Rockies claim another series with 8-4 win over Cardinals
The Sports Xchange
May 28, 2017
DENVER -- The Colorado Rockies have been methodically efficient when it comes to winning series and used a late rally to chalk up another one Sunday.
A four-run eighth inning steered the Rockies to an 8-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The victory in the rubber game enabled the Rockies to win their fifth straight series and improve to 12-2-2 in series this season.
Gerardo Parra hit a three-run homer for the Rockies in the fourth, putting them ahead 4-0. Jedd Gyorko, Greg Garcia and Tommy Pham offset Parra's blast with solo homers, cutting the lead to one run.
The win before a sellout crowd of 48,372 at Coors Field -- Colorado's fourth sellout of the season -- was the sixth in eight games and 10th in 14 for the Rockies. The Cardinals last won consecutive games on May 13-14 and have since gone 3-8.
The Rockies pushed across the first run of the game in the third. Back-to-back, one-out singles by Parra and Ian Desmond put runners at the corners. Alexi Amarista smashed a hard grounder to third baseman Gyorko, who was positioned at the lip of the infield.
After the ball deflected of his glove, Gyroko had no play at the plate on Parra, who was running on contact, and took the sure out at first.
DJ LeMahieu opened the Rockies' eighth with a single and took second on Matt Bowman's wild pitch. Nolan Arenado grounded to shortstop Aledyms Diaz, whose throw to third was not in time to get LeMahieu.
Mark Reynolds flared an opposite-field, run-scoring single into short right field. Parra grounded a ball to the drawn-in Diaz. He threw to third to get Arenado, who was able to slide back to the base headfirst ahead of the throw and leave the bases loaded.
That play set up pinch hitter Carlos Gonzalez's sacrifice fly, and Tony Wolters then stroked a two-run single to left.
Chris Rusin had allowed one home run in 27 innings in his first 17 appearances but gave up Pham's fifth homer that trimmed the Rockies' lead to 4-3 in the seventh.
Solo homers by Gyorko and Garcia off German Marquez cut the Rockies' lead to 4-2 in the sixth. Gyroko's homer was his eighth, and Garcia's was his first of the season.
The two homers in a three-batter span matched the number Marquez (4-2) had yielded in 35 innings in six previous starts this season.
Marquez lasted 5 2/3 innings, departing after Eric Fryer drove a double into the gap in left-center field. Rockies manager Bud Black summoned Rusin to face pinch hitter Jhonny Peralta, who lined to center.
Marquez wiggled out of trouble in the fifth, getting Matt Carpenter to ground out with the bases loaded. Fryer singled with one out when Reynolds lost his popup in the sun at first base.
After pitcher Lance Lynn's sacrifice, Dexter Fowler singled, the ball deflecting off Marquez to shortstop.
Marquez issued his only walk to Pham but retired Carpenter.
Lynn (4-3) gave up six hits and a season-high tying four runs five innings. Parra lofted Lynn's 1-0 slider into the right-field stands for his sixth homer, a three-run shot that gave the Rockies a 4-0 lead in the fourth. Arenado opened the inning with a walk, and Reynolds singled ahead of Parra, who is one homer shy of his 2016 total.
NOTES: Cardinals 2B Kolten Wong (left elbow stiffness) was placed on the 10-day disabled list retroactive to Saturday. The Cardinals selected the contract of IF Paul DeJong from Triple-A Memphis. He made major league debut pinch hitting in the ninth and homered off closer Greg Holland, becoming the ninth Cardinals player to homer in his first major league at-bats. ... Cardinals RHP John Brebbia, who joined the team Saturday, made his major league debut and got Trevor Story to fly out to end the eighth. ... Rockies RHP Jon Gray (left foot stress fracture) threw 30-35 pitches in his first bullpen session without wearing a walking boot. ... Rockies RF Carlos Gonzalez was not in the lineup after playing 11 games in 10 straight days since a May 17 rainout at Minnesota. Gonzalez delivered a pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the eighth.
May 28, 2017
DENVER -- The Colorado Rockies have been methodically efficient when it comes to winning series and used a late rally to chalk up another one Sunday.
A four-run eighth inning steered the Rockies to an 8-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The victory in the rubber game enabled the Rockies to win their fifth straight series and improve to 12-2-2 in series this season.
Gerardo Parra hit a three-run homer for the Rockies in the fourth, putting them ahead 4-0. Jedd Gyorko, Greg Garcia and Tommy Pham offset Parra's blast with solo homers, cutting the lead to one run.
The win before a sellout crowd of 48,372 at Coors Field -- Colorado's fourth sellout of the season -- was the sixth in eight games and 10th in 14 for the Rockies. The Cardinals last won consecutive games on May 13-14 and have since gone 3-8.
The Rockies pushed across the first run of the game in the third. Back-to-back, one-out singles by Parra and Ian Desmond put runners at the corners. Alexi Amarista smashed a hard grounder to third baseman Gyorko, who was positioned at the lip of the infield.
After the ball deflected of his glove, Gyroko had no play at the plate on Parra, who was running on contact, and took the sure out at first.
DJ LeMahieu opened the Rockies' eighth with a single and took second on Matt Bowman's wild pitch. Nolan Arenado grounded to shortstop Aledyms Diaz, whose throw to third was not in time to get LeMahieu.
Mark Reynolds flared an opposite-field, run-scoring single into short right field. Parra grounded a ball to the drawn-in Diaz. He threw to third to get Arenado, who was able to slide back to the base headfirst ahead of the throw and leave the bases loaded.
That play set up pinch hitter Carlos Gonzalez's sacrifice fly, and Tony Wolters then stroked a two-run single to left.
Chris Rusin had allowed one home run in 27 innings in his first 17 appearances but gave up Pham's fifth homer that trimmed the Rockies' lead to 4-3 in the seventh.
Solo homers by Gyorko and Garcia off German Marquez cut the Rockies' lead to 4-2 in the sixth. Gyroko's homer was his eighth, and Garcia's was his first of the season.
The two homers in a three-batter span matched the number Marquez (4-2) had yielded in 35 innings in six previous starts this season.
Marquez lasted 5 2/3 innings, departing after Eric Fryer drove a double into the gap in left-center field. Rockies manager Bud Black summoned Rusin to face pinch hitter Jhonny Peralta, who lined to center.
Marquez wiggled out of trouble in the fifth, getting Matt Carpenter to ground out with the bases loaded. Fryer singled with one out when Reynolds lost his popup in the sun at first base.
After pitcher Lance Lynn's sacrifice, Dexter Fowler singled, the ball deflecting off Marquez to shortstop.
Marquez issued his only walk to Pham but retired Carpenter.
Lynn (4-3) gave up six hits and a season-high tying four runs five innings. Parra lofted Lynn's 1-0 slider into the right-field stands for his sixth homer, a three-run shot that gave the Rockies a 4-0 lead in the fourth. Arenado opened the inning with a walk, and Reynolds singled ahead of Parra, who is one homer shy of his 2016 total.
NOTES: Cardinals 2B Kolten Wong (left elbow stiffness) was placed on the 10-day disabled list retroactive to Saturday. The Cardinals selected the contract of IF Paul DeJong from Triple-A Memphis. He made major league debut pinch hitting in the ninth and homered off closer Greg Holland, becoming the ninth Cardinals player to homer in his first major league at-bats. ... Cardinals RHP John Brebbia, who joined the team Saturday, made his major league debut and got Trevor Story to fly out to end the eighth. ... Rockies RHP Jon Gray (left foot stress fracture) threw 30-35 pitches in his first bullpen session without wearing a walking boot. ... Rockies RF Carlos Gonzalez was not in the lineup after playing 11 games in 10 straight days since a May 17 rainout at Minnesota. Gonzalez delivered a pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the eighth.
