The players aren’t panicking, but the Colorado Rockies are slipping.
In their last 15 games, the club has gone 4-11 after their latest 8-4 loss in the 10th inning against the Giants. With a three-run deficit entering the ninth, the offense finally broke through, tying the game.
Their efforts were undone by Wade Davis who once again saw his chance go wayward for the club, his fourth loss of the year.
Ahead are takeaways from the loss.
Davis continues roller-coaster campaign
With more valleys than peaks, Wade Davis has cost the Rockies.
After a league-leading 43 saves last year, the club’s closer has flailed several times this year. Once again Tuesday night, he fell apart, much to the dismay of his skipper.
The leading message from Bud Black to the pitchers on the Rockies’ roster is to avoid walks. A pair of walks served as the undoing for their chances of a late-inning thriller.
With a pair of runners on, Alex Dickerson served up his career-high fourth hit of the night to put the Giants ahead. The hit was a part of the 11 strikes thrown by Davis out of 22 total pitches.
A Brandon Crawford run-scoring single later in the frame served as both the final nail in the coffin of the Rockies and that of Davis who was relieved by Bryan Shaw.
His season earned run average is now up to 6.04 on the year after Shaw allowed both of Davis’ inherited runners to score.
A change to Scott Oberg has been discussed by Black before. At this point, the counterarguments are nearly gone.
Rockies’ power comes together late
The hopes looked dashed for the Rockies.
As a team, they’d combined for only three hits in the first eight innings. With the heart of the order due up, they were due for a shift in momentum.
Trevor Story – tasked with leading off the final frame, down by three runs – came through. On a 1-1 fastball, the shortstop launched a missile into the right-field bullpen. Though it was only his ninth hit in 41 tries since returning from the injured list, it was Story’s fourth homer.
After a Daniel Murphy single, it was Ian Desmond’s turn. The veteran chose to be aggressive early, slapping a first-pitch fastball 467 feet to dead center:
Ian Desmond homers (12) on a fly ball to center off Will Smith
Exit Velocity 105 MPH
Distance 467 FT
Launch Angle 25.83#SFGiants vs #Rockies pic.twitter.com/MqDDaUw8Ps— Strand Sport Stats (@StrandStats) July 17, 2019
The long ball for Desmond broke a small 0-for-7 slump as well.
Lambert finds his form again
Peter Lambert needed a rebound. A break while his teammates headed to the All-Star Game in Cleveland appears to have done the trick.
Armed with a changeup and slider that were well located throughout the night, Lambert flummoxed the Giants. Across six innings, he allowed six hits, two earned runs and struck out three.
Before his return to Rockies’ lore, Lambert had struggled. In his last three starts before the break, the hurler allowed 16 earned runs in only 14.2 innings, including seven home runs.
Control was a large problem for Lambert during his lull. In each of the three starts, he failed to throw more than 62 percent of his pitches for strikes. He breached the barrier only slightly in his latest start, but overall, the command was greater in pivotal moments.
The youngster even made a dent at the plate once again. After going 1-for-1 in the ballgame, Lambert has now hit safely in five of his first seven starts.
Pomeranz remains a mystery to Rockies
The name should be familiar to Rockies’ fans. Drew Pomeranz pitched for the club for three years before being traded to the Oakland Athletics.
A more unrecognizable feat is Pomeranz mowing down hitters at Coors Field. In his stint with the Rockies, he carried a 5.20 ERA in 136.2 innings. He also allowed 9.3 hits per nine innings.
Combined with his last start against his former club, Pomeranz has excelled. At home, he held them to only two runs in five innings and stuck out 11.
Though he failed to recreate the dominance he showed in San Francisco, the veteran still made quick work of the Rockies. In five-plus innings, he allowed only three hits and struck out four. The lone run given up by Pomeranz was given up after he’d already departed the game.