CINCINNATI — There are few games on the Rockies’ schedule that inspire hope. Saturday was the rare type they are supposed to win. They spent the last three weeks writing their obituary. This was a night to kick a few pebbles of dirt off the casket.
Or not.
This 10-3 loss to the Reds, the 17th this month, can be summed up thusly: Esmil Rogers was warming up in the fifth inning.
Needing a solid effort from Jeremy Guthrie, the opening-day starter couldn’t keep souvenirs from landing in the seats at Great American Smallpark.
The first inning was a punch to the throat. The Rockies owned a 1-0 lead. Reds starter Mike Leake looked like he was pitching to earn a demotion. They needed Guthrie to step up and camouflage Jordan Pacheco’s shaky defense at third. It wasn’t the right-hander’s fault that Zack Cozart reached safely or that Brandon Phillips’ double wasn’t reduced to a single.
Errors put pitchers in slumps that they were never in. But he still had an opportunity to defuse the bomb. Instead, he allowed a three-run home run to platoon outfielder Chris Heisey. Heisey has earned more at-bats because he has outplayed Ryan Ludwick. So of course, given how the Rockies have played, Ludwick also homered, a three-run blast off reliever Matt Reynolds, on the night that Heisey hit his first of the season.
When Heisey’s blast cleared the fence, it suddenly was like last weekend, or that night in Los Angeles, or the disaster against Atlanta at Coors Field. That’s the problem when a team loses this frequently. Confidence waves quickly, because one swing stirs so many bad memories.
“We didn’t get off to a good start. The error haunted us. But we didn’t pitch particularly well,” said manager Jim Tracy, whose team has dropped 38 games the past two Mays. “You would have liked to see him get off to a clean start with (the defense behind him). Still, he wasn’t sharp.”
Guthrie allowed six runs in five innings. Only two were earned. But the messy box score was an accurate depiction of his evening. Reds catcher Devin Mesoraco hit the second homer off Guthrie. He has yielded a team-high nine home runs.
Guthrie hasn’t had a single strong outing since he returned from the disabled list this month. In the three starts since coming back after a shoulder injury related to a bike accident, he hasn’t controlled his fastball, trailed in counts and been vulnerable to crippling mistakes.
“I don’t know if it’s relative to the shoulder (injury), but his command has not been what it was before,” Tracy said when asked if he thought there were some lingering issues due to the jammed shoulder joint that occurred when the chain popped on his bike. “He’s falling behind. That hurts.”
Suspense was removed after Ludwick’s shot. The Reds fans were happy, and the Rockies were left to win a series on Sunday where they are 1-6 this season.
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1294 or trenck@denverpost.com
SUNDAY Rockies at Reds, 11:10 a.m., ROOT, 850 AM
If Jamie Moyer served as the Rockies’ fifth starter and the team were better, it would be easy to rationalize this as a year-long romp through the history books. Soon, however, it may not make sense to give innings to a 49-year-old pitcher when Drew Pomeranz or Jorge De La Rosa is ready to return to the rotation next month. Moyer became too predictable in his last start. If he could do it over, he would be better served walking the Marlins’ Giancarlo Stanton with the bases loaded rather than provide a fastball that Stanton slammed off the scoreboard. Moyer has won one of his last five starts against the Reds, dating to 1988. Troy E. Renck, The Denver Post
Upcoming Pitching Matchups
Today: Rockies’ Jamie Moyer (2-4, 4.99 ERA) at Reds’ Mat Latos (3-2, 4.35), 11:10 a.m., ROOT
Monday: Astros’ Wandy Rodriguez (4-4, 2.14) at Rockies’ Juan Nicasio (2-2, 4.83), 1:10 p.m., ROOT; Astros’ Lucas Harrell (4-3, 3.72) at Rockies’ Alex White (1-3, 5.32), 6:10 p.m., ROOT
Tuesday: Off
Wednesday: Astros’ Jordan Lyles (0-1, 5.29) at Rockies’ Christian Friedrich (2-1, 5.09), 6:40 p.m., ROOT
