Rockies 4, Diamondbacks 3: A storybook ending

In their first series win since the end of April, the Colorado Rockies complete their first true sweep of the 2021 season as they take down the Diamondbacks 4-3 in a three-game set. The Rockies’ bats were sluggish compared to the first two games in the series, but got the job done in conjunction with solid pitching performances.

A good day to be Gray

Big Jon Gray bounced back from a tough start in San Diego with a quality showing this afternoon. The Gray Wolf was howling through five innings, taking a no-hitter through four and a shutout through the fifth. He ran into some trouble in the sixth inning with back-to-back full count walks, a throwing error by catcher Dom Nuñez, and a two-run blast from the D-Backs’ Pavin Smith to give the Snakes the lead. Gray notches a quality start under his belt, but earns a no-decision on the game with a final line of six innings, two hits, three runs, two walks, and three strikeouts.

The bullpen... was good!

In a season where the Rockies bullpen has been struggling mightily, the performances today were a massive breath of fresh air. Rookies Lucas Gilbreath and Jordan Sheffield both worked scoreless frames. Gilbreath gave up a leadoff double before setting down the next three in order, while Sheffield pitched a hitless frame with two strikeouts. Closer Daniel Bard gave up a double and a walk but struck out three for a scoreless inning.

Yonathan Dazzling

Yonathan Daza’s success has been one of the great stories in a transitional season for the Rockies, but his outfield defense doesn’t get nearly the amount of praise it deserves. Today he showed off his skills with the glove in center field with two spectacular catches.

His name is Joshua Fuentes

At home, Joshua Fuentes always seems to end up standing on second, and today was no different. The young third baseman clocked two doubles and an RBI on his punchcard today: his eighth and ninth of the season. He also obtained his 25th RBI, 24 of which have come at Coors Field. If he can translate his home success to away games, he’ll continue to be an important asset for the Rockies.

Let me tell you a Story

Trevor Story’s power numbers haven’t been there so far in 2021. Coming into today’s ballgame he had less home runs than Raimel Tapia, CJ Cron, Dom Nuñez, and Garrett Hampson. It had been 70 at-bats since his last big fly and the ocean-eyed shortstop desperately needed one as a confidence booster if anything else. Well, his first home run in 70 at-bats could not have come at a better time: tied 3-3 in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Coming up next

The Rockies will board the team plane to the Big Apple tonight in order to kick off a four game series against the New York Mets. Austin Gomber will toe the rubber for the Rockies, and the starter for the Mets has yet to be announced. First pitch at Citi Field will be at 5:10pm MDT.