The Colorado Rockies snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in the second game of their doubleheader against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday night. Alex Guerrero’s two-out, two-strike grand slam in the ninth inning erased a three-run Rockies’ lead as the Dodgers came back to take the game in dramatic fashion.
Guerrero hit the bomb of Rafael Betancourt and just out of the reach of Charlie Blackmon in center field. At first, it appeared Blackmon had saved the day with a spectacular catch at the wall, but the outfielder came up just short. Betancourt allowed four hits and retired just two batters as he attempted to close out the game in the ninth inning.
The Rockies lost despite ripping 10 hits and five runs off Zach Greinke. Troy Tulowitzki hit a two-run bomb in the fifth inning. Nick Hundley and Brandon Barnes each had three hits and two RBIs.
David Hale made his second start of the season. Both of which have come as the Rockies 26th man in a doubleheader. He allowed seven hits – three of which were homeruns – and four runs with five strikeouts and no walks in six innings.
Enrique Hernandez, Joc Pederson, Adrian Gonzalez, and Guerrero hit the Dodgers’ four homeruns in the contest.
The Rockies won the first game of the doubleheader 6-3 with Jorge De La Rosa on the bump earlier in the day. After missing two starts with a cut on his finger, De La Rosa was throwing like an ace against the Dodgers lineup. The veteran lefty got through six innings with four hits and three earned runs allowed. He battled through and shook off a rough fifth inning in which he walked in a batter.
The Rockies bullpen took over for De La Rosa and allowed just one hit in three innings of work. John Axford earned his 10th save of the season in as many opportunities.
Five Rockies – DJ LeMahieu, Nolan Arenado, Ben Paulsen, Michael McKenry, and Daniel Descalso – registered two-hit games in the win. Michael McKenry hit a two-run jack and an RBI double.
The Dodgers took the first contest of the three-game set with Clayton Kershaw leading the way on Monday. The Dodgers’ ace allowed just two runs in seven innings of work, but he was equally impressive with the bat in his hands. Kershaw hit a career-high three hits, a double, and one RBI in the game.
Pederson’s three-run homerun off Christian Friedrich gave the Dodgers a 7-2 lead that the Rockies were unable to overcome.
Pederson hit a homerun in all three games of the series so far. The emerging star had seven RBIs in the three games.
Nathan is a staff writer for Mile High Sports. He can be reached on Twitter at @TheRealNatron.