Colorado Rockies Torch LA Bullpen in Comeback Win

It was mixed results for Jon Gray in his inaugural Colorado Rockies appearance of 2016. Brandon Barnes, however, made sure that the Rockies ended the night on a high note.

Barnes came off the bench to lace a two-run eighth-inning triple off Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Chris Hatcher as the Rockies opened their three-game series against the Dodgers with a come-from-behind 7-5 victory.

“I was looking for three and trying to get another guy in scoring position,” Barnes said. “I got a pitch where I was looking and didn’t try to do too much with it.”

LA’s bullpen came into the night allowing just one run in their last 26.1 innings pitched. Colorado scored three times against Dodger relievers to earn the win.

“We know we’re going to hit,” Barnes said. “This is more of a family now. We have a good group of guys and everybody feeds off of each other. We want to battle for each other and give everything we have for each other. That’s the only way that we’re going to get to where we want to go.”

Gray established a new career high with 10 strikeouts but also gave up five runs in five innings, including what could’ve been a devastating first inning.

The 24-year-old right-hander quickly fell behind to open the game, giving up a leadoff triple to Chase Utley before Corey Seager smashed a two-run homer to dead center to give the visitors a 2-0 lead. One out later, Colorado Rockies killer Adrian Gonzalez launched a 2-2 pitch into the second deck of right field, pushing the Los Angeles lead to 3-0.

Gray would settle down from there, retiring the next six batters and not allowing another hit until Yasiel Puig notched a one-out single in the fourth.

“You don’t really have a choice. You stay out there and get rocked or buckle down so I did my best to keep us in the game,” Gray said. “I felt a little funny at first but after I decided I wasn’t going to let it happen any more, I felt a lot better. I had a ton of confidence in my pitches and the defense behind me.”

Colorado’s offense would battle back to give Gray a lead and put him in position to earn his first-ever MLB victory. Nolan Arenado led off the fourth with a 435-foot blast to left field to slice the Los Angeles advantage to 3-2. One out later, Gerardo Parra singled and Ryan Raburn hit a two-run laser over the left field fence to give the Rockies a 4-3 edge.

“It was a good game and a big team win and I was glad I could contribute,” Raburn said. “I faced (Los Angeles starting pitcher Scott) Kazmir a little bit and he’s owned me pretty good. I think he missed his spot a little and left it over the plate just enough that I could get the barrel on it.”

Colorado’s lead, however, wouldn’t last long. Gonzalez would come back to haunt Gray and the Rockies in the fifth with a two-out, two-run, bases-loaded single that once again gave the Dodgers the lead, this time at 5-4.

That would be the end of the night for Gray, who gave up five runs on seven hits in his 95-pitch performance.

Colorado’s bullpen cooled off Los Angeles for the final four innings, allowing just one hit and no walks. Chad Qualls worked a scoreless eighth to get his first win of the season and Jake McGee pitched the final frame for his fourth save.

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NOTES

⇒ Friday’s opener against the Dodgers marked a stretch of 20 consecutive games the Rockies will play until their next scheduled day off on May 12.

⇒ Heading into Friday’s game, since the start of the 2015 season, Arenado’s 146 RBI leads all MLB players. He has eight more during that span than anyone else in the league, and 24 more than anyone else in the National League.

He added another RBI on his fifth-inning solo homer off Kazmir.