In what is becoming a frustratingly familiar refrain, the Colorado Rockies could not get their bats going at Coors Field on Tuesday night. They were baffled by Joey Lucchesi and squandered the opportunities they did have, falling by a score of 5-2 and handing the San Diego Padres their first series win of the 2018 season.
A boot and a blast
Bryan Shaw looked like he was on his way to another clean inning. He had two outs and got a groundball towards first base that could have ended the seventh inning. Pat Valaika was unable to handle the back-handed chance, however, and that gave Hunter Renfroe a chance with two men on. The burly outfielder made the Rockies pay with a killer three-run home run to break a 2-2 tie.
Joey Lucchesi has the Rockies miffed
A throwing error followed by a wall-scraping home run from Trevor Story in the first inning were the only damage against the man known as “Joey Fuego” on Twitter. He struck out eight and had the Rockies off balance all night thanks to his unique delivery and the movement on his pitches.
Quality start alert
Tyler Anderson went six innings and allowed just two runs. He struck out eight batters, generally hit his spots, and worked out of a couple situations. The Rockies need their young rotation to smooth things out, so this was a genuinely positive development on an otherwise stinky night.
So this was all just kind of a bummer
The night started on a sour note when Charlie Blackmon was scratched from the lineup. It was agonizing to watch the Rockies hit the ball weakly and flail their way through the night. They were facing a tough starter and a good bullpen, but that’s of little comfort. When the Rockies are good they are supposed to beat everybody up at home.
Things just felt off, and the Renfroe home run stung just a little bit more. Nolan Arenado grounded into a rally killing double play in the ninth inning, and even that felt like less of a surprise than it normally would. There’s always tomorrow and so much season left, but this one was no fun.
Looking ahead
The Rockies will try to avoid the sweep on Wednesday with Germán Márquez starting opposite Luis Perdomo for the Padres.