The Colorado Rockies continue to be owned by the Los Angeles Dodgers. As if that weren’t enough, they lost their third straight game in walk-off fashion on Sunday. Will Smith hit a three-run walk-off shot Sunday to send the Dodgers home with a 6-3 win and a sweep of the Rockies.
Dramatic L.A. home runs again
The Rockies held a 2-0 lead for much of this game. The problem with not scoring more runs than that is you’re one swing away from losing that lead, especially against the Dodgers. Same goes for when the game is tied. The Rockies weren’t able to put together consistent offense, and so they were vulnerable to a clutch swing from the other side.
Chris Taylor hit a pinch-hit, three-run shot to take the lead in the seventh. After the Rockies tied the game on a Tony Wolters double, it was 3-3 into the bottom of the ninth. That’s when Smith struck. I assume many headlines will have Will Smith jokes - you know, like something about getting jiggy with it or some other timely reference. As for me, I just had to make sure I left the curse words out.
Antonio Senzatela pitches well again
The silver lining came on the mound, as Senzatela once again pitched well for a rotation that needs some consistency. He went 6.1 innings while striking out five. He was charged with a couple runs because he was responsible for two runners when Chad Bettis gave up the aforementioned homer to Taylor, but he was ultimately a bright spot on a bummer of a day.
When does close count again?
Horse shoes, hand grenades, and then the third case people use in the expression is usually up in the air. My personal favorite is that close only counts in horse shoes, hand grenades, and slow dancing. Anyway, the Rockies haven’t beat the Dodgers in a good long while and they’re 13 games back in the division now.
If they can convince themselves it’s not so bad because the games this weekend were close, more power to them. I have a hard time coming away from this series thinking the Rockies are in the same conversation as the Dodgers, and I’ll be looking at the Wild Card standings myself.
Looking ahead
The Rockies head to San Francisco to start a series with the Giants. Jon Gray will start Monday night against old friend Drew Pomeranz.