The only way to build a streak is one game at a time.
After a five-game losing streak, the Colorado Rockies mounted a ninth-inning comeback win over the San Francisco Giants on Friday night to get back in the win column. The Rockies came out swinging on Saturday to make it two.
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In a refreshing manner, the Rox made things fairly relaxing. They took control of the game right off the bat and never looked back.
Welcome back, Ryan Feltner!
You’re never quite sure what you’re going to get when a pitcher comes back from an injury. Ryan Feltner progressed nicely after landing on the 15-day injured list and rehabbing in Albuquerque, but there are always some nerves along with the leap back to the majors.
Things couldn’t have gone any better for Feltner in the top of the first. He came out firing, showing off his velocity and putting together an extremely efficient 1-2-3 inning, escaping on just seven pitches.
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Feltner continued his hot start with a great day all around. Aside from Ezequiel Tovar snagging a grounder up the middle to save a hit in the bottom of the first, he didn’t need much help.
Feltner did a great job getting ahead of batters. He was aggressive targeting the zone, getting a first-pitch strike on 11 of 15 batters faced through the fifth. He didn’t find himself in many jams, working through half of his innings on 10 or fewer pitches.
You couldn’t have asked for more in Feltner’s return to the Rockies. He bounced back impeccably, notching a Quality Start and finishing the day with 6.0 shutout innings pitched, giving up just four hits with two strikeouts and no walks.
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After the game, manager Warren Schaeffer commented on his efficiency: “(His) fastball command was exceptional, slider was good, got double play balls when he needed them early. I just thought he controlled the game very well. He was in attack mode. When he does that, he’s pretty dang good.”
Thanks, Rally Rabbit!
Conversely, things were a struggle for Adrian Houser to start the game. The Giants’ starter was put to work early, giving up crucial hits and walks in the first. He struggled to find the zone, as his two-seam fastball had the velocity but could not hit the mark. He needed nearly 40 pitches to get out of the first.
The Rockies offense was still feeling the effects of the loose bunny that ran the warning track and jumpstarted the bats on Friday night:
The Rally Rabbit made an early appearance to keep things rolling Saturday night, lurking in the grass before the game started. Whether you attribute things to the bunny or to the offense finding their groove, the Rockies struck early.
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Colorado took advantage of Houser’s struggles. After Jake McCarthy and Hunter Goodman both walked, Willi Castro brought McCarthy home with a line drive to center field. Tovar singled to join his friends on the basepaths to load things up.
Sterlin Thompson put together a great at bat and was hit by a pitch (on what would’ve been ball four anyway), as Goodman came home. Edouard Julien was unable to do more damage, striking out with the bases loaded. But the Rockies took a 2-0 lead into the second.
Later in the bottom of the fourth, McCarthy followed up a Julien single with a two-run dinger at the expense of Houser to increase the lead to 4-0. Not long after that, Houser was yanked with two outs, replaced by Sam Hentges. Houser finished his day with just 3.2 innings pitched, surrendering eight hits, four earned runs including a home run, and two walks with four strikeouts.
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Piling on some insurance
The Rockies offense continued a steady assault through the middle innings, getting runners on base and increasing the lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Hentges got the first two outs but couldn’t stop Colorado from breaking through. Julien drew a walk and was moved to second base by a Brett Sullivan single. McCarthy grabbed another RBI with a single to left, bringing the lead to 5-0.
Later, in the bottom of the seventh, Kyle Karros joined the fun and blasted a solo shot into the bullpen over the right center fence — his first against a team other than the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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McCarthy’s thirst for RBI wasn’t quenched, so he knocked another single to left to bring Tyler Freeman home and put the Rockies up by a touchdown with a successful PAT. Schaeffer noted that, “Jake’s taken the opportunity and run with it… he’s taken full advantage of his playing time.” TJ Rumfield would return McCarthy’s favor, with another single to get McCarthy across the plate. The Rockies left the seventh up 8-0.
Staving off a comeback
Alas, it wouldn’t be a shutout. After a clean seventh from Brennan Bernardino, Blas Castaño entered in the top of the eighth, going on to give up a two-run home run to Drew Gilbert. He surrendered a triple to Jung Hoo Lee in the ninth, followed by an RBI single to Matt Chapman to make the game 8-3.
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Luckily the Rockies had plenty of cushion. With seven shutout innings from the pitching staff and 14 hits from the offense, Colorado gave the fans little to worry about as nearly everything went right across the board.
Up Next
With the series win in hand, the Rockies will try to sweep the Giants on Sunday afternoon.
Robbie Ray gets his 12th start of the season, going 3-6 so far with a 4.60 ERA with 53 strikeouts across 58.2 innings pitched. For the Rockies, Tanner Gordon is set to get another start. Gordon has a 0-0 record with a 5.85 ERA in eight games and one start this season. First pitch is at 1:10 p.m. MDT.
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