Los Angeles — According to Cal Tech research, the probability of the Rockies securing the wild-card berth sits at 19 percent. It is a simple, cold calculation of numbers, devoid of emotion.
Throw rookie shortstop Troy Tulowitzki into the computer and he would spit fire out of the hard drive. He has captivated fans with a performance that could lead the Rockies back into the playoffs for the first time since 1995.
Tulowitzki’s two-run home run and Todd Helton’s second RBI single in the sixth inning helped lift the Rockies to a 9-7 victory Tuesday, their ninth straight, equaling a 10-year-old franchise record.
The victory pulled the Rockies into a tie with the Philadelphia Phillies, both perched one game behind wild-card leader San Diego — even as it had fans pulling their hair out and screaming at their TVs over an eighth-inning mess. Brian Fuentes wriggled out of the bases-loaded jam after allowing only one run. It amounted to a slight hiccup for a relief corps that rescued starter Ubaldo Jimenez, who surrendered five runs in four innings.
