Dodgers 11, Rockies 5: Bats Show Signs of Life, But Pitching Fails Again

If somebody would have told me before the game started that the Rockies would get three first-inning runs, and that the Dodgers would play the majority of the game without their two best players (Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier), I would have told you that I love the Rockies chances of winning. Unfortunately, these are the Rockies we know and love - the team that simply cannot catch a break (or ever put together a good game in all three facets), so that did not happen.

After jumping out to leads of 3-0 and 4-2, the Rockies completely fell apart in the fifth inning, allowing the Dodgers to score six times, with the big blow being a three-run homer off the bat of AJ Ellis with two outs off of Matt Reynolds. Bobby Abreu also hit a bases-clearing double in the wild inning, which also saw Ethier and Los Angeles manager Don Mattingly get ejected. Alex White allowed four runs in that frame and six overall in just 4.1 innings. He struggled all day with control, walking three and striking out just one.

The Rockies started out well, opening the game with four straight singles, which plated two runs. Carlos Gonzalez and Michael Cuddyer came up with the run-scoring knocks, while Ramon Hernandez drove in another with a ground out to put the Rockies up three. However, the Dodgers came back quickly, with Tony Gwynn Jr. leading off the game with a double and scoring on groundout by Kemp. The next inning, James Loney led off with a double and came around on AJ Ellis' RBI single. The Rox picked up another run to get some separation in the fourth on a Marco Scutaro RBI single before the wheels fell off an inning later.

The Rockies got back within three on an RBI groundout by CarGo, but Josh Roenicke and Esmil Rogers were unable to keep the Dodgers at bay. Rogers allowed two more runs on a hit and three walks, raising his ERA to 9.18. His days in a Rockies uniform may very well be numbered.

It was a discouraging performance from White, who looked pretty good in his start in San Diego. He is going to have to command his pitches a lot better if he wants to stick around at the big league level. Otherwise, he may find himself back in AAA with former Indians teammate and fellow first-rounder Drew Pomeranz.

Graph and roll call after the jump...

Source: FanGraphs

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