Colorado Rockies Offense Breaks Out Against Pittsburgh

In a rare one-game series, Nolan Arenado and the Colorado Rockies offense broke out against the Pittsburgh Pirates on route to a 11-5 win on Thursday afternoon at Coors Field.

Making up a postponed game from earlier in the season, Chad Bettis, in need of a few good breaks, took on an athletic Pirates lineup. Despite heavy run support, Bettis faltered and is now the only Rockies staff member to not earn a quality start within the last week.

In another negative note, the Rockies were sloppy in the field as they committed three errors. To be fair, playing a make-up game between series (Pittsburgh had to break up its homestand just to come to Denver for the game) had to have been tough for both teams as energy was not easy to come by.

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Holding a 6-1 lead, Bettis could only muster three complete innings while yielding four earned runs. There is a silver lining however. Jorge De La Rosa, who has struggled this season for the Rockies, came on in relief and pitched a hitless four innings. De La Rosa struck out five batters and didn’t walk any, a very impressive rebound for the veteran to say the least.

Coming off of a 1-0 win in Los Angeles, the Rockies offensive was ready to pour it on … and poor Pirates starter Jeff Locke played right into it. On the day, five different Rockies finished with multiple hits. Nolan Arenado led the charge with three hits and two RBI. Batting second, DJ LeMahieu had a solid day at the plate. Finishing with three runs and three RBI, DJ launched a home run and a double off the wall for the home club.

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The Colorado Rockies return to National League West division action against the San Diego Padres on Friday night. Jon Gray will get the start in the series opener against the Padres. He’s 1-1 with a 1.96 ERA with four walks and 34 strikeouts in four career starts against San Diego. He has recorded 11 and 12 strikeouts in his last two starts against the Padres, respectively, and both were career-high marks.