PITTSBURGH — It was a familiar story for the Rockies, only urgency and Todd Helton’s flirtation with history providing the slight twist.
Manager Clint Hurdle benched slumping Garrett Atkins, making no promises on when he would start again. He cut Glendon Rusch before the road trip. The message is about as subtle as line drive to the face:
“When push comes to shove we are not in a good place as a team,” Hurdle said. “We have holes and issues we have to deal with.”
The shortcomings were obvious in a 7-4 loss Saturday to the Pittsburgh Pirates, spoiling a potential sweep given the favorable pitching matchups.
Helton represented a potential balm for open wounds, but was unable to join the 2,000-hit club, the most significant milestone in his career. He sits one shy after going 1-for-3, striking out against Jesse Chavez in his final at-bat. He stood on deck as Troy Tulowitzki made the game’s last out.
Perhaps it was for the best. Helton would have been admittedly uncomfortable receiving personal attention during a loss. He’s attempting to become the 256th player to reach 2,000 hits and the fourth active player – joining Derek Jeter, Chipper Jones and Garret Anderson – to post them all with the same team.
Hits were a problem Saturday, the offense drying up after an encouraging start. The Rockies opened a 3-0 lead on a two-run double by Ryan Spilborghs and Clint Barmes’ home run. Then the faucet turned off as rain poured during a 97-minute delay.
It is difficult, if not inaccurate, to blame the offense. Colorado’s lineup wasted scoring chances in the third and fifth innings, but it was sloppy pitching that proved more damning. That it came from Aaron Cook made it harder to digest. He still hasn’t won back-to-back starts this season, the Rockies falling to 2-6 in his outings.
Cook, simply put, has just not had his good sinker consistently. He elevated the pitch in the second and was blistered for four runs, including a two-run single by Delwyn Young before the game was halted. Cook didn’t return, his night over after just 33 pitches.
Matt Belisle kept the Rockies close, but Jason Grilli put it out of reach with a poor performance.
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
