ROOT SPORTS will televise six spring training games live this season, the network announced today. Coverage begins on March 17, as the Colorado Rockies take on the LA Dodgers at 2 p.m. MT live from Salt River Fields in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The Rockies will face the Mariners, Dodgers, Reds and Diamondbacks on ROOT SPORTS during spring training. All games are slated to start at 2 p.m. MT.

ROOT SPORTS will also debut a trio of new programming. On February 17 at 8 p.m. MT, sit with General Manager Dan O’Dowd and the Rockies staff as they plot the team’s offseason trades on the Rockies Winter Meetings Show. The premiere of Rockies All Access begins on March 17 at 5 p.m. with the 2012 Rockies Commercial Show, which gives behind-the-scenes access to the making of the latest Rockies commercials. The skipper also gives us a preview of who will take the field on Opening Day on Rockies Weekly with Jim Tracy (March 25 at 5 p.m.).

2012 Rockies Spring Training Telecast Schedule

All times listed are Mountain and subject to change

Date                                       Opponent                                   Time

Sat., March 17                   Dodgers                               2 p.m.

Sun., March 18                  at Mariners                           2 p.m.

Sun., March 25 Reds 2 p.m.

Tue., March 27                  at Diamondbacks                   2 p.m.

Mon., April 2 at Mariners 2 p.m.

Tue., April 3 Marines 2 p.m.

Last season, Belisle, 31, went 10-4 — a career high for wins in a season — with a 3.25 ERA in 74 appearances. Belisle has appeared in a career0high 76 games the previous year, and over the last two years is 17-9 with a 3.07 ERA.

This is the third time Belisle and the Rockies have reached an agreement in about a year. He signed a one-year deal last winter to avoid arbitration, then he and the Rockies worked the agreement into a two-year, $6.125 million contract.

Belisle, who joined the Rockies as a non-roster invitee in 2009, is 36-32 with a 4.48 ERA, 401 strikeouts and 131 walks in 306 appearances, including 43 starts, with the Reds (2003, 2005-08) and the Rockies.

The event always is entertaining, educational and moves fans’ thoughts to baseball.

There will be a brief look back to last season, with the awarding of the champion of the Rockies prediction contest, to the participant who came closest to the number of wins for the Rockies in 2011.

One highlight is the way members turn education and research into entertainment. This year, Matthew Repplinger, the new chapter president, and Alan Rice will do a presentation on the expansion and contraction of the Minor Leagues, 1953-2011.

That is followed by the Sylvester Report, an anticipated speech and question-and-answer session with Rockies baseball operations member Walter Sylvester, who can discuss stats and styles of players on the team’s Major League roster and through its Minor League system. The questions from the fans are often pointed and always backed by knowledge, and Sylvester doesn’t duck any of them.

Finally, the plan is for a massive game of catch. Last year members conducted it in one of the parking lots near Coors Field. A certain baseball writer with a chronically sore throwing shoulder even donned catcher’s gear. The gear may stay packed Saturday, but we’ll see.

In addition, Betancourt and new Rockies catcher Ramon Hernandez were boyhood friends and state all-star teammates in Venezuela. Hernandez’s history with young pitchers should help the Rockies’ staff.

Looking for a veteran to help guide the young rotation, the Rockies could be bringing in the veteran – 49-year-old left-hander Jamie Moyer. The Rockies have made an offer of a Minor League contract, and a club official told MLB.com on Tuesday morning that “it’s in his court.”

Moyer had Tommy John ligament transfer surgery in his throwing elbow in December 2010 and worked for ESPN as an analyst last year, but stated all along he hoped to pitch again in 2012. He went 9-9 with a 4.84 ERA for the Phillies in 2010.

By making the offer, the Rockies are signaling that they believe Moyer can be a help to them, not merely a novelty, although his potential signing sparks folks to go digging for trivia. For example, when Moyer made his Major League debut for the Cubs on June 16, 1986, the following competitors for the Rockies’ 2012 rotation had not been born: Jhoulys Chacin (Jan. 7, 1988), Tyler Chatwood (Dec. 16, 1989), Juan Nicasio (Aug. 31, 1986), Drew Pomeranz (Nov. 22, 1988) and Alex White (Aug. 29, 1988).

One of Moyer’s teammates on the 1986 Cubs was Rockies television color commentator George Frazier, then a relief pitcher.

The Denver Post, which reported the offer to Moyer on Monday night, also reported that the Rockies are looking at trading for a second baseman, with the Red Sox’s Marco Scutaro and the Mets’ Justin Turner as possibilities.

“We are trying to create depth and competition in our rotation, so we’re looking at all free agents,” O’Dowd said Wednesday evening. “We don’t see a trade on the horizon.”

The Rockies have one spot available on the 40-man Major League roster, so they can sign a pitcher to a Major League contract if they choose to do so.

In other developments:

– The Rockies also haven’t found a trading partner as they try to maximize what they can get for arbitration-eligible, left-handed hitting outfielder Seth Smith, who was displaced when Michael Cuddyer signed as a free agent.

– Second baseman Russell Wilson, better known as Wisconsin’s Rose Bowl quarterback, told the New York Times that he intends to pursue professional football. Wilson, chosen 140th overall in the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft, hit .228 at Class-A Asheville last year.

During the Winter Meetings, the Rockies had talks with the Mariners and those could be gaining new life, although it’s unclear how far along those talks are. During the Winter Meetings the Mariners appeared willing to trade infielder Chone Figgins, a onetime contributor to winning teams with the Angels who has struggled the last two years. That almost certainly would require the M’s to eat most or all of the two-year, $17 million remainder of the contract. The Rockies, the team that originally drafted Figgins, were lukewarm at that point.

Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported this week that the Mariners, Athletics, Mets, Braves and Rays are possibilities.

Blake, 38, appeared in just 63 games for the Dodgers last season (.252, 4 HR, 26 RBIs) because of various injuries — a back problem, an elbow infection and a neck nerve issue that led to surgery. O’Dowd said Blake checked out medically, but the contract will not become official until Blake passes a physical. The physical is not likely to occur until after the holidays.

“We think we added a culture-changer, just like we added in Michael Cuddyer,” O’Dowd said.

The contract calls for a non-guaranteed base salary of $2 million, with another $1 million available in performance bonuses.

Over 13 seasons with the Blue Jays, Twins, Orioles, Indians and Dodgers, Blake has hit .264 with 167 home runs and 616 RBIs.

Cuddyer wore No. 5 with the Twins, for whom he played 11 seasons.

“Strictly as a human being, he’s one of the greatest human beings I’ve ever come in contact with,” Cuddyer said. ”One of the first things I did was look at the roster, see if 3 was available and ask for it. I’m very happy to get it.”

The frontburner issue for the Braves appears to be seeing what kind of package they can receive for right-handed starting pitcher Jair Jurrjens, a move that could fill other needs.

The Rockies reached a three-year, $31.5 million agreement with former Twins outfielder Michael Cuddyer last week, and are in position to deal Smith.

The Rockies’ main need is a durable starting pitcher, but they have shown no interest in dealing the multiple prospects that many teams require for such a deal. So adding another bat at second base, where the Rockies for now have a possible combination of former first-round Draft pick Chris Nelson and solid multi-position man Jonathan Herrera, has risen to the top of the pecking order.

It would be yet another roadblock for Nelson, who took awhile to find his legs as a professional but has earned compliments from manager Jim Tracy for his work ethic. If such a deal occurs, Nelson could get his chance at third base — if hot prospect Nolan Arenado needs more time to develop. Arenado put up dominant numbers in Class-A last year and in the Arizona Fall League, and will be given a shot to make the Majors this spring.

As for the pitcher, the Rockies would like to re-sign veteran righty Kevin Millwood, who displayed leadership — not only on the mound, but with his preparation between starts — that could help a mostly young starting staff. While it would be nice to add a 200-innings stalwart, it doesn’t look possible on the trading market, it’s cost-prohibitive in free agency, and might not be necessary. A veteran hurler who can stabilize the pitching until left-hander Jorge De La Rosa returns in May or June from Tommy John surgery might be good enough to keep the club in good position in the National League West.

The Denver Post reported late last week that the Rockies have reached out to free-agent right-hander Brad Lidge, who grew up in Colorado  and, through his agent, expressed interest in pitching for his hometown team. Lidge, who has history as a dominant closer, is coming off a 2011 season with the Phillies during which he missed time with a partially torn rotator cuff and experienced elbow issues. The Phillies have discussed bringing him back. Given his current health, it’s more likely that wherever he signs it would be under a Minor League deal. If the Rockies bring back infielder Melvin Mora, who played for them in 2010, it would be under a Minor League deal.