DENVER -- Before Saturday's game, Walt Weiss made it clear he needed length out of Jorge De La Rosa.
"First and foremost, we need innings today," Weiss said pregame.
Innings are exactly what he got. Although it wasn't always pretty (De La Rosa walked five on the day and allowed a run three batters into the contest), the veteran was able to work in and out of trouble, and find just enough of the magic that's made him the king of the Coors Field mound for the better part of the last eight summers.
"We know how good he's been here for years," Weiss said after the game. "So to see him back in form has been a huge lift for us. He'll get some guys on base, but he's a master at minimizing damage, and that's because he can get ground balls."
No two ground balls were bigger than the ones he got to end the fourth and fifth innings. In the fourth, the game was still tied 1-1, and Arizona had the bases juiced with De La Rosa's pitch count rapidly rising. The game was one line drive in the gap from becoming another mess for the Rockies. But De La Rosa steadied the ship with a double play ground ball to short, and after the Rockies gave him the lead in the bottom of the inning, he pulled a similar trick in the fifth. This time, it came with men on first and third, and the ground ball was to Arenado.
Those double play grounders in big spots are a welcomed change after what was occurring with men on earlier in the year.
"Jorge was falling into predictable patterns before," Weiss mentioned. "He's got a great changeup, but I think hitters were starting to sit on it and then the other stuff wasn't showing up. Now he's gotten back to his pitch mix. You see him using the curve ball and stealing strikes with the curve ball. It's really just his pitch mix more than anything else."
Those changes have gotten the Rockies back in the win column when he's started. After dropping four of the six games De La Rosa started before he was moved to the bullpen in May, the Rockies have won all three he's started since returning to his traditional role.
The praise didn't just come from the manager either.
"I had a good time catching Jorge," Tony Wolters said after the game. "He's always fun to catch.The first couple of innings we were trying to figure each other out a little bit, but after that it was good. Everything was working and I'm really proud of what he did. Getting six innings was huge."
And the reason De La Rosa got through those six innings was the double plays. He wasn't good on every pitch in this one, but he was good when he had to be, and sometimes, that's good enough to give your team a win, which is what the Rockies clubhouse needed after the week they've had.
Offensively, the Rockies exploded again. After putting 11 on the board today, they've now scored 42 runs in their last five games. To find the secret to their success, you have to look to the bottom of the lineup, where they struck gold on Saturday. Tony Wolters and Brandon Barnes combined to go 6-for-7 while Wolters drove in four runs. Not bad for two guys who entered the day with wRC+ numbers of 35 (Wolters) and 11 (Barnes).
For Wolters, the day was extra special because he collected his first career home run, a two-run blast in the sixth that gave the Rockies a 7-1 cushion at the time. Wolters did hit 15 long balls in the minors over 1,877 plate appearances, but none like no-doubter he smashed today.
"I've never hit a home run that didn't just clear the fence," Wolters said reflecting on his moment. "I''m always sprinting towards second when it goes out. I've never hit the first base coaches hand when I'm running for a home run. It almost knocked me over and I nearly missed first base."
Despite today's fireworks, Wolters remains grounded in his approach going forward.
"I'm just trying to make contact. That's all I'm working on in the cage. I want to keep my bat in the zone as long as possible. I don't want to be steep. I don't want to swing up hill. I just want to stay in the zone."
The Rockies have an interesting battle at catcher on their hands, with Nick Hundley having the second best year of his career at the plate (by wRC+), and Wolters providing some of the best defense behind the dish the Rockies have ever had. If you're looking for Wolters to get increased playing time after his offensive outburst today though, you're not going to see it just yet. I specifically asked Weiss about that topic after the game.
"I still plan to mix it up pretty good going forward," Weiss said. "Hundley brings a lot to the table too."
It remains to be seen who will be in the squat tomorrow when the Rockies try to earn a series split in the final game of this four game set at 2:10 p.m. MT. Chad Bettis takes the hill for the Rockies and will face Patrick Corbin.