See, creeping closer. And you don't want to see the Wild Card standings widget since it's too long and the Rockies are, oh, 15 games behind Milwaukee.

Jason Grilli played a huge part in picking up the victory last night. According to FanGraphs, Grilli's WPA was .426, the most for last night. And he was doing it in high leverage situations, as his average Leverage Index situation was 3.02. Ryan Spilborghs, obviously, also made a huge contribution. He made the most of his one at-bat when he singled in the winning run. As Spilly says in the Denver Post's recap: " 'My attitude in that situation is that I can't fail,' Spilborghs said. 'If I get a hit, I am a hero. If not, I keep grinding.' "

Dexter Fowler explains what happened once he entered the game last night:

"All I saw when I peeked back was the catcher (Bengie Molina) step out like it was a pitch out. I thought I was hosed," Fowler said. "If I had gone, he probably would have made a perfect throw."

Franklin Morales, heading to instructs to work on his delivery, and Juan Morillo will both participate in winter ball later this the year. As Renck also mentions, Morillo is out of options heading into the 2009 season. You know, since someone on the internets erroneously reported that Morillo was out of options back in March, and Renck didn't even have the decency to mention where that was reported on the internets. Did you know that on the RMN's Rockies page there are links to Purple Row and other Rockies blogs? The Denver Post doesn't have any.

The Rockies nominated Jeff Francis for the Roberto Clemente Award, an award given to players involved with giving back to their community.

SB Nation launched a new blog yesterday, Blog Huddle. According to the introductory post, it will include:

Announcements of new blogs

Introductions of new features

Tips + tricks on using the platform

Scheduled downtime notices and outage explanations

Media mentions of our blogs and the network

General observations on the growth of sports blogging overall

Colorado Springs, W 5-3: Mike McCoy hit a sac fly in the top of the ninth to break the 3-3 tie and Christian Colonel had an RBI single to give the Sky Sox a little cushion. In the fourth inning, McCoy hit his fourth homer of the season. Joe Koshansky and Chris Frey each hit a triple.

Greg Reynolds allowed three runs on 10 hits in 6 2/3 innings and struck out nine. Matt Daley allowed the tying run when he put one of the runners he inherited from Reynolds across the plate. Juan Morillo pitched hte last two innings, walked two, and didn't allow a run.

Tulsa, W 5-3: Dexter Fowler and Chris Nelson both went 3-for-5with two RBI, but it was Fowler who had them all go for extra-bases. He had two doubles and a triple. Corey Wimberly was caught stealing twice, but also swiped his 59th base.

Josh Hall allowed three runs in six innings after allowing four hits and walking four. Ryan Mattheus picked up his 17th save.

Modesto, L 6-7: Mike McKenry hit his 18th homer, a three-run shot, in the fourth inning. Victor Ferrante and Angel Cabrera each hit solo homers.

James Burok started the game and allowed two runs in three innings. Jon George, Tommy Baumgardner, and Austin Chambliss (making his first appearance for Modesto this season) held Bakersfield to one run over the next three innings. David Patton allowed four runs in the seventh inning.

Asheville, L 1-3: Everth Cabrera went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, and his 73rd stolen base. Christian Friedrich allowed one run on four hits and two walks in five innings. The run scored on a first-inning homer. He struck out six.

Tri-City, L 3-5: Parker Frazier allowed five runs (three earned) on eight hits and a walk in six innings.

Casper, L 0-10: Delta Cleary had the only Casper hits last night. They did walk five times, but nothing got done. Ethan Hollingsworth allowed five runs (three earned) in four innings. He walked three and struck out five. Craig Benningson allowed three runs in 1 2/3 innings. Nick Schnaitmann, making his first appearance for Casper, allowed a hit and struck out one in one inning of work. Eric Schaler gave up two runs the next inning.

Colorado Springs, W 9-4: Matt Miller went 4-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI. Cory Sullivan and Humberto Cota each hit a two-run homer, and Jonathan Herrera had a solo homer. Ryan Spilborghs had a hit, an RBI, and walked twice.

Sean Smith allowed three runs in 6 2/3 innings, walked four, and struck out seven. Juan Morillo alowed two run in 1 2/3 innings on two hits and three walks before Matt Daley recorded the last two outs.

Tulsa, L 1-14: Corey Wimberly had two hits, one went for his 16th double. Alan Johnson was blasted for 11 runs (eight earned) in 4 2/3 innings. Six of the runs scored on two three-run home runs. Tomas Santiago allowed the other three runs.

Dexter Fowler and Casey Weathers were at the last home game of the season, but they'll be activated tonight. You can see the two of them with their bronze medals and find out about some of the non-baseball Olympic-related stuff they did in this Tulsa World article.

Modesto, W 10-3: Lino Garcia started the scoring with a sac fly in the top of the 1st. Then from the fourth through seventh the Nuts scored at least two runs in each inning. In the fourth, Mike McKenry stroked his 17th homer and Nelson Robledo had an RBI single. Garcia knocked in two on a double in the fifth while Anthony Jackson plated two on a triple in the sixth. Kane Simmons second Modesto homer was a three-run shot in the seventh.

Brandon Durden allowed three runs on seven hits in 5 2/3 innings. Lancaster mananged only two more hits after Durden left the game. Chris Malone, James Burok, and David Patton threw the last 3 1/3 innings.

Asheville: Cancelled due to rain. It will not be made up.

Tri-City, L 1-8: Ryan Peisel went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Kenny Durst allowed two runs (onea earned) on four hits in six innings. He struck out six. Things got out of hand one Sean Jarrett entered the game in the eighth. He saw three runs score on a double, a fielding error, and a double. Brandon Walker pitched the ninth and allowed three unearned runs. The inning started with a fielding error by Peisel but was followed by two outs. A triple, a wild pitch, and a single scored the final three runs.

Casper, W 8-7: Eliezer Mesa's RBI single in the fifth combined with Jose Gonzalez's two-run double and Carlos Martinez's RBI double in the sixth tied the game at four. Orem took a two-run lead the next inning, but Casper stormed back. Wilin Rosario had an RBI single, Orlando Sandoval doubled in a run, Carlos Martinez sac bunted in a run, and Zack Murry had an RBI single before Jose Gonzalez was thrown out at the plate on that play for the final out of the inning.

Jeff Fischer surrounded four runs in five innings, and Ronny Lopez was charged with the other three. Adam Jorgenson picked up the win, pitching 1 2/3 innings and striking out four. Kurt Yacko picked up his 10th save.

Miscellaneous: Rox Girl does a team-by-team review of the minor league system over at her RMN blog, but I'm sure we'll go a bit more in-depth here once the minor league seasons end (playoffs included).

The Springs, L 4-5 in 10 innings: Scott Podsednik collected two hits, stole a base, scored once, and drove in one in another game for the Sky Sox. His on-again-off-again teammate Cory Sullivan hit two doubles and drove in two runs.

Jason Hirsh allowed four runs over seven innings, walked two, and struck out five. Juan Morillo came in and pitched solid eighth, allowing two hits and no runs. Unfortunately, Matt Daley surrendered a homer in the bottom of the 10th to Salt Lake's Bobby Wilson to lose the game.

Tulsa, L 4-5: Chaz Roe allowed four runs on eight hits in 7 2/3 innings, striking out five. He allowed two home runs (a two-run and a solo). Ryan Mattheus allowed a homer in the top of the ninth, which turned out to be the winning run.

Tony Blanco, Daniel Carte, Justin Nelson, and Gary Cates each had two hits. Nelson drove in two and Cates knocked in one.

Modesto, L 4-11: Wins have been rare lately for the Nuts, and last night was no exception. Simon Ferrer allowed seven runs in 4 1/3 innings, walked three, and struck out six. Chris Malone gave up three more over the next 1 1/3 innings. James Burok struck out five over the last 3 1/3 innings of the game.

Daniel Mayora hit a three-run homer in the third inning, but then the run scoring died. Brian VanderBeek tells us a bit about Modesto's newest player, Angel Cabrera, and that the July 24 game that was cancelled will be made up only if necessary to complete the playoff picture.

Asheville, W 10-6: It was a big night for 6-8 in the lineup. Helder Velazquez went 4-for-5 with three runs, Kevin Clark drove in two (one on a solo homer), and David Christen went 2-for-3 with five RBI and a homer. The homer was a two-run shot.

Bruce Billings allowed two runs on six hits and a walk in seven innings. He struck out six. Edgmer Escalona allowed the other four runs, but Ethan Katz held things down in the ninth.

Tri-City, W 8-4: Charlie Blackmon and Jordan Pacheco both hit their first homers of the season last night. Blackmon's, a solo shot, led off the eighth inning, and Pacheco's was a two-run shot with two outs in the eighth. The Dust Devils also had a big fourth inning. Leonardo Reyes had a two-run double, then scored a little bit later on a fielding error on a Ryan Peisel-hit ball, and Blackmon singled in Thomas Field. Pacheco had a sac fly in the sixth.

Juan Nicasio pitched four innings and allowed two runs. Brad McAtee was charged for two runs in 1/3 of an inning, but both runs scored while Hector Luna pitched. J.R. Murphy struck out five in two innings, and Sean Jarrett struck out two over the final two innings of the game.

Casper, W 9-1: Delta Cleary and Alex Feinberg both drove in three runs. Feinberg joined WIlin Rosario in the doubles category with two each.

Dan Houston had one of his best starts this season by going six innings and allowing an unearned run on five hits and two walks. He struck out five. Kurt Yacko struck out three to complete the ninth.

The Springs, L 0-4: There were six hits on offense, two each by Jonathan Herrera and Edwin Bellorin. Sean Smith allowed two runs in seven innings and struck out five. Juan Morillo was charged with the other two.

Tulsa, W 6-5: Down by two in the eighth, the Drillers came back to score three that inning to take a 6-5 lead. Tony Blanco had a pinch-hit RBI single, who then scored on a fielding error on a ball put into play by Jeff Kindel. Jeff Dragicevich then singled in Corey Wimberly for the go-ahead run. Daniel Carte hit his ninth homer earlier in the game, Rick Gurano his third in the fourth inning. Corey Wimberly walked twice and stole his 55th base.

Alan Johnson allowed twelve hits and five runs in seven innings (two runs off two homers) and struck out five. Edward Valdez and Ryan Mattheus each struck out two in their innings of wrk. Mattheus now has 13 saves.

Modesto, L 3-4 in 13 innings: Mike McKenry's two-run double in the ninth tied the game at three and sent the game into extra innings, but a double and an RBI single off Tommy Baumgardner in the bottom of the 13th gave San Jose the win. Jay Cox had two doubles, 25 for the season.

Simon Ferrer allowed three runs in six innings, walking four in the process. Andy Graham (1 IP), David Patton (2 IP), and Will Harris (3 IP) kept San Jose scoreless over the next six innings.

Asheville, L 2-9: Brian Lapin hit a two-run homer in the third, which was one of only three hits by the Tourists. Bruce Billings was lit up for nine runs in 5 2/3 innings, four on a grand slam in the seven-run fourth inning. He also walked four. Matthew Reynolds and Craig Baker held the other team to three hits over the last 3 1/3 innings.

Tri-City, L 5-10: The Dust Devils liked issuing free passes last night, walking 10 over the course of the game. Brad McAtee walked six in 3+ innings (he pitched to four batters in the fourth) and allowed three runs. Two of those three scored while Brandon Miller was on the mound, who also allowed three runs of his own and walked one. He pitched to five batters in the fifth without recording an out. Michael Marbry walked one and saw three unearned runs score. Bobby Paschal walked two and gave up a run. Sean Jarrett threw two scoreless, walkless innings and struck out three.

Thomas Field had two solo homers last night, and Johnny Bowden and Scott Robinson each hit a triple and drove in a run.

Casper, L 2-13: Carlos Martinez drove in both runs, one on his second homer of the season. Chad Jacobsen, Tyler Massey, Orlando Sandoval, and Zack Murry each had two hits. Murry stole his sixth base.

Andres Marrero was the only Casper pitcher to not allow a run yesterday, pitching two innings and giving up only a hit. Ethan Hollingsworth allowed seven in five innings, Juan Rodriguez saw three cross home in one inning, and Eric Schaler put three on the board for Orem in the ninth.

Colorado Springs, L 9-10 in 11 innings: The Sky Sox rallied for five runs in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game at nine, only to ultimately lose. Joe Koshansky hit his 20th home run to lead off the inning; Kenny Perez had an RBI double; Chris Frey drove in a run on a single; Mike McCoy had an RBI triple (and a two-run homer earlier in the game); and Doug Bernier reached first base on a throwing error and saw McCoy score.

Steven Register pitched the last two innings and allowed a Chris Shelton RBI double to become the winning run. Sean Smith started the game and did all right over six innings: 3 R/1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K. The troubles came with Juan Morillo, who recorded no outs in the seventh inning. He faced five batters, allowed four of them to get a hit, and walked the other. Four of them scored while Morillo was on the mound while the other scored when Cedrick Bowers came in to relieve. Bowers himself walked four and one run scored that way. Josh Towers, oddly enough, didn't allow a run in his two innings of work.

Tulsa, L 6-9: It was a good night to hit  home runs . . . if  you were on NW Arkansas. Alan Johnson surrendered three homers, all multi-run homers. Johnson left after five innings and eight runs. Tomas Santiago struck out five over the next three innings.

Jeff Kindel hit a two-run homer, his 10th, in the seventh to bring the game to 6-9. Daniel Carte had two hits and two runs, and Corey Wimberly stole three bases to have 52 on the season.

Modesto, L 6-11: Simon Ferrer allowed five runs on nine hits over 4 1/3 innings, and Chris Malone saw four runs score in 1 2/3 innings. Mike McKenry hit his 12th home, a solo shot in the sixth. Anthony Jackson went 3-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI, and two runs scored. Chris Nelson went 0-for-5 and is hitting .192 after seven games.

Kane Simmons and Radames Nazario received promotions from Tri-City to Modesto yesterday. Esmil Rogers and Keith Weiser will be temporarily on the inactive list.

Asheville, L 2-4: The Tourists ran into some tough pitchers, namely Carl Pavano and Phil Hughes. Pavano allowed only a hit in two innings and struck out four. Phil Hughes held the Tourists to two hits over three innings. A wild pitch and a Bo Bowman single scored the two runs in the seventh inning. Bruce Billings allowed three runs on six hits in seven innings and struck out six in his start after throwing a no-hitter.

Tri-City, W 4-2: In the bottom of the first, Thomas Field started with a called strike out, but the next three Dust Devils walked. Patrick Rose reached base on an error, which scored two runs. In the sixth inning, two runs scored on two wild pitches. The Dust Devils only had three hits.

Kenny Durst started and allowed no runs on three hits in four innings. He struck out six. Austin Chambliss picked up his 10th save.

James Sims and Andy Goff have taken the places of Simmons and Nazario.

Casper, W 5-0: Ethan Hollingsworth allowed no runs in five innings and struck out eight, his best start of the season. Isaiah Froneberger struck out three in two innings, and Kurt Yacko struck out two in the ninth.

Carlos Martinez had two hits (one for a triple) and two RBI. Wilin Rosario also had a triple and an RBI. Forty-sixth round pick Jimmy Cesario made his debut, had a hit, and struck out three times.

Colorado Springs, L 1-2 - Cory Sullivan had two hits and the RBI, but that's pretty much it for the offense. Valerio De Los Santos allowed one run on two hits and a walk in five innings. De Los Santos struck out six. In between Juan Morillo's and Steven Register's innings of relief, Josh Towers allowed a run over his two innings of relief.

Tulsa, L 2-4 & L 3-7 in 13 innings - Tulsa scored two runs in the first inning of the first game and didn't score in the remaining eight. Tony Blanco had an RBI single and Jeff Kindel hit into an RBI ground out to put the Drillers on board. The six hits the Drillers had came in two-hit nights for Blanco, Corey Wimberly, and Matt Miller. Wimberly also stole his 39th base. Xavier Cedeno allowed three runs in 4 2/3 innings.

Game 2: Springfield's catcher Matt Pagnozzi and Tulsa's catcher Brian Esposito wound up pitching multiple innings at the end of the game. Pagnozzi recorded the victory. Esposito pitched four innings and allowed four runs on two doubles in the 13th (the second one plating three). Corey Wimberly had two more hits and stole his 40th base, and Dexter Fowler recorded a hit an walked three times. Jeff Dragicevich, Justin Nelson, and Eduardo Cornejo each had multi-hit nights.

Modesto,  L 4-6 - Jay Cox hit his sixth homer, a two-run shot in the second, and Mike McKenry had an RBI double in the sixth. Daniel Mayora had three hits, all singles, but nothing else to show for them. Anthony Jackson stole two bases to increase his total to 25. Keith Weiser allowed four runs on six hits in seven innings. Weiser allowed only one extra-base hit, an RBI triple.

Asheville, W 6-1 - Cory Riordan delivered one of his best starts of the season by going the distance for his seventh win. He allowed one run on six hits and three walks and struck out eight.

Everth Cabrera went 3-for-5 with a double, a run scored, two RBI, and three stolen bases (57). Lars Davis had two hits and an RBI, while Brian Rike drove in a run. Actually, all six runs scored in the seventh inning.

Tri-City, L 5-8 - Tri-City had a four-run third inning after Charlie Blackmon's RBI single and Josh Banda's three-run homer. Ryan Peisel drove in a run in the sixth to tie the game at five, but Boise scored three runs over the seventh and eighth innings. Juan Nicasio allowed five runs in four innings, which was followed by a scoreless inning by David Parker. Brandon Miller and Tyler trice allowed two and one runs in their appearances.

Casper, L 0-6 - Kane Simmons and Orlando Sandoval each had a double, which were two of Casper's three hits. Dan Houston allowed two runs on one hit and four walks in four innings. Kurt Yacko allowed three runs (one earned) in the eighth

Futures Game - CF Dexter Fowler and and RHPs Ryan Mattheus and Casey Weathers will appear in the Futures Game today. The game takes place at 12:30 ET on ESPN2.

Colorado Springs, W 6-5 in 10 innings - Down 3-5 entering the bottom of the ninth, the Sky Sox tied the game and eventually went on to win the game. Doug Bernier's RBI triple and Cory Sullivan's RBI single in the ninth tied the game. Ian Stewart led off the bottom of the 10th with a single, moved over to second on a sac bunt, stole third base, and then scored on an Adam Melhuse sac fly.

Jason Hirsh held Fresno to three runs in six innings, walked three, and struck out three. Outside of the two runs Juan Morillo allowed, the other relievers (Alberto Arias, Matt Daley, and Steven Register) kept the game in hand.

Tulsa, L 3-7 - Eric Young, Jr., Tony Blanco, and Eduardo Cornejo each had an RBI last night and combined for five of Tulsa's 10 hits. Corey Wimberly, playing center field, had two hits. Alan Johnson allowed five runs on nine hits (seven went for singles) in 6 2/3 innings, and Jarrett Grube allowed the other two.

Modesto - Suspended due to wet grounds. It will be completed today. The game only went three outs deep, with the first three Modesto Nuts going down in order.

Asheville - Postponed due to rain. Jason McGill has a piece on catcher Lars Davis.

Tri-City, L 5-8 - Four of the six pitchers Tri-City used wound up allowing at least a run. Starter Jonnathan Aristil allowed the first three runs in 3 2/3 innings, Rod Scurry and Brandon Miller allowed two runs each, and Carlos Luna allowed the last run. Bobby Paschal did not allow a run, as he came in to record the final out of the eighth inning. That came on a successful pickoff. Austin Chambliss pitched the ninth and didn't allow Everett to increase its lead.

Charlie Blackmon had another 3-for-5 night with a double, an RBI, and two runs scored. Jhaysson Agustin and Leonardo Reyes each had an RBI double. Ryan Peisel collected the first two hits of his pro career, both singles.

Casper, L 4-10 - That six-run fourth inning was a killer for Ethan Hollingsworth. Two doubles, a few singles and walks, and a two-run homer came in that inning. He allowed a total of seven runs. Alan Deratt allowed one hit and walked three batters in his 1 2/3 innings, but no runs scored. Andres Marrero was charged with three runs, but  two scored after Juan Rodriguez relieved him on the mound.

Wilin Rosario had three hits and an RBI and Kane Simmons had a hit and two RBI.

After yesterday's start, it appears Jorge De La Rosa won't be back in the rotation once the second half of the season starts. De La Rosa will give way to Kip Wells, who still has two more rehab starts to make. Farther down on the article, Franklin Morales and Jason Hirsh are mentioned, but the possiblity of either pitching for the Rockies any time soon appears remote.

Aaron Cook and his family will add a baby girl in late July.

In a look at which teams have interest in which Rockies, Tracy Ringolsby's column mentions that Juan Morillo, Ryan Mattheus, and Casey Weathers are possible call-ups should some team trade for Matt Herges.

Mark Kiszla. Matt Holliday. New York. Scale of 1-10. Yankees at 11. Or something.

Colorado Springs, W 5-1 - Jason Hirsh picked up his second win after throwing five innings of one-run, two-hit ball, but also walked seven. Matt Daley, Juan Morillo, Steven Register, and Ryan Speier each threw a scoreless inning of relief.

Ian Stewart hit his 17th homer, a two-run shot in the ninth inning, and with three hits last night Christian Colonel raised his batting average to .356, third best in the PCL.

Tulsa, W 5-4 in 11 innings - Jeff Kindel had a chance to win the game in the bottom of the ninth with a bases-loaded situation, but he struck out (Daniel Carte failed immediately after that with a fly out). Kindel recieved a chance at redemption in the bottom of the 11th and seized it by singling in Dexter Fowler from second base. Tony Blanco went 3-for-3 with a double, a three-run homer (18), and four total RBI. Alan Johnson went six innings, allowed three runs (two earned) and walked four.

Modesto, L 2-4 - Wes Roemer carried a perfect game into the seventh for Visalia before Daniel Mayora doubled. Mike Paulk doubled in Mayora and Cole Garner singled in Paulk. Those were the only three hits the Nuts collected last night.

Keith Weiser went seven innings, allowing three runs in the sixth. He struck out five. Andy Graham allowed the other run on a homer.

Asheville - Postponed due to wet grounds.

Tri-City, W 9-6 - Tri-City hitters combined for 16 hits last night. Johnny Bowden hit his first home run, a two-run shot, as part of his 3-for-5,  three-RBI night. Bo Bowman and Patrick Rose each drove in two runs while Thomas Field and Jordan Pacheco each drove in one. Field alos walked three times. Charlie Blackmon had four singles and scored twice.

Brad McAtee struck out five over five scoreless innings. Rod Scurry allowed four runs, two scoring when Andy Groves came in and allowed three hits.

Casper - No games were scheduled for the Pioneer League last night.