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Colorado Rockies: 3 pitching numbers to know from the first 3 games

By Kevin Henry |
SCOTTSDALE, AZ - FEBRUARY 19: Kyle Freeland #21 of the Colorado Rockies poses for a portrait at the Colorado Rockies Spring Training Facility at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on February 19, 2020 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Rob Tringali/Getty Images)
SCOTTSDALE, AZ - FEBRUARY 19: Kyle Freeland #21 of the Colorado Rockies poses for a portrait at the Colorado Rockies Spring Training Facility at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on February 19, 2020 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Rob Tringali/Getty Images)
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ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JULY 25: Daniel Bard #52 of the Colorado Rockies throws against the Texas Rangers in the fifth inning at Globe Life Field on July 25, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. The 2020 season had been postponed since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JULY 25: Daniel Bard #52 of the Colorado Rockies throws against the Texas Rangers in the fifth inning at Globe Life Field on July 25, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. The 2020 season had been postponed since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

The Colorado Rockies have a day off on Monday before starting a two-game series in Oakland against the A’s. Let’s take a look back at three numbers that stood out from their season-opening road series win over the Texas Rangers.

Let’s start with one of the best stories of the Major League Baseball season so far involving a Colorado Rockies reliever and his road to redemption.

Of course, there was a lot of joy surrounding Daniel Bard’s return to the mound for the first time in 2,646 days and earning his first win since May 29, 2012. However, one of the biggest reasons why Bard was successful in his return was his penchant for throwing strikes.

The first number to know from the weekend is 20.

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According to Baseball-Reference.com, Bard was just one of seven Rockies pitchers since the start of the 2017 season to throw 80 percent of his pitches for strikes (minimum 20 pitches). Bard had 20 of his 25 pitches go for strikes against the Rangers. That’s not bad for a player who wasn’t sure if he’d ever return to the mound because of control issues.

Chris Rusin threw 19 of 22 pitches for strikes on August 9, 2017, in a road win against the Cleveland Indians for the best percentage of strikes thrown during that time frame. Also on the list were a couple of recent Rockies cuts in Bryan Shaw and Jake McGee, plus Antonio Senzatela, Scott Oberg, and James Pazos.

And, hey, Bard didn’t even have to worry about finding some tape for his jersey number this time. What a weekend it was.

ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JULY 26: Kyle Freeland (21) of the Colorado Rockies pitches against the Texas Rangers in the bottom of the first inning at Globe Life Field on July 26, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JULY 26: Kyle Freeland (21) of the Colorado Rockies pitches against the Texas Rangers in the bottom of the first inning at Globe Life Field on July 26, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

It’s very clear that Rockies fans are still Kyle Freeland Guys and Gals. On Sunday, Freeland reminded everyone how sharp he can be on the mound.

The second number to know from the weekend is 12.

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In Sunday’s 5-2 win over Texas, Freeland grabbed his first road win since March 28, 2019 at Miami. That was Opening Day and would be the last time the 27-year-old southpaw would win on the road in what was a horrific 2019 for him.

How bad was it for Freeland last year on the road after Miami? He went 0-7 over 12 starts away from Denver the rest of the season. Yes, the win in Texas snapped a 12-game winless streak for Freeland away from Coors Field.

How good has Freeland been in his first starts of the season during his career? Sunday’s win moved him to 3-1 with a 2.96 ERA in four career season debut starts.

Can Freeland keep up the momentum we saw in Texas when he scattered four hits over six innings? We’ll find out when Freeland next takes the mound, a scheduled Saturday start in Denver against the San Diego Padres.

ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JULY 26: Yency Almonte #62 of the Colorado Rockies pitches against the Texas Rangers in the bottom of the seventh inning at Globe Life Field on July 26, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JULY 26: Yency Almonte #62 of the Colorado Rockies pitches against the Texas Rangers in the bottom of the seventh inning at Globe Life Field on July 26, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

The second number to know from the weekend is 13.

In a stretch from the fourth to eighth innings on Sunday, Colorado pitchers retired 13 consecutive Rangers. That stretches from a fourth-inning leadoff walk to Todd Frazier off starter Kyle Freeland to Nick Solak’s two-out single in the eighth off reliever Yency Almonte.

That single would be the only hit for the Rangers over the game’s final six innings as closer Wade Davis worked a perfect ninth to record his second save in two days.

While Freeland grabbed many of the pitching headlines on Sunday, the work on the mound from Almonte and Davis was an extremely positive sign for the Rockies. Both relievers had plenty of question marks attached to them heading into the season. However, on Sunday, they combined for three scoreless frames of one-hit ball while issuing no walks and striking out three.

Yes, it’s early in the season. Yes, it’s only three games. However, Colorado’s pitchers have combined for a 1.73 ERA and allowed just 16 hits while compiling a 1.077 WHIP in 26 innings of work. Those numbers are encouraging to say the least for a team that needed a strong start to the season to bolster thoughts of a potential playoff run. They are also encouraging for a team that has arguably its best reliever (Scott Oberg) on the injured list.

What Kyle Freeland said to German Marquez before his Opening Day start. dark. Next

With a 2-1 mark, it’s on to Oakland where Antonio Senzatela and German Marquez will make the start on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, for the Rockies.

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