There was more flashy leather Sunday at Coors Field than on the backs of bikers at Sturgis in August. Or so it must have seemed for a Rockies team that finished a six-game homestand with a frustrating 4-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers before a festive crowd of 48,682.
Any of three balls — two hit by torrid Rockies leadoff man Carlos Gonzalez — could have made a winning difference for Colorado but instead found graves of leather in the gloves of Dodger defenders.
The Rockies nonetheless finished the homestand 4-2 and possess a healthy mind-set entering today’s marquee pitching matchup between San Francisco Giants two-time Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum and red-hot Rockies ace Ubaldo Jimenez.
“I think we have the advantage,” Gonzalez said. “We have, right now, the best pitcher in the league, and we’re going to face a guy who’s been struggling lately. So we’re just going to try to take advantage of that.”
If not for Dodgers right fielder Xavier Paul, the Rockies likely would have journeyed to San Francisco with more swagger. Not only did Paul drive in the go-ahead run in the sixth inning with a single off Rockies starter Jhoulys Chacin, he made a leaping catch against the fence off a drive by Gonzalez leading off the bottom of the seventh in a 4-2 game.
“That could have been a really good situation for us, with maybe a leadoff double or triple,” Gonzalez said. “It could have been a different story at the end of the game.”
Gonzalez also was robbed of a hit by former Rockie Jamey Carroll, who made a great play and forced Seth Smith at second in the ninth, although a run scored on the play. With Gonzalez on first and not trying to steal, Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton induced Ryan Spilborghs to ground out to Carroll to end the game.
Perhaps the best defensive play of the game was the diving catch by Dodgers center fielder Matt Kemp on Rockies catcher Chris Iannetta, with two out and the bases loaded in the fifth and the scored tied at 2.
“I knew as soon as I hit it that I hit it too hard and right at him,” Iannetta said. “We played some great defense in this series, but they did today too when they had to.”
Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who reached base three of four times with two hits and a walk, marveled at the defensive play in the series by Kemp and Gonzalez.
“Probably in one series, I’ve never seen so many good plays from both guys,” Tulowitzki said. “It would have been nice to get this one and beat the Dodgers in a series. We played them tough, but it seems like they’re always one up on us. Hopefully, we catch up and get to meet them again.”
Said Rockies manager Jim Tracy: “We don’t have anything to be ashamed of. We did absolutely nothing to lose the game. We tried everything we could to win the game. To their credit, they made three fantastic defensive plays where we get multiple runs if only one of them don’t get made. I thought Chacin battled and did a very credible job. They manufactured a couple runs in the sixth inning.”
Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360, adater@denverpost.com or
