Colorado Rockies Bullpen Overpowered Again In Loss To San Diego Padres

Aug 4, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies relief pitcher J. Miller (60) delivers a pitch in the ninth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Coors Field. The Mariners defeated the Rockies 10-4. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The Colorado Rockies finally returned home for a three-game series with the San Diego Padres, beginning Friday night at Coors Field.

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The San Diego Padres put up four runs in the top of the seventh inning to break a tie game and send them to an easy 9-5 victory over the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field in Denver on Friday night. Matt Kemp hit for the cycle in the game for the Padres — the first cycle in the history of the franchise — while driving in four runs.

Both teams jumped on the opposing starting pitchers early, with the Padres doing damage to Yohan Flande in the top of the first inning, to the tune of three runs in their first trip to the plate. Kemp slugged a two-run home run, followed by an RBI double from Jedd Gyorko.

The Rockies would answer back immediately though, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first when Nolan Arenado slugged a home run to left field with Carlos Gonzalez on base to bring the Rockies back within a run.

Flande would put up three straight zeros heading into the fifth inning, with the Rockies tying the score in the meantime thanks to a fourth inning sacrifice fly from Brandon Barnes that made it a 3-3 game off Padres’ starter Tyson Ross.

In the top of the fifth, Derek Norris hit a solo home run off Flande to re-take the lead in favor of San Diego, though the deficit wouldn’t last long for the Rockies.

After Flande worked through the rest of the fifth and a scoreless sixth, the Rockies took him off the hook for the loss in the bottom of the sixth when Barnes tripled home DJ LeMahieu, tying the game once again.

In all, Flande would throw six full innings, and while he allowed eight hits, he only walked one hitter, and struck out four while allowing his four runs. Flande threw 86 pitches — 64 of which were strikes.

The Padres would retake the lead with four runs off the Rockies’ bullpen in the top of the seventh inning, first from a Kemp double, and then from a Gyorko three-run home run off Rafael Betancourt to push the game out of reach at 8-4.

The Rockies would put another run on the board and got to 8-5 in the bottom of the seventh on Arenado’s infield single that scored Gonzalez thanks to a throwing error, but that was all the Rockies could get in the seventh off the Padres’ bullpen.

In the top of the ninth, the Padres would tack on more runs against Justin Miller when Kemp hit an RBI triple to make the game 9-5 — and give Kemp the first cycle. But, after Kemp was later thrown out at home plate attempting to score on a wild pitch, the Padres’ rally for more insurance runs ended with a four-run lead.

In addition to Kemp, Gyorko had a home run and four RBIs, and Norris homered and scored two runs to pace San Diego.

Craig Kimbrel came on for the Padres to close the game in the ninth, and besides a two-out single from Arenado, the Rockies couldn’t muster anything else.

The Rockies and Padres play again on Saturday night at 6:10 pm MT at Coors Field, before finishing their series on Sunday afternoon.

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