Remember that feel-good, four-game sweep by the Rockies over the Atlanta Braves prior to All-Star break?
As they say in Brooklyn: “fuhgeddaboudit.”
In LoDo, Rockies fans simply hang their heads and mutter, “not again.”
The latest chapter of the Rockies’ sad season was a 10-8 loss to Texas Wednesday afternoon at Coors Field in front of a resigned, sun-worshiping crowd of 33,348.
After rallying to tie the game, the Rockies lost in the ninth when Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus coaxed a two-run, bases-loaded single past third baseman Nolan Arenado. Closer John Axford’s 1-2 curveball broke out of the strike zone, but Andrus reached out and poked it past a pulled-in infield.
“I tried to throw a curveball down and get a strikeout or a grounder. I got the groundball, but it found a hole,” said Axford, who’s gone from automatic to question mark. In his first 20 appearances, he posted a 0.47 ERA. In his last 11 appearances, his ERA is 8.68.
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Axford got himself into trouble by walking Roughned Odor and giving up a single to Adrian Beltre. Axford intentionally walked pinch-hitter Prince Fielder, setting the table for Andrus’ game-winner.
“He’s been good for a long time, all year,” Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. “A couple of hiccups lately, but he’s still l throwing the ball well, still feeling fine. The walks lately have come back to haunt him. Early on he may have been getting in some tough counts, but he’d come back to put the batter away. Now if he ends up walking a guy, he hasn’t gotten away with that.”
The Rockies are 1-4 since the all-star break. In interleague play, they are 2-12 and have been outscored 88-43.
The Rockies, playing from behind all afternoon, tied the game, 8-8, with a four-run eighth.
Carlos Gonzalez, who’s beginning to look like the CarGo of old, tied the game with a three-run homer to left off Tanner Scheppers.
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Colorado’s day began on an ugly note.
The Rangers’ four-run first inning was a bull-in-the-china-shop mess for the Rockies’ Wilin Rosario, who displayed his deficiencies as a first-year first baseman.
The Rangers came out believing they could take advantage of Rosario and starter Jorge De La Rosa by laying down two bunts to open the game.
“I think that part of their gameplan was to test maybe the pitcher off the mound or the first baseman,” shortstop Troy Tulowitzki said. “Obviously those are two good bunts; got them off to a good start.”
Rosario mishandled Odor’s bunt, and later in the inning allowed a hard-hit, two-run RBI single by Mitch Moreland to get past his glove. Later, on Shin-Soo Choo’s single to Gonzalez in right, Rosario cut off CarGo’s throw to the plate — a throw that had a good chance of nailing Moreland at the plate. A number of Rockies players showed their exasperation on the play, but Weiss said he thought Moreland was going to be safe.
“Sometimes, the play passes too quick and you don’t know,” Rosario said. “I cut it because I felt the throw was off-line. But I don’t know if he was (going to be) out or safe. The only thing I know is, it was a good throw and I cut it.”
Rosario wasn’t charged with an error but his mistakes put the Rockies in a big early hole. It became a 5-0 hole in the second when Odor blasted a solo homer to deep right field offDe La Rosa.
The box score shows that De La Rosa got roughed up, but he actually pitched reasonably well and was able to cool his emotions after the rough first inning. In six innings, the left-hander gave up five hits, walked two and struck out eight.
Patrick Saunders: psaunders@denverpost.com or
Looking ahead
Thursday: Off
Friday: Reds’ Anthony DeSclafani (5-77, 3.99 ERA) at Rockies’ Eddie Butler (3-6, 4.80), 6:40 p.m., ROOT
Saturday: Reds’ Johnny Cueto (6-6, 2.79) at Rockies’ Chris Rusin (3-3, 3.88), 6:10 p.m., ROOT
Sunday: Reds’ Michael Lorenzen (3-3. 3.77) at Rockies’ Kyle Kendrick (3-11, 6.12), 2:10 p.m., ROOT
