Like a missed midnight curfew or a spell in detention for spitwads, Tuesday night’s game was the kind that gives Coors Field a bad reputation.
After the announced crowd of 20,415 fans was subjected to teeth-chattering weather, after seeing a starter need 48 pitches to escape the first inning and watching the Rockies stumble 9-5 to the Atlanta Braves, the payoff was hollow.
For absorbing 3 hours and 14 minutes of nine walks and 24 hits, there were no home runs. On a night suited for football, the box score was an indictment of a ballpark that pitchers have long believed needs be run through the dryer.
“The outfield is so huge,” said Braves starter John Thomson, an erstwhile Rockie.
“The last time I was here, we played next in Wrigley Field, and our guys were like, ‘Man, where’s the outfield at?”‘
Only Atlanta’s Marcus Giles threatened to go deep, rifling a ball through the swirling wind with such authority that it stuck in the right-field fence. Watching a 5-foot-8 second baseman smoke a double is more tolerable, pitchers say, than lazy bloopers or singles turning into doubles as they disappear into gaps.
“The outfield is so big here, there’s a lot of space for balls to drop,” said Jason Jennings, seething after equaling his shortest outing of the season. “It’s a crazy place. It’s ridiculous.”
Jennings has never pretended to have the secret to solving Coors Field. He talks about surviving. In that context, Jennings would have been voted off the island in the first inning. Attempting to become the Rockies’ leader with 25 victories at Coors, Jennings took a standing eight-count in the first inning.
Actually, it was a 22-minute count. That’s how long it took Jennings to retire the Braves in a 48-pitch cringe made worse by the fact that he had two outs and an 0-2 count on Andruw Jones before any of the six runs scored.
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ROCKIES WRAP
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“It’s embarrassing,” said Jennings, whose increased first-inning velocity left his sinker without movement. “It’s not acceptable.”
Manager Clint Hurdle wasn’t about to argue that point. While his criticism of Jennings was soft in words, his tone reeked of anger.
“A guy with his experience and innings pitched, we’d like to see him take that next step,” Hurdle said. “We need him to take that next step. We didn’t have a shovel big enough to dig us out of that hole.”
The Rockies’ relentless rabbit punch of offense – Preston Wilson posted three hits and had an RBI – would have caused more damage if not for a series of wows from the Braves’ Ryan Langerhans.
“I would think if they were going to give a save tonight, they’d give it to their left fielder,” Hurdle said.
Lagerhans’ brilliance didn’t soothe Thomson’s sting. Staked to an 8-2 lead, he was pulled with two outs in the fifth inning, ineligible for a decision. He left in a huff over a close pitch to Garrett Atkins, exchanging words with plate umpire Tim Timmons before getting ejected, according to Thomson.
Then again, he’s no stranger to frustration when working at Coors Field.
“It’s a tough place,” Thomson said. “It’s not the home runs. It’s those balls that fall in front of the outfielders when you make a good pitch that are the most irritating.”
Staff writer Troy E. Renck can be reached at 303-820-5457 or trenck@denverpost.com.
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Relaford fights for time
Desi Relaford and Dustan Mohr were the Rockies’ top free-agent acquisitions. Finding playing time for each has proved difficult. Relaford was expected to primarily provide protection for rookie shortstop Clint Barmes.
Barmes has started all but two games, leaving Relaford finding at-bats at third base, where he played Tuesday.
“It’s been that way my whole career,” Relaford said. “I have to do something when I am in there to get more time.”
Mohr’s left calf injury cost him 18 games, and he’s had a tough time cracking the lineup.
