Milwaukee – For nine tense innings Saturday night at Miller Park, pitchers took turns staring down batters. But in the 10th, Rockies reliever LaTroy Hawkins blinked.
Brewers pinch hitter Tony Graffanino punched a single into shallow center, scoring Geoff Jenkins from third and lifting the Brewers to a 2-1 victory. Jenkins led off the 10th with a double to left-center.
Milwaukee – In the somber visitors clubhouse Saturday night, the Rockies measured the game in inches and what-could-have-beens.
After pitching one of the best games of his career, Rodrigo Lopez struggled to describe the Rockies’ 2-1, 10-inning loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.
“This was a tough one,” Lopez said. “I can’t remember ever throwing a one-hitter for seven innings in a loss.”
But that’s exactly what happened. And for the fifth time in their past 12 road games, the Rockies watched the home team win in its final at-bat.
“It’s tough to take,” said rookie shortstop Troy Tulowitzki. “That’s way too many this year.”
For most of the game at Miller Park, pitchers took turns staring down opposing batters. But in the bottom of the 10th, the Brewers finally made Rockies reliever LaTroy Hawkins blink.
Geoff Jenkins led off with a double, advanced to third on a groundout and trotted home when pinch hitter Tony Graffanino punched a weak single into shallow center. It marked the first time all season the Brewers won a game scoring fewer than three runs.
The Rockies finished with only three hits.
Take away solo homers by the Rockies’ Ryan Spilborghs in the third and the Brewers’ Corey Hart in the sixth, and the only real action in the first 91/2 innings came in the middle of the sixth, when a giant chorizo won Miller Park’s famous sausage race.
Lopez was brilliant, striking out five and walking just two. It was his best performance since Sept. 26, 2004, when he tossed a 5-0, three-hit shutout for the Orioles against the Tigers. Getting ahead in the count Saturday and mixing a lively fastball with a sharp slider, Lopez baffled the Brewers for 52/3 innings before giving up his first and only hit – Hart’s solo shot to left that tied the game 1-1.
Spilborghs, starting in place of all-star outfielder Matt Holliday, tried to scale the slick wall in left, hoping to yank back Hart’s homer, only to come up frustratingly short.
“It’s funny, because we were practicing robbing (homers) before the game today,” Spilborghs said. “I feel like if it’s a mesh wall or padded wall, I’d have had a chance to get my foot in there and maybe get higher. I just missed it by inches.”
Brewers ace Ben Sheets left the game after 31/3 innings because of a sprained middle finger on his right hand. But reliever Yovani Gallardo shut down the Rockies for 42/3 innings. Then Francisco Cordero and Derrick Turnbow each pitched a scoreless inning.
“Their pitching was very good, and that’s going to happen,” Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. “You tip your hat and you move on. It was a good night to pitch.”
As tough as the loss was, the Rockies were bolstered by Lopez’s performance.
“It was just a real good clean outing for
Rodrigo,” Hurdle said. “He threw one mistake, the slider to Hart. He pitched very effectively. That should give him a lot of confidence going into his next start.”
Staff writer Patrick Saunders
can be reached at 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com.
