Rockies Lose Another Game 1-0 To Braves

Based only on the stat sheet, one might think that the similarities between the last two Rockies’ losses to the Braves are uncanny. A second consecutive 1-0 loss. A second consecutive game in which the Rockies lost despite allowing 0 earned runs. A second game in which the Braves had a starter throw 7 shutout innings.

Not pictured: Chacin’s failure to catch a throw from the catcher. Image: Daniel Shirey-US PRESSWIRE

Then you see how the Braves scored their only run. Yikes Jhoulys Chacin. Yikes.

At one point a long time ago, I played shortstop on my Little League team. That season I had a coach who screamed quite a bit, and he used to bellow it for everybody at the complex to hear if I failed to back up the catcher’s throw back to the pitcher.

“HAYDEN. You have to be sprinting in there, EVERY SINGLE TIME! Back that throw up!”

I thought it was stupid. Why? Because I had never seen the pros do it. Sure, they backed up throws, but they did not “sprint” towards the area behind the mound to do so. You see certain guys cheat that way when there is a runner on third, but otherwise this does not happen. If the pros didn’t do it, why should I have to?

Well, maybe they should be doing it, at least on the Rockies. Maybe Jim Tracy should scream at Troy Tulowitzki, Josh Rutledge, and company to sprint in there every time, because yesterday Chacin’s inexplicable mistake cost the Rockies a chance at a quality series split on the road against a likely playoff team.

Other than that moment, which is unquestionably the talking point of the game, it was another study in two pitching staffs who are getting the job done in decidedly different ways. Braves starter Tim Hudson delivered 7 shutout innings and handed it off to the back of his bullpen to finish the shutout. The Rockies, with Chacin laboring through 3.1 innings, used 4 more pitchers to grind out the rest of the game. Paired pitching versus traditional pitching, but the Rockies are surely hoping that they are onto something as they get results like these more and more frequently.

In the end you hate to see two outstanding pitching performances go wasted. This is especially true when the Rockies had a chance to nail down some quality road wins, an accomplishment that alludes this club in their best seasons, let alone this terrible one. They will try to rebound in Philadelphia this weekend.