With a spot in the postseason on the line in this final week of the MLB regular season and the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals right on their tails, the Colorado Rockies needed a win more than ever on Tuesday night against the Miami Marlins after dropping six of their last eight games. And that’s exactly what they did thanks to Tyler Anderson.
“We talk about, all the time, the importance of starting pitching and our guy did an outstanding job. It was well executed all the way through,” manager Bud Black said. “It’s really nice to see when it happens, when it’s successful. I think it really gives you a great feeling.”
Going into Tuesdays matchup, the Rockies held a 1.5-game lead over the encroaching Brewers, and were just 2.5 over the Cardinals. Despite the Rockies’ 6-0 win, they gained no ground on their lead over their National League competitors, as Milwaukee downed Cincinnati 7-6. At the time that the Rockies game ended, the Cubs were making a huge comeback on the Cardinals in the eighth inning, down only 8-7.
In his fourth appearance back from a minor knee surgery and his third start, Anderson shined for the Rockies as he pitched seven near-flawless innings surrendering just four hits. He threw 62 of his 92 pitches for strikes, striking out five Marlins. Anderson faced just two batters over the minimum in his seven innings.
“He was amazing,” shortstop Trevor Story said. “His changeup was nasty and it looked like he was spotting everywhere. He brings that fierce competitor. That’s his biggest attribute, I feel like, and it was fun to play behind that.”
Since his return on Sept. 10, in all of 22.67 innings pitched, Anderson has been beyond impressive with a 1.19 ERA. That comes at a great time for the Rockies, especially with their postseason aspirations still staying alive.
“It’s not necessarily a freshness thing, because I was in the ‘pen a week and a half ago,” Anderson said. “Being ready to throw that and not trying to be built up and get built up during season is tough too, so I wouldn’t say the time off has really caused a lot of freshness.”
Opposing pitcher Jose Urena, Miami’s most reliable arm, didn’t fare nearly as well, giving up six earned runs and nine hits in five innings, along with four walks and four strikeouts.
The Rockies were kickstarted by none other than right fielder Carlos Gonzalez when he hit into a double play, but drove in Charlie Blackmon to take an early lead. Two base hits and three batters later, Story launched a three-run home run into the Rockies’ bullpen. 4-0 Rockies after just one inning.
It was a pitching duel from that point until the bottom of the fifth, as neither team gave up another run.
Enter Nolan Arenado with one man on.
The third baseman drove another ball into the stands for the two-run moon shot, this time over the centerfield wall to the left of the Rockpile. 6-0, Rockies.
Chris Rusin and Mike Dunn each pitched a scorless inning to lock things up.
With the win, the Rockies advanced to 84-73 on the season and set Miami back to 74-82. The hunt for that second Wild Card spot lives on.
Senior-most right fielder Carlos Gonzalez, the natural leader on the team both on the field and behind the scenes, said that as the only current Rockie who’s been to the postseason with a Colorado jersey on his back, he’s taken it upon himself to be the “fun guy” on the team that keeps all the young players loose as the regular season winds down into a possible playoff berth.
“I think that’s one of the jobs that I have and I don’t get paid for it,” Gonzalez said. “I’ve got to keep everybody loose here. I’m the older player. I’m the only one on the roster that was in the 2009 postseason, the last time we were in. I tell my friends and my teammates, this is only going to grow. The pressure’s only going to go up, everybody’s expecting great things from us, but at the same time, the game won’t change….Just try to slow the game down, but we’re pretty good. Just keep doing what we’re doing, and we’re going to be fine.”
“You have a lot of young players around you, guys that are finally getting to the first stage of what October’s all about, so you just got to relax and enjoy the moment, because this is what you work so hard for. When you gain experience, they’re going to understand what I’m talking about.”
