A baseball’s game outcome is often rooted in subtleties. The chess match of the position switch. The infielder inching over a foot on a curveball to catch a line drive. A hitter looking inside for a fastball after studying his teammate’s at-bat.
And then there are moments that lack camouflage, easily distinguishable as critical. So it was on a raw tonight at Coors Field. In the eighth inning, the turning point came when Ryan Speier turned around and jogged back to the bullpen.
Speier mistakenly thought he was in the game. Instead, manager Clint Hurdle wanted left-handed Brian Fuentes. On Fuentes’ first pitch, the Phillies raced ahead and never let the game out of their cold, clenched fist in a 9-5 victory at Coors Field.
The scene of Speier returning to the bullpen was initially comedic. But it quickly lost its humor when Carlos Ruiz smoked a hard groundball down the right-field line. His bases-loaded double off Fuentes shoved the Phillies ahead 6-5.
They continued to add on in the ninth off Rockies reliever Micah Bowie, making tough night for lefties.
Fuentes had not allowed a run this season until Sunday and now has been involved in the Rockies’ consecutive losses.
Colorado opened a 3-0 lead in the second inning when catcher Yorvit Torrealba crushed a home run. Of Torrealba’s nine RBIs this season, six have come on two home runs at Coors Field. Garrett Atkins later hit a two-run shot off Kyle Kendrick.
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
