Rockies 10, Brewers 7: Better late than never, Grich’s two homers cap wild walk-off win

The Rockies were scored upon early and couldn’t figure out Brandon Woodruff at all. It seemed an inevitable defeat was in store, yet Colorado’s bats woke up late and beat up Milwaukee’s bullpen to score an improbable walk-off victory 10-7 on Tuesday.

Brewers bombs in the first

Chad Kuhl’s first inning was inauspicious, to say the least. The game’s first hitter, Christian Yelich, took Kuhl’s middle-middle changeup out to what seemed like the stratosphere, a 499-foot home run that gave Milwaukee an early 1-0 lead. The homer is the longest hit by a left-handed hitter in the Statcast era, and the second-longest overall.

Hunter Renfroe got in on the action too, as he took Kuhl straight to center field for a two-run shot two batters later. The Rockies quickly found themselves in a 3-0 hole after just the first frame.

Monty mashes

It’s hard not to like Elehuris Montero, isn’t it? The rookie has certainly impressed this season, and on Tuesday added his fifth long ball of the season to his list of accolades. Milwaukee starter Brandon Woodruff, who had not allowed a base runner with one out in the bottom of the third, threw a curveball that was inside and out of the zone to Montero. Montero was able to turn his body and send the ball high into the Denver sky for a homer and get the Rockies on the board as the game now sat at 3-1.

Middle inning moments

In the top of the fourth frame, Kuhl had begun to settle in some. He seemed to be gaining confidence and may have been on his way to working deeper into the game, especially as he was able to record the first two outs without issue. Keston Hiura’s double shook that notion though, and Hiura was then joined on the base paths by Jace Peterson after he walked. Both would subsequently score on Omar Narváez’s double, sinking the Rockies deficit to four runs.

Kuhl’s night would end prematurely yet again. His final line read as 4 ¹⁄₃ innings pitched, allowing five earned runs on six hits, two walks, and five strikeouts.

Colorado had opportunities to fight back in the following innings, such as the bottom of the fourth when the returning Yonathan Daza led off with a walk to set things up for the middle of the order. They went down quietly though and the score remained 5-1.

The bottom of the fifth was the same. A two-out rally by way of a Montero walk and Alan Trejo single put two on and gave Ryan McMahon a chance to cut into the deficit. Instead, he flew out to end the threat and keep the score right where it was.

Eighth-inning explosion

The bottom of the eighth frame created an entirely different vibe to the ballgame - and it happened out of nowhere.

Woodruff had kept the Rockies down all game, but his outing was done after seven innings. Enter Luis Perdomo, who was met with four consecutive hits. A double by Montero got it going and was followed by a Trejo RBI single. Ryan McMahon then recorded a knock to put two on for Daza, whose shoulder is looking juuust fine as he used it to crank a ball out to center field for a three-run homer, putting Colorado within a run.

Randal Grichuk then decided to get in on the action. As Perdomo departed (having thrown just eight pitches), Peter Strzelecki entered in relief and allowed Grichuk’s 14th home run of the season, unbelievably tying the game at 6.

Grichuk’s 500th career RBI created a whole new ballgame, and we went to the ninth tied.

Grichuk strikes again - for the win

The Brewers took the lead in the top of the tenth thanks to a Willy Adames RBI double, so it was up to the Rockies to tie things again to keep the game alive. Yonathan Daza’s first-pitch double in the bottom of the inning did just that, scoring McMahon from second to even things at seven. After a C.J. Cron walk and Charlie Blackmon ground out, Randal Grichuk then stepped up with a chance to win the game. A fly ball would likely score Daza from third base, while a groundball could result in a double play and send things to the 11th. With the count full, Brewers reliever Taylor Rogers delivered his pitch.

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Up Next

We’ve got one more in the Rockies-Brewers series before a day off on Thursday. Wednesay’s finale will pit to left-handers against each other: Milwaukee’s Eric Lauer (10-6, 3.54 ERA) against Colorado’s Kyle Freeland (7-9, 4.75 ERA).

First pitch is at 1:10pm MDT. See you then!