Rockies Refuse to Spoil Playoff Hopes of San Francisco

Tonight the Rockies looked to spoil the Giants chances of making the playoffs by working in conjunction with the Cardinals. The Cardinals did their job by winning on a walk-off double (however fishy it may have been). The Rockies had their chances to play spoiler for the Dodgers and weren’t able to pull it off due to pitching issues (sound familiar?), and a few ridiculous errors. The wheels fell off in the 6th, with several base hits, a few errors, and some all-around bad playing, giving the Giants a 5-2 lead. The Giants added on later, ending the night and winning the game 7-2.

The Rockies got the bats rolling quickly, driving in two runs on three extra-base hits, one of which was by Nolan Arenado, giving him a career high 131 RBIs. After giving up two runs on three hits in the first, Giants starter Johnny Cueto seemed to settle in. Although the Rockies had a base hit in each inning, nothing of consequence came from it. The Rockies bats were quiet for the rest of the game, managing only a couple of softly hit balls.

Jon Gray was on his game early today. After giving up a leadoff walk, Gray settled in and moved through the lineup with ease. He gave up a pair of runs in the fourth, but never appeared to lose control. In the 6th inning Gray was pulled after the Rockies gave up three runs and committing two errors. If you want to look at a silver lining, at least it wasn’t the bullpen.

I guess?

The Rockies gave up another two runs in the 8th and played another bullpen dance, switching pitchers around trying to find a ‘perfect matchup’ to get the final out of the inning.

Here are a few takeaway’s from tonight’s game… as bleak as it was.

1.) Rockies are allergic to spoiling postseason dreams

The Rockies have had several opportunities in the last two games to send a team home for the postseason and not to the playoffs. Both times we find a way to send our enemies charging forward into October with a moral (and actual) victory. After everything the fans have gone through this season, is it really too much to ask? We just want a little satisfaction knowing that we send the Giants home too.

2.) We have a lot of young talent

David Dahl only continues to get better with time… which should scare opponents because he came into the league on fire. Tom Murphy is also looking incredibly promising and will develop into a great catcher, given some time. Jordan Patterson got an AB in the ninth as well.

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Combine that with the strong rookie pitchers that we have and the Rockies are looking pretty good for a couple of years. This is assuming we can keep our core group together and greatly strengthen out the bullpen.

3.) DJ wasn’t in the lineup

One notable absence from the game was DJ LeMahieu. Apparently manager Walt Weiss is trying to help him win a batting title by protecting his batting average. It is said that he will play against Milwaukee in the final series of the season, and the odds are looking good for a National League batting title coming to Denver.

Next: Colorado Rockies Not Playing Spoiler Role Very Well

Which is something that we all need at this point in the season.