Colorado Rockies morning after: A costly bullpen decision that raises even more questions

The Rockies manager didn’t think Freeland was throwing as well as he did earlier.

After the game, Bud Black described the situation leading up to removing Freeland from the game when he spoke with the media, including Rox Pile.

“At that point, Kyle started to hit a wall,” said Black. “His stuff wasn’t as crisp–I think–as that inning unfolded. He ended the sixth [inning] with two strikeouts [so] he looked good. After the inning, he said ‘I can give you one more [inning],’ and I said ‘Great, you’re throwing fine,” but during that inning, I thought that he just lost a little zip on his fastball. I think when he walked [Edwin] Rios, the lefty, I think that was a sign to take (Freeland) out. “[With Betts coming to bat] against Kyle, approaching 100 pitches when I thought his stuff was, maybe, not as crisp as it was earlier in the game, I thought that was not a great matchup so we went with Carlos [Estevez], who had three days of rest, who’s been throwing with good velocity of late–I think you saw that today, up to 98, 99–I thought that was a good matchup against Betts but he hung a slider on the 0-1 pitch and from there, it sort of unraveled.”

As Black mentioned, two pitches in and Estevez gives up the lead. Okay, he inherits two runners on and one out. The chance that a run will score is fairly high. But two pitches later, another run scores. Two more pitches later, another run scores on a wild pitch.

Justin Turner strikes out after the wild pitch but Max Muncy walks on six pitches and three pitches later, Will Smith doubles in two runs, making it 7-2 Dodgers. The Rockies have to burn another reliever in Jairo Diaz and, frankly, the game is over already.

However, Diaz walks Cody Bellinger, Tony Wolters allows two passed balls in the same AB to Chris Taylor, who draws a bases-loaded walk on the final passed ball, and the game is completely out of reach at 8-2.

Black said that he did consider Betts and Freeland’s past history (Betts is 0-for-8 against Freeland in his career) but Black said that “there were some good swings [from Betts] in that 0-for-8, for sure, but I think it was more about where Kyle was physically more than anything.”

Black also pointed out that Betts was 0-for-3 against Estevez before he delivered what ended up being the game-winning hit.

Black said that he thinks that a “big part” of Estevez’s problems lately have been pitch location.

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So, why Carlos Estevez?

Even with Betts not faring well against Estevez, why didn’t Bud Black turn to one of his most reliable relievers in 2020 or the club’s trade deadline acquistion: Yency Almonte and Mychal Givens? They haven’t pitched since Sunday and last Friday, after all, so they should be available.

But, seemingly, neither one of them were.

“[Givens] and Almonte are both getting closer to returning,” said Black. You notice, both of those guys haven’t pitched in a while but, again, I tried to give those guys another day [off] but they’re part of our bullpen when we have a lead but they’ve been down for a few days.”

Now the question is this: Why are Givens and Almonte not available in a tie game in the 7th inning in the first game of a four-game series against your biggest rival at home in a series that could make or break your season, that is already on the precipice of being over?

Are they injured? Are they having some other issues that we don’t know about? Or did Bud Black really want to give each of them another day off, when they had three and five days of rest entering the game (meaning they should not be tired)?

Some of those reasons are understandable. Some are not.

Now, with the loss, the Rockies find themselves behind four teams for the final National League Playoff spot: the Phillies (who have the final spot), the Cardinals, Brewers, and Mets. Only two games separate the four teams but the Rockies, with the way they have been playing lately, do not look like a team that should be anywhere near the playoffs, even with it being expanded to 16 teams.