Grass vs. Astroturf. Peanuts vs. Crackerjacks. Hitter vs. pitcher. It is in this matchup that the sport gets stripped bare: Can your guy get their guy out?
In the sixth inning, the Rockies manager Clint Hurdle chose hunches over numbers, using four pitchers to retire three batters. In the seventh, Dodgers boss Grady Little let Scott Proctor face Todd Helton. With one flick of the wrist and a pump of the fist, Helton deposited the 94-mph fastball into the right-field seats.
The crack of his bat in the 10-4 series-clinching sweep of the Dodgers brought a reminder that something bigger was a work. This isn’t just about history, but destiny.
“You have a group of guys who believe in each other who get along and want to do well,” slugger Matt Holliday said. “We just have to keep winning, that’s what we control, and hope those other teams finally lose.”
When the Rockies awake today, they will sit one game behind the wild-card leading Padres, tied with the Phillies and the paging Dr. Heimlich Mets. When they arrive at soldout Coors Field, baseball, for one day and possibly an entire weekend, will rule the city for the first time in 12 years. The Rockies face the Arizona Diamondbacks with the postseason still in reach.
A team that two years ago lost 95 games has a state, if not the entire baseball world, believing something special is unfurling. That’s what happens when you never lose. The Rockies have won 11 consecutive games, their latest handiwork a blend of ferocious and precocious.
Colorado blasted three home runs, including back-to-back fourth-inning smashes from Garrett Atkins and Brad Hawpe. The Rockies have gone deep 20 times during this streak. Helton, Atkins and Hawpe flossed their teeth with an underwhelming group of Dodger pitchers, going 8-for-14 with eight RBIs. Helton abused a Proctor fastball as Little went too late to left-hander Joe Beimel, shoving the Rockies ahead 6-3.
The middle of the lineup’s havoc overshadowed a critical sixth inning of chess matchups. Rookie Franklin Morales, who tied Denny Neagle’s club record of 20 scoreless innings by a starter, became unnerved when Juan Pierre reached and stole second base. Hurdle went against statistics and leaned on a gut that hasn’t required Tums in at least two weeks.
With Colorado leading 4-2, Ryan Speier struck out Matt Kemp, Jeremy Affeldt induced a run-scoring groundout and Jorge Julio watched Troy Tulowitzki douse another rally by erasing catcher Russell Martin at first base on a difficult play in the hole.
The moves ran against the grain, given Affeldt’s success against right-handers and Julio’s problems with Martin (4-for-6 career).
But that is yet another part of this streak, it goes beyond imagination, to a feel for what to do and when.
“It’s a high-profile situation anytime a move is made whenever you bring somebody in. That said, when you have more weapons and you have a greater skill set out there, your chances of getting the job done increase,” Hurdle explained during this run. “I believe that’s the biggest factor in it.”
Staff Writer Troy E. Renck can be reached at 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
