In the finale of three short, well-pitched games, the Rockies swept the Diamondbacks — ending the Snakes’ hopes of a return to the postseason after being eliminated from Wild Card contention by the Cardinals earlier in the game. It all came down to starting pitching for both teams, with the Rockies rotation out-dueling the opposition each time. Between the three of them — Márquez, Senzatela, and Freeland — going seven innings each, they recorded a combined 1.29 ERA by only allowing three earned runs total.
Kyle Freeland gets it done
In this particular game, there were a few times that Freeland worked himself into some jams, but as always he was able to work himself out of them and shut out the Diamondbacks. In the fourth inning, he gave up two singles to Escobar and Peralta, but was able to pop up Ahmed and get Pollock on a fielder’s choice. The big jam was in the sixth inning when he popped out Goldschmidt, but then Peralta got on base again. Nick Ahmed squared up a pitch and hit it far, but ...
Saved by Parra
Freeland was saved of a tie ballgame when Parra caught the long fly ball from the Diamondbacks’ shortstop. The ball carried all the way to the left field warning track. If it had been about six inches higher, it would’ve probably cleared the wall. Instead, Ahmed was left clutching his helmet in disbelief as he trotted back to the dugout.
In the record books
Charlie Blackmon hit a single in the first inning, extending his hitting streak to 15 games — the longest of his career. In the eighth inning, Adam Ottavino recorded his 108th strikeout against none other than Paul Goldschmidt — breaking Curtis Leskanic’s 1995 record for the most by a Rockies reliever in a single season. Wade Davis recorded his 41st save, tying the records set by Greg Holland in 2017 and José Jiménez in 2002.
Up Next
The Rockies return home for their final stand of the season. They have four against the Phillies followed by three against the Nationals to finish it out. They remain 1.5 behind the Dodgers for the division and 1.5 behind the Cardinals for the second wild card. Buckle up everybody!