Rockies lack clutch hits, lose rubber game against Pirates at Coors Field

Rockies lack clutch hits, lose rubber game against Pirates at Coors Field

The road ahead looks daunting for the Rockies. Or perhaps it presents a prime opportunity.

It all depends on the point of view, as well as the Rockies’ batting average with runners in scoring position.

Manager Bud Black, of course, prefers to take the positive fork in the road as the Rockies open a crucial four-game series against the Dodgers on Thursday night at Coors Field.

“Isn’t it great?” Black said. “This is what I want to see every year here, playing these big games that matter.”

The problem is, the Rockies wasted a big opportunity Wednesday, losing 4-3 to Pittsburgh, the Rockies’ seventh loss in 10 games. The Rockies’ offense, again, failed to deliver in the clutch, going 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

Los Angeles moved three games ahead of Colorado in the National League West, pending the outcome of the Dodgers’ game at Oakland late Wednesday night.

After the Dodgers series, the Rockies play two games at Houston against the defending World Series champion Astros, then four games at Atlanta vs. the Braves, who are in the hunt for the National League East title.

Black might be one of the most positive men on the planet, but even he knows his team can’t afford to keep squandering opportunities against playoff-caliber teams.

“That’s sort of been the theme lately, lately meaning the last few weeks,” Black said. “We just haven’t seen the string of big hits with a couple of baserunners on base. We need that to turn around as we move forward.”

The statistics are sobering. Since July 22, the Rockies have hit .228 overall, with a .296 on-base percentage. Their batting average with runners in scoring position is .168, and they have whiffed 36 times in 119 at-bats with RISP (30 percent).

Wednesday, Ryan McMahon’s single drove in Nolan Arenado to get Colorado within a run in the eighth inning with one out. But with Trevor Story perched on third base, pinch-hitter Ian Desmond struck out and Chris Iannetta hit a 106.8 mph scorching grounder that second baseman Adam Frazier gobbled up for the final out.

“I pretty much hit that as hard as I can, but we got nothing to show for it,” Iannetta said. “At that moment, I’m a spectator. It’s like, ‘I did my job with my bat.’ But then I watch like everyone else and you just feel down and disappointed it didn’t get through.”

Rockies starter German Marquez’s afternoon was a curious combination of power pitching mixed with episodes of poor command. In six innings, the right-hander gave up 10 hits, leading to three Pittsburgh runs. Yet Marquez also struck out the side in the fourth inning, needing only nine pitches to pull off the second “immaculate inning” in franchise history.

Marquez whiffed 10, but another rocky start put Colorado behind early. Pittsburgh scored two runs in the first inning on four hits, the key blows an RBI double by Gregory Polanco and an RBI single by Colin Moran. The Rockies have given up 100 runs in the first inning this season, the most in the majors, and have posted a 7.74 first-inning ERA, the highest in the majors. Marquez’s slow starts — his first-inning ERA is 10.17 — continue to haunt him.

Colorado Rockies Tickets

 

Kiz vs. Saunders: What must Rockies’ Nolan Arenado do to be named MVP of NL?

Kiz vs. Saunders: What must Rockies’ Nolan Arenado do to be named MVP of NL?

Question: What must Rockies’ Nolan Arenado do to be named MVP of NL?

Kiz: Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado is the best player in the National League. Period. Isn’t that obvious to anyone who lives in Colorado and watches Arenado blast loud home runs and make jaw-dropping plays with his glove? But it’s the rest of the country I worry about. What does Arenado have to do in order to overcome the bias against Coors Field and be crowned the most valuable player?

Saunders: I think the Rockies will have to win the National League West or, at the very least, stay in the race until the final week of the season. I do think a lot of voters have seen enough highlights to appreciate Arenado, but the mile-high stigma is tough to overcome. After all, Arenado’s home OPS is 1.120 vs. .847 OPS on the road.

Kiz: A year ago, Arenado finished fourth in the MVP voting, in no small part because Charlie Blackmon enjoyed the best season of his career and split support with his Colorado teammate. So with Chicago Cubs infielder Javy Baez a legit MVP candidate in 2018 on a team not only bound for the playoffs but a fixture on television, should I begin to worry shortstop Trevor Story has played so well for the Rockies that he will “steal” votes from Arenado this season?

Saunders: I don’t think so. Story has been the Rockies’ best player since the all-star break, and he’s coming off a fantastic series in Milwaukee, but he doesn’t have the pedigree that Arenado does. When I travel to opposing ballparks, Arenado is usually the player the writers seek out, or the player they ask manager Bud Black about the most.

Kiz: While Arenado could lead the league in home runs, his detractors will shout that his .259 batting average on the road makes him a product of baseball at altitude. So there’s only one way Arenado can prove his true value to skeptics. He must lead the Rockies to a playoff berth by hogging center stage during big victories in August and September.  Anything less, and voters will find a reason to give somebody else the MVP.

Saunders: We are in agreement on this point, for sure, and there are 50 games left for this to play out. I think Arenado’s prime competition will come from Atlanta first baseman Freddie Freeman, who is the ringleader for the resurgent Braves, and St. Louis’ sizzling-hot Matt Carpenter. But you’re right, voters are going to dock Arenado for his home/road splits (he has hit 16 home runs at Coors vs. 13 on the road), but I hope voters will consider his defense. It wins games — home and away.

Colorado Rockies Tickets can be found here