Colorado Rockies morning after: Charlie Blackmon comes through

CHICAGO — If there’s one thing that Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black has learned through the years, it’s that you are never wise to count out Charlie Blackmon in a clutch situation.

Charlie Blackmon came up big for the Colorado Rockies against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday

Blackmon, suffering through a tough Chicago trip and September overall, roped a one-out triple to right to plate pinch runner Garrett Hampson and break a 1-1 tie in the ninth inning as the Colorado Rockies downed the Chicago Cubs 3-1 on Saturday afternoon at Wrigley Field.

The RBI triple represented Blackmon’s 35th RBI of the season away from Coors Field, the most of any Rockies player. It also was his fifth triple of the season, earning him a spot as one of only eight National League players with five or more triples this year.

All of those statistics, however, are throughout the season. In the near past, Blackmon was just 1-for-8 with four strikeouts in two games earlier in the week against the Chicago White Sox before sitting on Friday. It was part of a frustrating September where he logged a .122 batting average in 11 games this month before Saturday. Blackmon was also hitting just .217 in the span after the All-Star break.

However, all of that went out the window with Saturday’s clutch hit, one that was celebrated in the Colorado dugout not because of the way it changed the complexion of the game, but also for what it meant in terms of Blackmon’s recent struggles at the plate.

“One of the great things I like about this team is the camaraderie and the unselfishness of guys pulling for each other,” Black said. “The group pulls harder for Charlie because of what he means to the guys and the example that he sets every day about how to be a pro at this job. So the guys were really fired up.”

Blackmon scored on a single up the middle from Elias Diaz to give the Rox the 3-1 edge and turn the game over to Daniel Bard, who allowed one hit on his way to recording his 31st save of the season.

Colorado starter Jose Ureña continued a recent run of good pitching, scattering seven hits over six innings while allowing just one run. He has now allowed two or fewer runs in three of his last four outings and hasn’t surrendered a home run in five straight starts, tied for the longest stretch of his career.

Urena has also been somewhat unlucky on the mound, getting just two or fewer runs of support in 11 of his last 14 outings.

Now 2-2 on their five-game journey through the Windy City, the Rockies will send Ryan Feltner (2-8, 6.12 ERA) to the mound on Sunday while the Cubs will counter with Javier Assad (1-1, 2.53 ERA).