This is your Colorado Rockies Mile High Sports Report for the Week of May 29-June 4.

This Week

The Rox went 2-5, getting swept in four games in Arizona by the Diamondbacks then taking two of three from the Royals in Kansas City.

They are 26-35 on the season and remain in last place in the National League West.

The Royals, A’s, Nationals and Cardinals are the only teams with worse records in MLB and they are tied with the White Sox for fifth worst… or fifth in the reverse standings, depending on how you choose to look at it.

Third baseman Ryan McMahon went 0-for-4 on Sunday, like most of the rest of the offense but before that had a 12 game on-base streak. During the last 10 games of that streak, McMahon went 19-for-39 (.487) with 11 runs scored, three doubles, one triple, five home runs, 15 RBI, six walks (.556 OBP) and 10 strikeouts.

He’s the first Rockies player with 19 hits, nine extra-base hits and 15 RBI in a 10-game span since Charlie Blackmon in 2019. He’s the third player in franchise history to put up those numbers while also walking six or more times, joining Todd Helton (2000 and 2001) and Larry Walker who did it in his 1997, MVP campaign. 

Going into Sunday, McMahon had dramatically improved his numbers and was slashing .263/.340/.488 for an OPS+ of 112.

McMahon’s 1.9 WAR (Baseball Reference) is second-best among all NL third basemen. His seven defensive runs saved at third base are the second-most in baseball at the hot corner.

Catcher Elias Díaz’s .310 batting average ranks 10th in the Majors, sixth in the NL. His .374 average at home is the second-highest in the Majors while his .404 average with runners in scoring position is the ninth-best in MLB.

He has appeared in 50 games at catcher, the second-most in the Majors and his 11 catcher catches are tied for the second-most. At 1.2 dWAR, he is tied for the fourth-highest mark among all players, the best among all catchers.

Rookie shortstop Ezequiel Tovar is slashing .346/.404/.581 with seven doubles and one home run over his last 15 games (again before Sunday) and his hitting .285 (37-for-130) over his last 37 games since April 23, raising his average from .172 to .247 on the season.

Has started 57 games at shortstop, tied for the third-most in the Majors. His 1.1 defensive WAR is tied for the sixth-highest in baseball among all players and tied for second among shortstops.

Colorado returns home next to face the Giants and Padres.

History in the Making

Justin Lawrence moved into the closer role after Pierce Johnson’s struggles and picked up his second save of the season. It was the third of his career.

46 relievers have recorded at least one save in their time in Denver, 36 have gotten to at least a pair, and Lawrence is now tied with Willie Blair as, oddly enough, the only two pitchers in franchise history at exactly three.

With one more save, he will tie Mike DeJean, Chin-hui Tsao, Alex Colome, and fan-favorite Matt Belisle. 

Though he missed some time this week on the bereavement list, Charlie Blackmon did record an RBI on Saturday, giving him 733 for his career. He is 12 away from catching Vinny Castilla, 16 away from catching Carlos Gonzalez, and 27 away from tying Nolan Arenado. 

If he can manage 28 more RBI this season, Blackmon will take sole possession of fourth place in franchise history behind only Todd Helton, Larry Walker, and Dante Bichette.  

This Week in Rockies History

On May 29, 2003, Todd Helton recorded his second and final three-home-run game, going 4-for-5 with the three yonkers and six RBI against the Dodgers. 

On May 30, 2012, Carlos González went 4-for-5 with three home runs in a 13-5 win over Houston. González followed with a home run in his first at-bat the next day, becoming the 22nd player in MLB history to homer in four straight at-bats. Eat your heart out, Ryan McMahon.

On May 31, 2010, Ubaldo Jiménez tossed a complete game shutout at San Francisco. Jiménez finished May 5-1 with a 0.78 ERA (46.0 IP, 4 ER), 12 walks and 39 strikeouts en route to starting the 2010 All-Star Game for the National League.

On June 2,1995, the Rockies selected the University of Tennessee’s Todd Helton with the eighth overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft.

On June 3, 2000, Pedro Astacio pitched nine innings and allowed no earned runs but did not get a decision in the Rockies’ 2-1 loss at Milwaukee. Astacio has three of the Rockies six nine-inning incomplete games in franchise history.

On June 4, 2009 the Rockies won the last game of a four-game set at Houston, the first win of a franchise-record tying nine straight. They would go on to win 17 of their next 18. No June Swoon that year. This is generally not considered a lucky stretch because it did not take place at the end of a season.

And on June 4, 2007, the Colorado Rockies were 27-30. They went on to win the National League.