To win a game at Coors Field, you need a bullpen with nerves of titanium.
You need a starter capable of eating tacks whose outs outnumber his goose bumps. It requires a well-placed hit or two or five and a stomach for the sublime, odd and just plain ridiculous.
Or in the case of the Houston Astros, you just need to go Twisted Sister and decide you aren’t going to take it anymore. The Astros arrived in Denver as one of the big leagues’ most disappointing teams.
On Tuesday night, they took out their frustrations – two ejections – on the Rockies and the umpires in a strangely entertaining and often-interrupted 4-1 victory at Coors Field.
“Things got hairy there at the end,” said Astros outfielder Luke Scott, whose two-run ninth-inning home run sealed the win.
The night should have been defined by numbers – Lance Berkman’s second double in 193 at-bats this season; Todd Helton ripping two triples for only the second time in his career. The Rockies’ going 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position, and were hitless with four at-bats with Helton on third.
Instead it will be remembered for anger and accusations. Astros manager Phil Garner charged that Rockies reliever Manny Corpas intentionally hit Carlos Lee to open the ninth inning. Lee voiced his displeasure, and Corpas motioned for him to bring his complaint to the mound. No punches were thrown, but the teams were told that any other errant pitch could result in an ejection. Garner was furious that both teams were issued warnings.
“Unfortunately, it had to end that way. Their guy threw at our guy and that should not be part of the game,” Garner said. “He clearly threw the ball at our guy.”
Corpas, who surrendered Scott’s home run, left the Rockies’ clubhouse before reporters entered. Teammates said he has never mentioned a problem with Lee, who was on the Panamanian World Baseball Classic team with the reliever.
“Carlos was talking for no reason at all. Sometimes in the heat of the battle, they aren’t thinking it through. Why would he hit him with us (trailing) by one run?” Rockies reliever LaTroy Hawkins said. “They should issue warnings today before the game for the remainder of the series. You don’t want to see it get out of hand.”
It’s too late for Berkman, the author of the sixth-inning double that spoiled Jason Hirsh’s solid outing. Berkman was tossed for arguing a check-swing call in the eighth.
Upon returning to the dugout, he fired his batting helmet into the ground, then threw his batting gloves and a ball bag onto the field.
“All I said, was ‘No way! No way!’ He tossed me out for no apparent reason,” Berkman said. “That’s why I went charging over there.”
While that only landed him fines, Berkman faces a likely suspension for returning to the field in the ninth inning after the benches cleared during the Lee-Corpas fracas. He was impossible to miss, in shorts and a sleeveless shirt, his back wrapped in an Ace bandage.
“If you are ejected from the game, you can’t come back onto the field, and he was on the field,” Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said.
Staff writer Patrick Saunders contributed to this report.
Staff writer Troy E. Renckcan be reached at 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com.
