In baseball, there are three possible “true outcomes” when a batter comes to the plate – three ways his at-bat might unfold without the fielders coming in to play – a walk, a strikeout or a home run.
Here’s how the Rockies final inning of the season, a seven-run rally to beat the Giants, unfolded according to the three true outcomes.
Walk: Following the home run by Dickerson, Ben Paulsen hit a line-drive single to center and Bruce Bochy was forced to make a pitching change.
Cody Hall, replacing Kantos, didn’t have adequate time to warm up (or so it appeared) and immediately walked Daniel Descalso before allowing back-to-back singles of his own, including what proved to be the game-winning RBI single by Justin Morneau.
Hall’s replacement, Yusmeiro Petit let Charlie Blackmon get to a 3-1 count before allowing yet another single that capped the scoring for the Rockies at seven.
The Rockies kept putting in the ball in play, and John Axford got a crucial bases-loaded strikeout in the bottom of the inning.
