Colorado Rockies vs Philadelphia Phillies Box Score on May 23, 2017

The Sports Xchange
May 23, 2017

PHILADELPHIA -- Less than two months into the season, Colorado Rockies center fielder Charlie Blackmon is making a case that he is the best leadoff hitter in baseball.

Blackmon swatted a pair of two-run homers, and Gerardo Parra added a solo shot to lead the Rockies to an 8-2 win over the floundering Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night in front of 17,109 fans at Citizens Bank Park.

Rookie right-hander German Marquez (3-2) scattered seven hits in six innings and allowed one run for the Rockies, who have won seven of their last nine to improve to 30-17, tops in the National League.

Zach Eflin (0-2) gave up eight runs on 10 hits in six innings for the Phillies (15-28). Philadelphia has dropped 19 of its past 23 games and has managed just three runs in the past three games.

Andrew Knapp hit a solo home run for the Phils in the ninth inning.

Blackmon leads all leadoff hitters with 62 hits, six triples and 40 RBIs, and among center fielders, his 11 home runs are second only to the Angels' Mike Trout (14). He is batting .325 with a .618 slugging percentage.

In his past 10 games, Blackmon is 19-for-43 (.442) with three homers and 13 RBIs.

Eflin came into the game looking for his first win in seven starts, but the long ball did him in.

After retiring six of the first seven batters he faced, Eflin opened the third inning by walking catcher Tony Wolters. Two batters later, Blackmon drilled an 0-1 breaking ball into the seats for his 10th home run and a 2-0 lead.

The Phillies scratched out a run in the bottom of the third when Marquez hit Tommy Joseph with an 0-1 pitch to load the bases, then walked Andres Blanco to give Philadelphia its first run.

Colorado broke through in the fourth inning. After Parra and Alexi Amarista delivered RBI singles and Wolters pushed home another run with a groundout to give the Rockies a 5-1 lead, Phillies catcher Andrew Knapp went to the mound to talk with Eflin.

Four pitches later, Blackmon hammered another Eflin pitch into the seats for his first multi-home run game of the season and the eighth of his career -- three of them coming at Citizens Bank Park.

Phillies manager Pete Mackanin, who has already overused an ineffective bullpen this season, left Eflin in the game for another two innings and saw him surrender a solo home run to Parra in the sixth inning.

Making his first career start against the Phillies, Marquez allowed one earned run for the second straight outing. In three starts on the road this season, he has allowed just two earned runs in 17 innings.

Marquez benefited from another offensive outburst by the Rockies, who have reached double-digit hits in five straight games.

NOTES: The Rockies reinstated SS Trevor Story from the 10-day DL. To make room for him, RHP Jeff Hoffman was returned to Triple A Albuquerque. Story, 24, was placed on the DL on May 11 with a strained left shoulder. In four rehab games with Albuquerque, Story went 3-for-11 with one home run. Hoffman, 24, was recalled before Monday's game against the Phillies and picked up a victory in his second start of the season, limiting the Phils to one run on three hits and getting seven strikeouts in seven innings. ... The Phillies have played the fewest home games in the National League (18) and the second fewest in baseball, ahead of only the Chicago White Sox. ... RF Aaron Altherr picked up two more hits and is the first Phillies player with 19 or more extra-base hits in his first 35 games of a season since Chase Utley in 2014.