Colorado Rockies Offense Goes Dormant in Loss to LA

A balk, a passed ball, an eighth-inning meltdown and a lack of offense spelled doom for the Colorado Rockies on Friday night in Chavez Ravine.

Jorge De La Rosa threw seven impressive innings, allowing just two runs, but it was enough for the Los Angeles Dodgers to claim a 5-0 decision over the Rockies to start a three-game series at Dodger Stadium.

Adrian Gonzalez had a fourth-inning RBI single that drove in Chase Utley to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead and it would prove to be enough on a night where a fill-in starter for Los Angeles looked as much like Clayton Kershaw as Kershaw would have if he was able to make the start he was scheduled to make on Friday night.

With Kershaw sidelined with a bad back, the Dodgers made a trade with Atlanta earlier in the week to acquire Bud Norris and the move paid off in a big way against the Rockies. Norris allowed just two hits in six innings and struck out eight batters to completely handcuff Colorado.

A Charlie Blackmon double and Daniel Descalso single were the only pieces of damage the Rockies could inflict on Norris, who walked just one batter.

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Los Angeles took advantage of an opportunity in the seventh to expand its lead. Howie Kendrick and Yasiel Puig opened the frame with singles and moved to third and second, respectively, on a passed ball by Nick Hundley. Then, in a strange sequence, De La Rosa was called for a balk when it was determined he didn’t pause long enough in his delivery. Despite his protest, Kendrick trotted home and Puig moved to third as the Dodgers expanded their lead to 2-0.

The lead could’ve been more if not for an outstanding play in the outfield by Brandon Barnes. Filling in for the injured Gerardo Parra, Barnes fielded a fly ball from Trayce Thompson and fired home to get Puig, who tagged to try to score on the play.

Despite De La Rosa’s solid outing and Barnes’ laser-like throw, the Colorado Rockies had no answer on offense and Colorado’s bullpen imploded in the eighth to put the game out of reach.

Gonzalez Germen entered the game in the top of the eighth and surrendered hits to three of the four batters he faced. Chad Qualls followed Germen but couldn’t prevent two of those runners from scoring as the Dodgers boosted their lead to 5-0.

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Blackmon was Colorado’s lone offensive threat of the night, going 2-for-4 on his 30th birthday. In all, Colorado batters struck out 12 times in the game, including three from Nolan Arenado.