Arizona in 2009 but followed with a disappointing spring and regular season in 2010. He hit just .185 in spring training and was only in the majors for 36 games, during which hit .197 and had more strikeouts (17) than hits (13).

“He came in determined not to let that happen again,” Gibson said.

Justin Upton added a solo home run and Chris Young had three RBIs for the Diamondbacks.

Starter Barry Enright allowed two runs on six hits and struck out two in 3 2-3 innings, and Armando Galarraga followed with four perfect innings, including two strikeouts.

NOTES: Arizona finalized its 25-man roster after the game, optioning RHP Esmerling Vasquez and outrighting IF Tony Abreu to Triple-A Reno and releasing RHP Carlos Rosa, who is expected play this season in Japan. LHP Zach Duke and IF Geoff Blum will start the season on the 15-day disabled list.

“We don’t need no stinkin’ stars.” That’s not an actual quote from anyone on the Arizona Diamondbacks Opening Day Roster, but it sure does fit the group. There’s an interesting mix here of young players who could turn into legit All-Stars along with a group of aging players who “play the right way”.

The strategy is built on an understanding that this team, no matter what they did this offseason, wasn’t going to be winning any pennants. Do you want to throw in more young players like Brandon Allen or do you go with the vets as part of a longer term plan to remake the culture of the team and give those young stars some adult supervision?

Kevin Towers and Kirk Gibson obviously took the long view which is refreshing to see in today’s sports media-fan environment that demands immediate success. In the end, they will be judged by the results but this year’s results won’t necessarily be measured in wins and losses. That comes later. Hopefully. 

Here’s how the roster breaks down (courtesy of AZ Snakepit):

Position Players

Bench

Rotation

1. Ian Kennedy
2. Daniel Hudson
3. Joe Saunders
4. Barry Enright
5. Armando Galarraga

Bullpen

If you count up those names you will notice there’s only 24 on the list. Kirk Gibson was coy before today’s final exhibition game against Club de Baseball Tigres de Quintana Roo.

With Stephen Drew still hampered by an abdominal strain he might opt for an extra infielder such as Tony Abreu who is reportedly on waiver. If he clears waivers the team could put him on the roster. Otherwise, they could either turn up another short stop from somewhere or just go with a Joe Paterson as the lefty in the pen. All will be answered in a few hours, please try and contain your anxiety. 

[Note by Seth Pollack, 03/30/11 3:28 PM MST ]

And it’s official, the 25-man Opening Day Roster is set.

Tony Abreu cleared waivers but will start in AAA Reno along with Esmerling Vasquez and Brandon Allen. Joe Paterson will be the only lefty in the pen. 

Gibby is confident that J.J. Putz is healthy and will be the closer on Friday in Colorado. He pitched well today (faced one batter) and his split-finger had good sink. The team is headed out of town this afternoon and will spend tomorrow working out in Denver before Opening Day on Friday.

If Stephen Drew can’t go, Bloomquist or Roberts will play short. Needless to say, the team is a bit thin behind Drew with Abreu not impressing enough to make the roster and hot young prospect, Chris Owings still a few years away.