Rockies manager Bud Black, the former big-league pitcher, does not dole out unwarranted or superfluous praise to his pitchers.
So when Black made a point of praising Kyle Freeland’s competitive and fiery nature after the Rockies’ 11-4 thrashing of the Giants Tuesday night, it spoke volumes.
“I love it,” Black said. “I tell all of these guys, ‘Be yourself.’ The guys pull so hard for Kyle, because they know that he’s into it. He’s so invested in this team. Guys love playing behind guys like Kyle. It’s really cool. At times, he sort of plays like a position player.”
Freeland sparked Colorado’s three-run fourth inning with a two-out double, showing off some real speed and hustle on the bases. He’s been told to cool his jets a little bit on the bases, but so far he has not heeded the advice.
“I’ve heard that once or twice,” Freeland said. “But at the same time, that’s one of the things that kind of goes against my moral code of playing this game. It’s 100 percent every single time, no matter what.”
As for Black’s comments, Freeland said: “That’s a big compliment, coming from him especially. That’s kind of how I was raised, to play this game as hard as I can, no matter what happens. At the end of the day, you are going to feel better about yourself, regardless of the outcome. That coming from Bud is a big compliment.”
Five takeways from Tuesday’s game:
No. 1: singled in the seventh inning for his 700th career hit at , making him one of only three Rockies players to record 700 or more hits at Coors Field. The others: Larry Walker (812) and Todd Helton (1,394).
No. 2: continues to thrive in LoDo. The third baseman batted 2-for-5 with two RBIs and has now reached base in 22 of 23 games at home this season. The only game he didn’t reach bases was on April 11 vs. the Padres when he was ejected for fighting. He’s batting .383 (31-for-81) with a .474 on-base percentage over the streak
No. 3: In his first outing since getting recalled from Triple-A, right-hander relieved Freeland in the sixth inning, and although he gave up a double, Oberg was able to shut down the Giants and keep the game in hand.
No. 4: Giants right-hander Dereck Rodriguez, son of Hall of Famer Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez, made his big-league debut in the second inning and pitched 3 ⅓ innings, allowing four runs (one earned) with one walk and four strikeouts. He recorded his first major-league hit with an RBI double in the fifth inning.
No. 5: The Rockies (30-25) maintained a 1 ½-game lead over Arizona for first place in the National League West. The D-backs beat the Reds 5-2. The Dodgers fell to 4 ½ games out of first after losing 6-1 to the Phillies at Los Angeles.
Quotable: “He’s getting a lot more hits.” — center fielder , explaining Gonzalez’s resurgence at the plate.
