Scream. A Nightmare on Blake Street. The Rockies Pitchers’ Horror Show.
Thursday night’s massacre was indeed ghoulish.
The Rockies lost 12-5 to the Arizona Diamondbacks in front of an announced Coors Field crowd of 18,406.
A series that began Monday with a promising 3-2 opening-day victory over the Diamondbacks turned ugly as the Rockies dropped their second straight game. In the three-game set, the Rockies hit just .229 (24-for-105). After fanning 11 times Wednesday night, the Rockies struck out 14 times Thursday. Arizona starter Miguel Batista got 11 of those strikeouts, tying his career high.
Rockies cleanup hitter Matt Holliday, who broke out of an early-season mini-slump with a two-run homer in the sixth, said he understands the scrutiny placed on the season’s first series, but said it’s not time to panic about the Rockies’ offensive woes.
“It’s still just three games in. We won one and lost two,” he said. “You can’t make too much of it because you are going to go through streaks where pitchers are making pitches.”
But while the Diamondbacks’ pitching dazzled throughout the series, the Rockies’ pitching crumbled Thursday night. After two stellar starts from Jason Jennings and Aaron Cook, the roof caved in on No. 3 starter Jeff Francis.
“I can’t remember an outing when I’ve missed by so much,” Francis said.
He was gone after 4 1/3 innings, having given up five runs on five hits, including a home run to Chad Tracy in the second inning. Francis tied a career high with six walks. He also hit a batter.
“He was throwing a lot more fastballs than I’m sure that he wanted to,” said Tracy, who went 3-for-4. “His location was sporadic at best.”
Francis came into the game with a 5-0 record and a 3.63 ERA in seven career starts against the Diamondbacks. He left the game searching for answers.
“I will probably obsess over this until I figure it out and until I make it right,” he said.
Reliever Sun-Woo Kim fared no better. Chris Snyder drilled Kim’s first pitch of the season into the Rockies’ bullpen beyond right-center field for a two-run homer.
Kim lasted just 1 1/3 innings. His line: five runs on four hits, one homer and two walks. All told, Rockies pitchers issued 11 walks, one shy of tying the club record.
Kim missed a big chunk of spring training, first when he played for Korea in the World Baseball Classic and later when he tweaked a hamstring. He was clearly nowhere near top form.
“It’s fair to say he’s rusty,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “But he’s got to find a way to knock some of that rust off. Hopefully he did that tonight.”
The Rockies were homerless through 87 at-bats to begin the season until Holliday drilled his homer to left, driving in Todd Helton and cutting the Diamondbacks’ lead to 10-2. The Rockies added three runs in the eighth, powered by a run-scoring double by Garrett Atkins. That minor offensive surge took a little bit of the sting out of a cold, frustrating night.
Hurdle admitted his young team might be pressing a bit under the weight of early-season expectations, but he bristled when asked if he was going to do anything to loosen things up.
“You know what I’m not going to do? I’m not going to tell you every move I’m going to make,” Hurdle said. “This is not a reality TV show. Some things are just best left unsaid. I’ll handle the club the way I deem it’s necessary. They just need to play.
“Losing the first series of the season ought to wake some of them up a little bit.”
Patrick Saunders can be reached at 303-820-5459 or psaunders@denverpost.com.
