Rock Solid Recrap: The Rockies Scored A Run!

Dodgers 7, Rockies 1 (boxscore)

What Went Right: The Rockies scored a run in the 4th inning, which snapped a 26-inning scoreless streak! Thanks, Andrew Brown!

Watch Andrew Brown's home run 

What Went Wrong: Well, as you can imagine, only scoring one run in an entire series is a recipe for being swept. So yeah, the Rockies were swept. They were pretty much unwatchable games the whole weekend. And the road to 100 continues with three games left to go. Buckle up.

Turning Point: The Rockies scored their run to take a 1-0 lead. Then the Dodgers scored four runs in the bottom half to take command of the game. Those four runs came on two-run homers from Matt Kemp and the legendary Luis Cruz.

Jorge De La Rosa's Line: 4 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, 0 BB, 3 K, 2 HR, 67 pitches (46 strikes)

Four innings and done. Four innings and done. Four innings and done. These pitching lines ALL look the same, though it's always good to see De La Rosa avoiding the walks. That's a small positive that does stand out here. As does his good health to end the year.

Bullpen's Line: 4 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, 5 K

Rob Scahill was touched up for a run on three hits in the 5th. That's the first run he's allowed this season. Alex White then continued to struggle in the relief role by allowing two runs on three hits and two walks. The only clean reliever was Carlos Torres, who struck out two in the 8th.

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Rock Solid Recap: Charlie Blackmon Homers, Helps Rockies Preserve 7th Shutout

Rockies 6, Cubs 0 (boxscore)

Winning Player: Charlie Blackmon

Blackmon had solid day at the plate with his third career home run and another run scored.

Watch Charlie Blackmon's solo homer

He also had a key play in left field where he threw out Joe Mather at third base trying to advance on a flyball, which kept the Rockies 7th shutout intact as the tag was applied before Josh Vitters could touch home. Really a fantastic throw that almost had you wondering if Carlos Gonzalez was out there.

Watch Charlie Blackmon's great throw

Honorable Mentions: The entire Rockies pitching staff.

Drew Pomeranz's Line: 5 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 3 BB, 3 K, 84 pitches (51 strikes)

The opponent has to be taken into consideration, but this is still a pretty solid performance for Pomeranz. Granted, the three walks are a bit high, but to see him work a little deeper and put up nothing but 0's overrides that. And really, any step that isn't directly backwards is a positive for Drew as he wraps up this highly disappointing season.

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Rock Solid Recrap: Rockies Embarrassed By D-Backs 15-5

Diamondbacks 15, Rockies 5 (boxscore)

What Went Wrong: In case you haven't noticed, the Rockies pathetic September play is no mirage... it's a trend. A really ugly, inexcusable, unacceptable trend.

Well, I should say unacceptable to us. It's perfectly acceptable to the Monforts and the people they trust to make baseball decisions.

I don't care who's hurt or how little this team has to play for in the standings, there's no excuse for not competing. But that's exactly what's going on right now. The Rockies are getting trounced and run in circles by playoff teams, mediocre teams, and it wouldn't surprise me next week if the awful Cubs did the same. At least they're competing. At least they're going at a team like the St. Louis Cardinals and making their life difficult.

I just want to feel like they're going to win a game. I'm not even sure if I care whether or not they actually do win, I just want to feel like they could. Would that be too much to ask for?

Drew Pomeranz's Line: 3 IP, 4 ER, 4 H, 5 BB, 4 K, 85 pitches (50 strikes)

Please, just shut the kid down already. His confidence appears to be shot... again. It's painful to watch. He's not giving the team a chance to win. Let him go sit and watch somewhere and let's pray we have people in place next season that can fix him and keep him fixed.

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Rock Solid Recrap: Well, At Least They Outscored The Cowboys & Jets

Padres 12, Rockies 11 (boxscore)

What Went Wrong: Listen, anytime you score 11 runs and lose, it's obvious what went wrong. However, anytime you score 11 runs and lose at Petco Park, you've taken wrong to a whole new level of rotten. Eesh.

Alex White's Line: 4 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 4 H, 3 BB, 2 K, 81 pitches (41 strikes)

Lather. Rinse. Four innings. Nearly 50-50 strike-ball ratio. Repeat. Nothing to see here that you haven't already seen a dozen times.

Adam Ottavino's Line: 2/3 IP, 7 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 1 K

Ottavino just didn't have it, and when you're married to this piggyback system you're pretty much screwed in this scenario. I mean where do you turn? The other piggybacks can't go today. You can't extend one of your late guys. As @Stars5Steve says on Twitter, you're managing to a system that creates little flexibility, not the game flow.

I couldn't think a dumber way to approach baseball than what the Rockies have been doing this season, and will do in an updated form next spring.

Turning Point: This one took some really wild turns: The Rockies scored five straight early to take a 5-1 lead. Then San Diego scored ten straight, including the eight-run 5th against Adam Ottavino and Matt Reynolds. And then in the 8th Colorado rallied for six thanks largely to Josh Rutledge's first career grand slam.

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Rock Solid Recap: Rockies Win Behind Alex White's Bat And Arm

Rockies 6, Giants 5 (boxscore)

Winning Player: Alex White 4 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 0 BB, 2 K, 1 HR, 76 pitches (47 strikes)

I give White the nod for two reasons.

1) His pitching performance was a big step in the right direction compared to his recent outings. Look no further than the walk column for evidence of that, because it's the first time in 11 starts (June 20) that he's put a zero there.

2) Watch Alex White's first career home run

Overall it was a very productive night for White, but more importantly it felt like a meaningful one. More of these in the future would be welcomed.

Honorable Mentions: Rafael Betancourt (perfect 9th to earn the save, only Rockie pitcher to not allow a run), Tyler Colvin (two hits, one run, one blunder) and Chris Nelson (triple, run, RBI).

Turning Point: Matt Belisle, like the rest of the Rockies bullpen save for Rafael Betancourt, didn't have his best stuff, but he was still able to escape a potentially disasterous situation in the 8th inning.

After allowing a walk, single, and run scoring double to Angel Pagan, Belisle was left to face Marco Scutaro and Pablo Sandoval with the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position. He would retire Scutaro on a groundball to Jordan Pacheco, which was a very nice play on his part. He then got Sandoval to hit a lazy flyball to left field, ending the inning, and proving once again that despite the enormous workload (over 70 appearance three straight years) he's about as reliable as they come in any bullpen role.

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Rock Solid Recrap: If You Like Offense, Look Away Right Now

Braves 1, Rockies 0 (boxscore)

What Went Wrong: Well, the first thing would probably be the Rockies going hitless against Mike Minor until Jordan Pacheco's single leading off the 7th inning. That's obviously a discouraging occurrence for an offense. The second thing would be only adding one more hit after the first hit. Of course they did draw six walks in the game, which is on the plus side, but they couldn't put enough of those together to create one or two measly runs.

On the flip side, Colorado's pitching staff would combine to allow seven walks, which is a disturbing number.  Amazingly, Atlanta only turned that into one run because they also struggled to come up with hits (only four). So basically this was a slow, ugly, and at times difficult to watch baseball game, and the end result didn't make it worthwhile.

Turning Point: As unappealing as it was, this was still an evenly played game throughout. The only play that separated them was Josh Rutledge's 4th inning throwing error as he attempted to turn a rally-killing double play. Rutledge's throw sailed wide of Jordan Pacheco and ended up hitting the fencing in front of the first base dugout. This allowed Chipper Jones to stroll home with the lone run.

Watch the error here

Worth mentioning that was Freddie Freeman with the big league takeout slide at second. Sometimes those make all the difference in a tightly contested game.

Alex White's Line: 4 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 4 BB, 0 K, 71 pitches (32 strikes)

That ball-strike ratio is embarrassing. I will argue forever the four-man rotation/pitch count that is now strictly a pitch count is doing no good for the Rockies young pitchers, but it's also past time for Alex White to start throwing strikes consistently. You can't trust a pitcher in any type of role if they aren't throwing strikes. That goes for any level of play.

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Rock Solid Recrap: Rockies Close Surprisingly Successful August With Loss

Padres 5, Rockies 4 (boxscore) 

What Went Wrong: Not a lot, really. I felt like both teams played a solid and watchable game, which is not often the case from 4th and 5th place teams on the final day of August. The Padres just played a little bit better, as they have been overall over the past month, and eeked out the win.

Turning Point: Again, a pretty straight forward game that was well played but didn't have a lot of eb and flow. San Diego jumped out 3-0 in the first three innings thanks to a Carlos Quentin solo homer and RBIs from Logan Forsythe and Chase Headley. The Rockies chipped away, mostly with solo homers of their own (Jordan Pacheco, Wilin Rosario and Andrew Brown) but San Diego stayed at least one step ahead until the 27th out.

Alex White's Line: 3 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 2 K, 1 HR, 76 pitches (49 strikes)

White snapped his string of four inning starts at five, so that was different. Unfortunately, he's only gone past the magical four inning mark one time in his last 10 starts, so that's pretty bad. I guess that's why the Rockies see him in the hybrid role next season. Personally, I still see him as a third or fourth starter on a major league team. If the Rockies ever go back to being one of those, he could still be useful.

Bullpen's Line: 5 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 2 K

I hope they all enjoyed their day off. They only have one more (Sept. 13) until the end of the season.

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Rock Solid Recap: Rockies Put Rare Resilience On Display

Rockies 4, Cubs 3 (boxscore)

I'm not used to this from the 2012 Colorado Rockies. They lost a game they absolutely should have won on Friday. Then they fell behind on Saturday 3-0, which is often times a sign the game is about to get ugly (especially away from Coors Field), but the Rockies bullpen held things in check, the defense held strong, and the bats provided just enough timely hits to complete the comeback.

Dare I say, they looked like winners.

Winning Players: The Bullpen... again. 5 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 4 K

The win goes to Carlos Torres, who pitched  2 1/3 scoreless at the piggyback reliever. Rex Brothers added a strong 1 1/3 and now has a scoreless streak of 7 1/3 innings over five appearances. Will Harris, who has served in the setup lately when Matt Belisle needs a day off, retired the only batter he faced to end the 8th. Rafael Betancourt was flawless in the 9th to earn his 26th save. Brilliance abounds in the bullpen right now.

Turning Point: Two big moments stand out for me.

The first, Josh Rutledge's pinch-hit, two-run homer in the 5th that got Colorado on the scoreboard and cut the deficit to 3-2.

Watch Josh Rutledge go yard

The second came after the Rockies grabbed the lead in the 7th. The Cubs were putting together a little rally with runners on 1st and 2nd with two outs. For some unknown reason, manager Dale Sveum elected to put the double steal on at that point, and Wilin Rosario put the fire out with a strong throw to cut down the trail runner Joe Mather.

Watch Wilin Rosario kill a rally

Huge play. And what makes it more impressive is that he dug out a ball in the dirt and still had the ability to make a good throw, and also had the presence of mind to throw to the correct spot. Very encouraging stuff from Rosario, who seems to be gaining confidence by the day behind the plate.

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Rock Solid Recap: Rockies Earn Win With Jumbled Lineup

Rockies 3, Mets 1 (boxscore)

Most of the names in the lineup were unrecognizable to people who don't follow the Rockies closely (and even some who do), yet they found a way to start their road trip on the right track with a win over the New York Mets. And to make it more satisfying, they won a game started by Cy Young candidate R.A. Dickey (no-decision for him).

Winning Player: Tyler Colvin

First base belongs to Colvin again with Michael Cuddyer back on the disabled list. He took advantage of the playing time on Monday night, breaking Colorado into the scoring column with a mammoth second deck bomb off Dickey in the 5th.

Watch Tyler Colvin's home run

But that was just his first big moment in the game. In the 8th, with the Mets threatening to retake the lead, Colvin make a fantastic diving stop of a Jordany Valdespin groundout that was ticketed for the right field corner. Colvin then gathered himself and flipped to Matt Belisle (who was a little late covering) JUST in time to get the out.

Big time play.

Without the out, the game would have been tied and New York still has the bases loaded. If the ball gets down the line, it likely clears the bases and we know the result that would lead to.

And then to cap his night, Colvin singled in the 9th to keep the inning alive. One batter later, Ramon Hernandez gave the Rockies an insurance run with a single of his own.

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Rock Solid Recap: Good Baseball Is Fun — Rockies Win 4th Straight!

The Colorado Rockies have certainly been a huge disappointment this season, but at least they're beating up on the National League's two biggest disappointments — the Milwaukee Brewers and Miami Marlins. 

Rockies 5, Marlins 3 (boxscore)

That's four wins in a row now. Four!

A win on Friday would be five. Five!

Five would equal their longest winning streak of the season, but I'm getting way ahead of myself here. Let's just enjoy four.

I would say the Rockies pitched well overall on Thursday night, but haven't pitched incredible during this homestand. That was especially true in the later innings against Milwaukee. But the reason those six runs Milwaukee scored in all three games on that series didn't balloon to nine or ten is because the Rockies haven't been shooting themselves in the foot with ill-timed errors. And when they have made a mistake like Jonathan Herrera's error tonight, they haven't compounded it with another mental or physical miscue.

They have kept their focus. They have limited damage in the field. They have taken advantage and maximized opportunities to score runs. They are simply playing really good baseball, and have been since the last road trip started in Los Angeles.

Better late than never... I guess.

Winning Player: Welcome back, Michael Cuddyer!

His two-run homer in the 6th tied the game at three and ended up serving as the turning point for Colorado.

Watch Michael Cuddyer's game-tying blast

The Rockies would then score two more in the 7th on a Josh Rutledge pinch-hit RBI triple and a successful safety squeeze bunt from Eric Young Jr.

Watch EY2's effective bunt

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Rock Solid Recrap: Tired Bullpen Falters In San Francisco

Giants 9, Rockies 6 (boxscore)

What Went Wrong: Not really a big fan of making excuses for failed performance on the baseball field, but it's hard to get around them when looking at the Colorado Rockies bullpen situation. Most of the guys out there are toast, and the ones who aren't toast are seemingly working on fumes.

So many unnecessary innings, not only for the piggyback guys, but that next layer as well that includes Matt Belisle, Rex Brothers and Matt Reynolds. Unfortunately. I think Belisle may have finally crossed the line to toast in his 56th appearance on Sunday afternoon after wobbling in the 7th inning and falling completely apart in the 8th inning.

Matt Belisle's Line: 1 1/3 IP,  4 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 1 K, 35 pitches (21 strikes)

Jim Tracy rode Belisle until he had nothing left (and then continued riding him for another 10 pitches or so). He then turned to Rafael Betancourt for a five-out save opportunity. Three batters later — sacrifice fly, three-run homer and a double — Betancourt was out, and the Rockies 6-4 lead entering the inning was now a 9-6 deficit.

Such a disappointing result after the offense battled back from an early deficit to take control in the middle innings. And, as usual, there's no reason to not draw a straight line right to the paired pitching system. It continues to cause more chaos and harm than good.

Alex White's Line: 4 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 3 K, 82 pitches (48 strikes)

Like Jeff Francis on Wednesday in Los Angeles, the damage against White all came within the first few hitters. A lot of his own doing (wild pitch included), but the botched rundown (somebody please work with Wilin Rosario on the basics of defense) certainly helped little. From there White wouldn't really find a good groove until the 4th inning, and of course that was his final inning. Who knows, he may have been good for at least one more inning, even two, which would be so huge to the bullpen's cause. It just isn't an option with our mess of a system in place.

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Rock Solid Recrap: Rockies Unable To Overcome Cain... Or Themselves

Giants 9, Rockies 3 (boxscore)

What Went Wrong: Well, for starters, Matt Cain is pretty good at pitching. Once the Rockies got behind 4-0, this one was pretty much in the books. However, Drew Pomeranz didn't have his best stuff today and the bullpen was unable to keep things relatively close, so chalk this one up as another one-sided thrashing.

Drew Pomeranz's Line: 4 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 3 K, 1 HR, 73 pitches (45 strikes)

Buster Posey was out of the Giants lineup on Friday, but he's the guy who really got to Pomeranz on Saturday. His single leading off the 2nd set up that mini-rally which was capped by two-out RBI singles from Joaquin Arias and Matt Cain (the 8-9 hitters). Posey then hit a two-run homer in the 3rd to cap the scoring against Pomeranz. Just kind of a blah outing that could have gone either way had he been allowed to go beyond 73 pitches.

Afterwards, Pomeranz was rightfully displeased with his fastball command. As we know, that's pretty much where his success begins and ends.

Josh Roenicke's Line: 2 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 43 pitches (23 strikes)

This pushed Roenicke's ERA from 2.21 to 2.65. That says a lot about how well he's pitched in 71 1/3 innings.

By the way, Rex Brothers would allowed the ninth and final run in the 8th. His up and down, mostly disappointing season continues.

Highlight of the Afternoon: Another first career home run for a Rockie. This time it's D.J. LeMahieu. Congrats to him!

Watch D.J. LeMahieu's first home run

With Dexter Fowler telling the Michael Phelps story (AGAIN) over the entire highlight. I think I've heard the story 12 times over the past two weeks.

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Rock Solid Recap: Rockies, Rutledge Double Up On Dodgers

Rockies 3, Dodgers 1 (boxscore)

Winning Player: Josh Rutledge

The Rockies pitched their way to a series victory and their first back-to-back wins over the same team since they swept the Houston Astros four straight back in May. However, the big story for Colorado continues to be the hot hitting of rookie Josh Rutledge, who collected his first four-hit game, including three doubles (to all three fields by the way) and all three Rockies RBIs.

It's early for Rutledge, obviously, and he appears to have a few detractors in the scouting world (see: Law, Keith), but his swing looks smooth and the sounds his bat makes are wonderful. The ball is jumping off his bat right now, even in Dodger Stadium at night. The last two doubles especially were smoked. He's no doubt feeling it and seeing it well.

Will there be rough days ahead?

Positively. It's the big leagues. But he seems to be handling the day-to-day adjustments well and hasn't given me a good reason yet to feel nervous about him becoming overmatched once pitchers make their next round of adjustments.

Again... early... things change quickly. But for now, just keep swinging, kid. Just keep swinging.

Watch Josh Rutledge's huge night

Turning Point: Rutledge's night would have been a waste if not for Eric Young Jr. again reaching base at will. After a three-hit, two-run night in the opener, Young followed with three more hits, a walk, and two more runs scored. That's what a difference maker does. His name in the lineup and his production has changed the entire series.

To repeat what I said last night about Young: Need more of this!

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Lineup Card: Rockies @ Dodgers 8-7-12

Monday's Recap: Rockies Snap Losing Streak. Jim Tracy Just Plain Snaps

Lineups

Colorado Rockies (39-68)

1. Eric Young Jr. (RF)
2. Josh Rutledge (SS)
3. Dexter Fowler (CF)
4. Carlos Gonzalez (LF)
5. Jordan Pacheco (3B)
6. Ramon Hernandez (C)
7. Tyler Colvin (1B)
8. Jonathan Herrera (2B)
9. Alex White (P)

Have to keep running Ramon Hernandez out there because...

Only Jim Tracy knows the answer to that.

Los Angeles Dodgers (59-51)

1. Shane Victorino (LF)
2. Jerry Hairston (2B)
3. Matt Kemp (CF)
4. Andre Ethier (RF)
5. Hanley Ramirez (SS)
6. James Loney (1B)
7. Luis Cruz (2B)
8. A.J. Ellis (C)
9. Aaron Harang (P)

More Rockies thoughts await you if you follow me on Twitter: @Townie813 & @HeavenHelton

Rock Solid Recap: White Impressive In Latest Return, Rutledge Remains Warm

Rockies 8, Cardinals 2 (boxscore)

Winning Player: Jordan Pacheco

Paycheck keeps on hitting and producing in the Rockies lineup, going 3-for-3 with a sac fly, two RBI and a run scored on the evening. His average sits at a pretty .307, and he also continues to show steady improvement defensively. He's a real nice guy to have around regardless of where you sit in the standings.

Tyler Colvin (two doubles, RBI), Josh Rutledge (another home run), Carlos Gonzalez (two hits, one run) and Todd Helton (three walks) also had some nights at the plate. It was honestly a good solid game all the way around for Colorado, so we'll definitely enjoy the treat.

Alex White's Line: 5 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 3 K, 84 pitches (50 strikes)

White looked better than ever (which might not be saying much during his Rockies tenure) through five innings, but then impacted a wall head-on in the 6th. Jim Tracy gave him a chance to work out of it (going beyond the 75-pitch something or other) but White couldn't pull it off, leaving with two runs in and the bases loaded. However, Rex Brothers did get through the inning without further damage with a double play, keeping White's line very respectable and more importantly keeping the Rockies in the game.

Overall I'd call it an encouraging outing (especially considering the opponent), but we still need to see some consistency from White before getting too exciting. Unfortunately, though, I'm not sure the paired pitching system allows for said consistency.

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Lineup Card: Rockies vs Cardinals 8-2-12

Wednesday's Recrap: Fitting End To A Lousy Day In Rockies Baseball

Lineups

Colorado Rockies (37-65)

1. Tyler Colvin (RF)
2. Josh Rutledge (SS)
3. Dexter Fowler (CF)
4. Carlos Gonzalez (LF)
5. Jordan Pacheco (3B)
6. Todd Helton (1B)
7. Ramon Hernandez (C)
8. D.J. LeMahieu (2B)
9. Alex White (P)

So we've arrived at this lineup combination now?

Why the hell not?

St. Louis Cardinals (56-48)

1. Skip Schumaker (2B)
2. Jon Jay (CF)
3. Matt Holliday (LF)
4. Carlos Beltran (RF)
5. David Freese (3B)
6. Lance Berkman (1B)
7. Daniel Descalso (SS)
8. Tony Cruz (C)
9. Lance Lynn (P)

More Rockies thoughts await you if you follow me on Twitter: @Townie813 & @HeavenHelton

Rock Solid Recrap: Alex White Falls Apart, Marco Scutaro Extends Lead In Mental Gaffes

Rangers 4, Rockies 2 (boxscore)

What Went Wrong: 11 more hits for the Rockies tonight, raising their series total to 39. Unfortunately, this game resembled the one on Friday where they left 10 men on base (Tonight the number was 11), which is sad because they absolutely had a chance to win Friday's game with a couple well timed hits. They also had a chance to compete tonight with a couple well timed hits... and less bone-headed baserunning.

Turning Point: Speaking of which, the Rockies didn't break through against the Rangers until the 9th inning when they snapped Joe Nathan's long scoreless streak (since May 13). And it appeared they were right on the cusp of evening the score when Nathan uncorked a wild pitch. But of course, the Rockies screwed this up, because lead runner Eric Young decided he couldn't advance to third safely. Trail runner Marco Scutaro kept on moving, causing a traffic jam at second and a rundown that Texas pretty much botched in epic Rockies style, only the Rockies out botched them almost immediately.

How? Well, Scutaro started heading back to first, which drew the throw from catcher Mike Napoli. This allowed Scutaro to turn tail and scamper into second base just ahead of the second throw and tag. But Scutaro, for whatever reason, thought he was out, so he LEAVES the base and then is tagged out for real to kill the rally dead.

Watch the play here

So in the span of five days we had a Gold Glove first baseman lose track of the base in the 9th inning. Now we have this latest bone-headed play from Scutaro, who has honestly looked like the dumbest player to come through Colorado in 20 years. It's one unexplainable mental gaffe after another. And yes, the last two series in Philadelphia and Texas were there for the taking. But the Rockies are far more interested in giving.

Pathetic.

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Lineup Card: Rockies @ Rangers 6-24-12

Saturday's Recap: Rockies 11, Rangers 7. Let It Sink In.

Lineups

Colorado Rockies (27-43)

1. Eric Young Jr. (RF)
2. Marco Scutaro (2B)
3. Carlos Gonzalez (LF)
4. Jason Giambi (DH)
5. Wilin Rosario (C)
6. Todd Helton (1B)
7. Jordan Pacheco (3B)
8. Jonathan Herrera (SS)
9. Dexter Fowler (CF)

Alex White (2-5. 6.06)

It's always refreshing when Jim Tracy figures out something new about making lineups. Of course I'm referring to the catcher, Wilin Rosario, hitting higher than 7th. He'd let Ramon Hernandez do that every now and then. Rosario may have done it once or twice already, but it's not often. And of course Chris Iannetta never hit higher than 8th, so congrats to Jim there.

Oh, and there's Dexter Fowler hitting 9th again. Guess we can't win them all.

Texas Rangers (44-28)

1. Ian Kinsler (2B)
2. Elvis Andrus (SS)
3. Josh Hamilton (LF)
4. Adrian Beltre (3B)
5. Michael Young (1B)
6. Nelson Cruz (DH)
7. David Murphy (RF)
8. Mike Napoli (C)
9. Leonys Martin (CF)

Matt Harrison (9-3, 3.41)

More Rockies thoughts await you if you follow me on Twitter: @Townie813 & @HeavenHelton

Rock Solid Recrap: Another Lesson In Losing Baseball

Phillies 7, Rockies 6 (boxscore)

Admittedly my attention was diverted as I spent most of the evening researching and writing about Troy Tulowitzki's groin, but I was 100% focused for the 9th inning.

Quite honestly, what more did one need to see to analyze the latest exhibition is losing baseball?

What Went Wrong: Right here I should be writing about Wilin Rosario, Chris Nelson and Dexter Fowler being the reasons the Rockies pulled off a thrilling road win tonight. Instead I'm writing about the same old crap as every night. The Rockies and Rafael Betancourt couldn't hold a 6-5 lead in the 9th. They were ONE out away from holding it. The first two batters in the inning were harmless outs, but that elusive 3rd (27th) out never came.

Ty Wigginton base hit... because of course Ty Wigginton would get a base hit.

Hunter Pence doubles into the corner. Wigginton was running on the pitch, so he scores easily to tie it.

Carlos Ruiz intentionally walked.

Shane Victorino follows with a groundball to Marco Scutaro at short. Marco hesitates as he contemplates running to second or throwing to first. The hesitation costs him, because Victorino is fast and he also hustles. That loads the bases.

Placido Polanco follows with another groundball to Scutaro. This one he flags down just behind second base. He again contemplates a flip to second, but D.J. LeMahieu was also en route to the baseball and had to duck out of the way. This causes Scutaro's throw to sail a little bit, but he's still on target to Todd Helton, who inexplicably is off the base and couldn't locate it in time to beat Polanco.

Rockies lose. Again.

Yes, all of that really happened. Even the part where Todd Helton was out of position (he says he expected the ball to get through the infield). It's scary, folks. Todd Helton is the one guy on the team you'd expect to never assume anything, to always pay attention to detail, yet he lapsed tonight and it happened at the worst possible time.

Needless to say, this season is wearing on everybody. Even the great Todd Helton. But unlike the man guiding the ship, Helton offered no excuses for his miscue. He should have been there. He knows he should have been there. He's probably not going to sleep well tonight because of it, but at least he owned up to it.

Hopefully a few other guys lose sleep tonight, too, because the game should have never made it to that point.

Alex White's Line: 3 2/3 IP, 5 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 0 K, 1 HR, 75 pitches (Damn, Jim Tracy is good at this pitch limit thing), 43 strikes

The home run allowed was the first of the season for Michael Martinez. The zero strikeouts are a season low. Umm... oh, and Rockies starters have combined for eight innings pitched in two starts under the new four-man rotation.

Bullpen's Line: 5 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 3 K

The positive here was the three hit-free, walk-free innings from Jeremy Guthrie. I have no idea what that means, but it's a positive.

What's Next: Can the Rockies avoid a sweep on Thursday night???

Their "starter" will be Jeff Francis (0-1, 12.46). His mound opponent will be Vance Worley (3-3, 2.80). First pitch is scheduled for 5:10. Francis' last pitch is likely to come before 6:10.

Final Thoughts: The Rockies learned they lost Troy Tulowitzki for eight more weeks with an injury we've never heard of before. Then they went out and lost a baseball game in a way we've never seen before.

Somehow, someway, tomorrow will be worse.

I can almost guarantee it.

More Rockies thoughts await you if you follow me on Twitter: @Townie813 & @HeavenHelton

Lineup Card: Rockies @ Phillies 6-20-12

Tuesday's Recrap: This Really Is The Road To 100

Lineups

Colorado Rockies (25-41)

1. Tyler Colvin (CF)
2. Marco Scutaro (SS)
3. Carlos Gonzalez (LF)
4. Michael Cuddyer (RF)
5. Todd Helton (1B)
6. Jordan Pacheco (3B)
7. Chris Nelson (2B)
8. Wilin Rosario (C)
9. Alex White (P)

Is Jim Tracy intentionally sabotaging Dexter Fowler, or is Jim Tracy an imbecile? 

Oh wait, we already answered that in Tuesday's Recrap. It's unintentional, but it's completely unacceptable.

Also, the latest on Troy Tulowitzki is that he'll be "out awhile" after surgery Thursday to clean out scar tissue in the left groin area that is pressing on a nerve. Of course this is devastating news for the Rockies lineup, but apparently great news for the Rockies fans on Twitter who passionately root against him. 

Philadelphia Phillies (32-37)

1. Jimmy Rollins (SS)
2. Juan Pierre (LF)
3. Hunter Pence (RF)
4. Carlos Ruiz (C)
5. Shane Victorino (CF)
6. Placido Polanco (3B)
7. John Mayberry (1B)
8. Michael Martinez (2B)
9. Joe Blanton (P)

More Rockies thoughts await you if you follow me on Twitter: @Townie813 & @HeavenHelton