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Colorado Rockies Win 3-2 Behind Yohan Flande’s Arm, Bat

By Bobby DeMuro

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Aug 20, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Y. Flande (58) following a strikeout in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The Colorado Rockies and Washington Nationals finished their three game set at Coors Field in Denver on Thursday evening. 

2. 90. Final. 3. 108

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Yohan Flande out-pitched Max Scherzer, and he also nearly out-hit the Washington Nationals on his own, with the lefty starter leading the Colorado Rockies to a 3-2 victory on Thursday night in Denver at Coors Field.

Both Flande and Nationals’ starter Max Scherzer were dominant early, with neither team able to score off the respective starters until the Rockies pushed a run across the board in the bottom of the fifth inning. It was on a double from Jose Reyes, and Flande himself scored the game’s first run after he had singled off Scherzer earlier in the inning, putting the Rockies up 1-0.

The Rockies took a 2-0 lead off Scherzer in the bottom of the sixth inning, and Flande was involved in it again. After Matt McBride singled and worked his way around to third base, Flande hit an infield single that was able to score McBride, giving the Rockies a 2-0 lead, and giving starter pitcher Flande two hits, a run, and an RBI at the plate on the day.

The real story was Flande on the mound, though. He made one mistake on the day; in the top of the seventh inning, with two outs, Flande walked Ryan Zimmerman (who had homered twice off the lefty last week in Washington), and opted instead to face Michael Taylor.

Taylor promptly hit a two-run home run off Flande to tie the game on a home run that was estimated to have traveled 493 feet. If the distance is true, that makes Taylor’s homer the second longest home run ever hit at Coors Field.

Nevertheless, and even with the home run, Flande was phenomenal as a starter on this night, going seven innings and allowing just the two runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out five batters on 89 pitches (55 strikes).

He would leave in a tie game, but in the bottom of the seventh before he was replaced (eventually by Scott Oberg), the Rockies pushed another run across to make the game 3-2 and put Flande in line for the win. In that inning, Carlos Gonzalez scored on Ben Paulsen‘s RBI single on a run that would be charged to Scherzer, and line him up for the loss in this rare Coors Field pitcher’s duel.

After Oberg tossed a scoreless eighth inning, John Axford came on for the ninth, and got two outs with a hit and a walk allowed, only to face Taylor again with two outs and the tying run at third base. Axford struck Taylor out, though, and the Rockies won 3-2.

The Rockies will now face the New York Mets for three games beginning Friday night at Coors Field in Denver.

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