It was a good night for the big red, but not for the big redhead.
The St. Louis Cardinals rocked Rockies ace Aaron Cook on Thursday, sending the Rockies to their second-straight defeat and taking the luster off their recent seven-game winning streak.
The Cardinals, cheered on by swarms of proud, red-clad fans nesting at Coors Field, coasted to a 7-3 victory.
St. Louis’ decisive four-run sixth inning produced a steady stream of Redbird baserunners. So Taguchi coaxed a walk from Cook, then Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen singled, loading the bases. With two outs, Juan Encarnacion belted a three-run double to right-center. Encarnacion scored on a single by Gary Bennett.
After a rough start, Cardinals starter Brad Thompson (4-1) settled in. He pitched 7 1/3 innings, scattering seven hits and giving up just two runs.
Once again, the Rockies failed to win a home series as each club took two games of the four-game set. The Rockies have captured just one home series this season, taking 2-of-3 from Arizona on April 2-4. Since then, they are 0-5-3 in home sets.
And despite their recent surge, the Rockies continue treading water in the National League West. Thursday’s loss left them 6 1/2 games behind co-leaders San Diego and Los Angeles.
