CHICAGO — To reach the dugout Thursday from their cramped, odorous clubhouse, the Rockies descended 20 concrete steps, made a right at the frazzled miniature-golf carpet, took a left at the water drip and made another right into the sunlight.
But once on the new sod at Wrigley Field, they could not execute a U-turn, illegal or otherwise.
In their second state and second time zone of a 10-game road trip, the Rockies remained winless, stumbling 8-4 as they creep closer to playing for next season than the postseason.
“It’s time to say: ‘OK, no more accepting this. No more.’ It’s time. Really, how big a hole can we dig?” said reliever Matt Herges after the Rockies plummeted 14 games under .500. “There’s no more ‘get ’em tomorrow.’ We need to get hot now.”
Herges was appropriately steamed after the team’s fourth consecutive loss, ninth straight on the road, and 14th defeat in their past 16 away from Coors Field. In the seventh inning, he had a chance to turn off the faucet by firing a dart to Todd Helton at first base.
But Herges’ missile off Derrek Lee’s right leg provided a snapshot of why the Rockies are tied for the fewest victories in the major leagues.
How bad is it? Colorado has 20 wins this season. The Cubs have 23 home wins.
A team that spent last fall providing the Rocky Mountain region with goose bumps is sending chills with its numbingly inefficient work.
“In my mind, that’s what cost us the game. That’s something we work on a billion times in spring training. That can’t happen. It’s a fundamental,” Herges said. “I can’t believe I didn’t make that play.”
The Rockies held a 4-3 advantage when Herges faced off against Lee with runners on first and third. There wouldn’t have been traffic had second baseman Ian Stewart not botched an Alfonso Soriano popup. It was part of a star-crossed night that saw him finish a home run shy of the cycle and make a baserunning blunder by inexplicably taking off from second on Omar Quintanilla’s seventh-inning line drive to center fielder Reed Johnson.
“I just gator-armed (the popup),” said Stewart, who, in fairness, was playing second base for only the third time since spring training. “That’s a ball I should have caught.”
As a result, Lee’s nubber became Herges’ flubber that brought in the tying run and left catcher Geovany Soto in position to shove the Cubs ahead for good, 5-4, on a sacrifice fly.
“On any given night, it’s one thing or another that fails us. The starting pitching has been terrible the last four games,” said Jeff Francis, clearly upset after a five-inning, three-run outing. “Everyone is disappointed.”
The sluggers aren’t immune. At this point, Berry Gordy couldn’t produce a big hit for this team. The Rockies went 2-for-17 with runners in scoring position — they are batting .229 in those situations this season in 522 at-bats — squandering repeated chances to step on the Cubs’ throats.
Fifty-four games into the season, it has come down to this: Win or else.
“It’s frustrating for everyone involved,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “We have to get it together.”
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
Looking ahead
TODAY: Rockies at Cubs, 12:20 p.m., no TV
If not for Aaron Cook (7-3, 2.82 ERA), it’s fair to wonder if the Rockies would be compared to the 1962 Mets. They are 8-3 in his starts, and 18 games under .500 whenever anyone else takes the mound. More important, five of his wins have come after Rockies’ losses, the true mark of the right-hander evolving into a quality starter. He must tread carefully against Derrek Lee (3-for-10 lifetime). Ted Lilly (5-4, 5.23), steady last season, was terrible in April, winning just once and posting a 6.46 ERA. He’s undefeated this month and has held opponents to a .212 average at Wrigley Field.
Troy E. Renck, The Denver Post
Upcoming pitching matchups
Saturday:
Rockies’ Glendon Rusch (1-2, 6.41 ERA) vs. Cubs’ Ryan Dempster (6-2, 2.56), 11 a.m., FSN
Sunday:
Rockies’ Ubaldo Jimenez (1-5, 5.37) vs. Cubs’ Sean Gallagher (2-1, 4.50), 12:20 p.m., KTVD-20
Monday:
Rockies’ Greg Reynolds (0-2, 5.40) vs. Dodgers’ Derek Lowe (2-5, 4.52), 8:10 p.m., FSN
Tuesday:
Rockies’ Jeff Francis (1-5, 6.12) vs. Dodgers’ Brad Penny (5-5, 5.66), 8:10 p.m., FSN
