A Sunday afternoon affair at Coors Field revealed a few important points.
First, the Rockies, taking this contender stuff very seriously, are executing to near perfection. Second, with speedy Dexter Fowler and Carlos Gonzalez at the top of the order, the Rockies’ offense can be scary good. Third, the Cubs had better clean up their act if they want to remain in the playoff hunt.
The Rockies routed sloppy Chicago 11-5 to take a 2-1 edge in the four-game series. The victory, coupled with the Giants’ 5-2 loss to the Reds, moved the Rockies into a tie with San Francisco in the National League wild-card race. Also, the Braves beat the Dodgers 8-2 in Los Angeles, leaving the Rockies just 5 1/2 games out in the NL West. That’s the closest they have been to first place since April 29.
This game looked like the Eisenhower Tunnel on a Sunday evening during ski season.
“There was a lot of traffic out there,” said Rockies manager Jim Tracy after the teams combined for 31 hits.
The difference was that the Rockies handled it much better than did the Cubs. The Cubs outhit the Rockies 17-14, but they left 13 men on base. The Rockies left just six.
The Cubs committed three errors, the fifth consecutive game they had made at least one. A couple of fans who made nifty grabs on foul balls had surer hands than some Cubs.
The Rockies, meanwhile, made just one error, and it came in the ninth by substitute shortstop Omar Quintanilla, long after the outcome was decided.
Fowler (1-for-4, three runs scored) and Gonzalez (3-for-5) continue pressuring teams into mistakes. A prime example came in the third. Fowler reached first when first baseman Derrek Lee bobbled a groundball. Fowler stole second and advanced to third when catcher Koyie Hill threw the ball into center field. Fowler trotted home on starter Randy Wells’ wild pitch.
“I think our speed is a big thing,” said Gonzalez, whose three hits tied his season high. “When we get on base, the other team never knows what’s going to happen. We can double steal, or score on a base hit the other way. We are always looking to score, always looking to get the extra base. We always want to be in scoring position for the guys behind us.”
That would be a guy like Todd Helton, a prime candidate for comeback player of the year, who extended his hitting streak to 14 games by going 3-for-4, including two doubles, with two RBIs. Catcher Yorvit Torrealba went 2-for-3 and drove in a season-high three runs.
The Cubs have won only two series against teams that currently have winning records — the Cardinals and Marlins — and both of those series wins came in April or early May
Even a second-inning blowup by manager Lou Piniella couldn’t ignite Chicago. Piniella had good reason for uttering the magic words to second-base umpire Chris Guccione that got Piniella ejected. Rockies starter Jason Hammel escaped the inning unscathed by inducing an inning-ending double play grounder by Cubs starter Randy Wells. Replays, however, clearly showed that third baseman Ian Stewart’s throw pulled Clint Barmes off second base. Had the play been ruled correctly, former Rockies Jeff Baker would have scored from third.
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com
Looking ahead
TODAY: Cubs at Rockies, 6:40 p.m., FSN
The Cubs are looking for lefty Tom Gorzelanny (4-1, 3.38 ERA) to ride to the rescue and salvage a series split. Acquired in a five- player deal with Pittsburgh on July 30, Gorzelanny was excellent in his Cubs debut, giving up one run and three hits over 7 1/3 innings against the Reds. He’s 1-1 with a 6.23 ERA in two career starts vs. the Rockies. Rockies lefty Jorge De La Rosa (9-8, 5.00) looks to rebound from his shaky start in Philadelphia that marked his first loss since June 16. Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post
Tuesday: Pirates’ Ross Ohlendorf (9-8, 4.29 ERA) vs. TBA, 6:40 p.m., FSN
Wednesday: Pirates’ Kevin Hart (3-1, 2.94) vs. Rockies’ Ubaldo Jimenez (9-9, 3.65), 6:40 p.m., FSN
Thursday: Pirates’ Paul Maholm (6-6, 4.76) vs. Rockies’ Jason Marquis (12-8, 3.65), 1:10 p.m., FSN
Friday: Rockies’ Jason Hammel (7-6, 4.66) vs. Marlins’ Josh Johnson (11-2, 2.92), 5:10 p.m., FSN
