Coors Crown: Elehuris Montero
These three games were so up and down it made it hard to choose the best and worst. I’ve been on the Elehuris Montero train all year and I’m going to stand by it. His approach is much improved from last season, and he hits the ball so hard. Montero was the only Rocky to hit in all three games of the series, going 4-11 in total for a .364 average. Montero raised his season average to .225, a better reflection of his quality of contact. He scorched baseballs against the Blue Jays, with three of his four hits tallying an exit velocity over 106 mph. I love the improvements and adjustments Montero has made to his offensive game this year, and I would advise Rockies fans to hop on the bandwagon because he continues to show signs of developing into a really exciting player.
Rockiest Rocky: Tyler Kinley
The guys who were supposed to be the “medium leverage” bullpen arms have been pretty good thus far. Peter Lambert, Nick Mears, Victor Vodnik, and Jalen Beeks have been solid overall. The guys who were supposed to be the high leverage, eighth and ninth innings guys entrusted in finishing the tight games? Not so much. Jake Bird, Tyler Kinley, and Justin Lawrence have all been shaky to start their respective seasons and, in some outings, just straight bad. Kinley was called upon to pitch the ninth in Friday’s win and gave up two more runs in one inning of work. Kinley allowed a wild pitch as well as a home run to known contact hitter Isiah Kiner-Falefa. While it didn’t cost Colorado the game and they still walked away with the win, Bud Black expected much more out of Tyler Kinley than the 12.00 ERA and 3.00 WHIP he currently holds.
Stat Pack:
Offensive Highlights:
Ezequiel Tovar: 3-13, 1 HR (series); .317 AVG, 3 HR, .906 OPS (season totals)
Kris Bryant: 3-7, 2 RBI; .149 AVG, 1 HR, 6 RBI
Ryan McMahon: 4-12, 2 RBI; .373 AVG, 11 RBI, 1.016 OPS
Brenton Doyle: 4-13, 1 HR; .288 AVG; 3 HR, .848 OPS
Nolan Jones: 4-12, 1 HR; .190 AVG, 1 HR, 6 RBI
Pitching Highlights:
Ryan Feltner: 5 IP, 2 ER, 1 W (series); 3.38 ERA, 1-1 W/L, 18 K (season totals)
Peter Lambert: 3 IP, 0 ER, 3 K; 1.80 ERA, 10 IP, 8 K
Dakota Hudson: 6 IP, 5 ER, 5 K; 4.15 ERA, 17.1 IP, 11 K
Kyle Freeland: 5 IP, 4 ER, 3 K; 13.21 ERA, 15.2 IP, 9 K
Victor Vodnik: 2 IP, 0 ER; 0.00 ERA, 10.2 IP, 9 K
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