What seemed like the perfect setup for the Rockies turned out to be a nasty trap this afternoon at Coors Field.
The San Francisco Giants jolted them 9-2, getting a throwback performance from Barry Zito, They also whacked two homers, including one by 36-year-old third baseman Scott McClain who had 358 home runs in the minors and in Japan, but never one in the majors until today.
The Rockies, on the fringes of the National League West race but still conjuring postseason dreams, had ace Aaron Cook on the mound. What’s more, the Rockies had won seven of their last 10, including a dramatic 6-5, 12-inning win over the Giants Tuesday night.
The Giants, meanwhile, had dropped five in a row and seven of their last eight. They had Zito on the mound, whose 16 losses leads the majors.
But baseball’s a funny game and a funny thing happened today. Cook imploded and was gone in a flash.
Zito shined, pitching like the Zito of old. The high-priced lefty threw eight innings of four-hit ball. He gave up two runs, struck out five and walked one. Giving a big early lead, he was never in trouble.
Cook was attempting to win his 17th game and tie the franchise record held by Jeff Francis, Pedro Astacio and Kevin Ritz. But on this day, Cook never got close, getting the hook after three innings.
The Giants hammered Cook, lacing 10 hits to all corners of the yard. He gave up two runs on four hits in the first, set the Giants down in order in the second, but was pounded for four runs on six hits in the third. The killer blow was Travis Ishikawa’s two-run double over the head of right fielder Ryan Spilborghs.
San Francisco’s home runs came back-to-back in the sixth against rookie reliever Steven Register, who was just called up from Triple-A Colorado Springs. Register served up a two-run shot to Pablo Sandoval, followed by McClain’s solo blast to left.
The Rockies eked out a run off Zito in the second when Garrett Atkins doubled and scored on an infielder grounder by Jeff Baker. They scored their second run in the fifth on Clint Barmes’ solo homer to left-center. It was Barmes’ seventh homer of the season, his first since Aug. 13 at Arizona.
The Rockies, nine games under .500 with 21 games remaining, are off on Thursday before opening a three-game set against the Houston Astros Friday night.
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com
