What Went Wrong: The Rockies were playing the Giants in San Francisco. The Giants starting pitcher was Matt Cain. The odds of anything going right were slim and none, and slim left the building about three batters into the Giants half of the 1st. Clearly he or she had more important things to do.
Tyler Chatwood's Line: 4 IP, 3 ER, 8 H, 0 BB, 2 K, 1 HR, 84 pitches (56 strikes)
Coming into this game Tyler Chatwood's 1st inning ERA was an even 9.00 over his first nine starts. That number actually goes up after Pablo Sandoval's three-run homer. From there Chatwood had to work very hard and deal with constant traffic to limit the overall damage and keep the game close. To his credit, he accomplished that (and didn't walk anyone), but it's clear he has to do a better job coming out of the gate sharper and more focused so the team isn't always in comeback mode immediately and so he can finally start working deeper into games.
Bullpen's Line: 4 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 5 K
Rough go again for Adam Ottavino as San Francisco touched him up for three runs in the 5th. That means he's now allowed 10 earned runs over his last 1 2/3 innings, raising his ERA from a very respectable 3.56 to 4.68. It's a damn shame, too, because along with Josh Roenicke and Matt Belisle he's been about as reliable as one can expect for a middle or setup reliever. He's just plain out of gas right now and his numbers are going to suffer for it.
Matt Cain's Line: 8 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 4 BB, 8 K, 116 pitches (74 strikes)
Even on a night when he doesn't have good command, Cain makes the Rockies lineup like they belong in Modesto. Dominant to the point where it's unfair and slightly embarrassing.
Turning Point: Sandoval's three-run homer was the point of no return, but the Rockies did mount a little rally against Cain in the 5th when they scored the lone run and then loaded the bases with two outs. They even had the ideal man at the plate in the returning Carlos Gonzalez, but after a good battle he rolled over a grounder to second base and then Ottavino's rough 5th finished the game off.
Highlight of the Night: I didn't know what to expect from Carlos Goznalez tonight but he looked pretty healthy while making this fantastic running catch.
What's Next: Finally a game to look forward to! The return of Jorge De La Rosa will finally happen Thursday afternoon at 1:45 at AT&T Park. According to Troy Renck and others it will be the first of at least two starts for Jorge, which likely depends on how good he looks here. But here's to hoping he just looks healthy. Good pitching results would also be nice, but good health and clear confidence in his stuff outweighs that in my eyes.
Oh... yeah... he'll be opposed by Barry Zito (12-8, 4.21)
Final Thoughts: It was my duty once again this season to write the Rockies eulogy for Big League Stew. This year our theme was concession speeches, so for the first time ever I dabbled in something political and hopefully came up with something you'll enjoy and maybe even agree with while fitting within the guidelines.
