ST. LOUIS — Manager Jim Tracy admitted Thursday that when the Rockies lost to the Diamondbacks nine days ago that “for the first time you could feel the air came out of the balloon.”
“It was a completely helpless feeling,” Tracy said.
Colorado never recovered. The Cardinals on Thursday dropped the Rockies 6-1 at Busch Stadium, their 10th loss in 11 games.
Chris Carpenter continued the freefall with a four-hit masterpiece. The 99-pitch, 2-hour, 17-minute complete game was his first of the season. The Rockies’ lineup, as it has too often on the road, had too many dead spots. The offense’s highlights rivaled C-SPAN for entertainment. Dexter Fowler tripled and scored on a wild pitch in the sixth inning. That was it.
“It was a great way for him to go out,” Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said of Carpenter. “He was in command the whole night.”
The Cardinals, meanwhile, pummeled Jason Hammel for five runs in three innings. Hammel hasn’t been effective in a month because of shoulder fatigue and poor location.
With Carlos Gonzalez resting his sore left wrist — he will play today and Saturday — Troy Tulowitzki singled in four at-bats. He finished September with 40 RBIs, an NL record, and 15 home runs, second best in NL history.
Catch as catch can.
The Rockies’ catching situation is officially intriguing, with general manger Dan O’Dowd saying Thursday he’s not prepared to say what direction the club will go. They are expected to shop Chris Iannetta aggressively this winter. The Rockies have multiple paths they could take with starter Miguel Olivo: decline his option, pick up his option, or pick up his option and weigh his trade value.
Baylor draws Jays’ interest.
The Rockies have granted the Blue Jays permission to interview hitting instructor Don Baylor for their managerial vacancy. Asked if he would return to the Rockies in his current capacity, Baylor said, “I haven’t given it a second thought. I am still crushed that we aren’t going to the playoffs.”
Footnotes.
Clint Barmes has not rejoined the team, but he hasn’t necessarily played his last game with the Rockies. Though he will likely be nontendered, Colorado would like to bring him back as a potential second baseman or utility player. The Cardinals are expected to pursue Barmes if he becomes a free agent. . . . No decision has been made on whether Esmil Rogers will return as a starter or a reliever next season. It hinges on the makeup of the rotation, which could lose Jorge De La Rosa to free agency.
Looking ahead
TODAY: Rockies at Cardinals, 6:15 p.m., FSN
Jorge De La Rosa (8-6, 4.24 ERA) repeated this week that his “first choice is to remain a Rockie.” But the reality is that if his price tag reaches $9 million to $10 million a season, he probably won’t be. If that’s the case, this will be his last appearance for Colorado. De La Rosa has gone 34-23 with the Rockies compared with 15-23 before arriving. Colorado gets its first look at former draft choice Jake Westbrook (9-11, 4.38), who profiles as the kind of pitcher Colorado would need if De La Rosa departs, but the right- hander is sending signals that he will re-up with the Cardinals. St. Louis is 4-7 in his starts since he was acquired in the Ryan Ludwick trade. Troy Renck, The Denver Post
Upcoming pitching matchups
Saturday: Rockies’ Ubaldo Jimenez (19-8, 2.99 ERA) at Cardinals’ Kyle Lohse (4-8, 7.09), 11:10 a.m., FSN
Sunday: Rockies’ Esmil Rogers (2-2, 6.22) at Cardinals’ Jeff Suppan (2-8, 5.38), 12:15 p.m., FSN
