ST. LOUIS — On June 30, the Rockies were 41-42, in fourth place in the National League West and six games out of first place. They entered Wednesday night’s game against the Cardinals with a 58-48 record and in second place in the NL West, a mere half-game behind Arizona.
So what happened? July happened.
It is, on average, the warmest month in most of the Northern hemisphere, and for the Rockies, this July was one of the hottest months in franchise history. The Rockies finished 17-6 for a .738 winning percentage. It ranked as their second-highest winning percentage ever, second only to the .750 mark in June 2009, when they went 21-7.
So what exactly happened to the Rockies in July?
— Pitching: Colorado posted a 3.16 ERA, its lowest for a single month in franchise history. The .220 batting average against also was the lowest in any month in team history.
“I don’t think it’s any secret that when you pitch well, you tend to play well, and you tend to win. It builds momentum for the whole team,” manager Bud Black said. “What I have seen from our starters is the ability to get ahead in counts, pound the strike zone and keep the ball down. When we have done that, good things have happened.”
— Hitting: Colorado led the National League with a .278 batting average in July, while its 182 strikeouts were the fewest. Its .490 slugging percentage was the best, as was its .830 OPS. The Rockies smacked 34 home runs in July, third most in the NL, led by MVP candidate , who hit eight.
“The thing I like is that we are getting production all through the order now,” said center fielder , who hit .351 with seven home runs in July and rode a 13-game hitting streak into Wednesday night. “I think early on, you saw a lot of ups and down. But we’re more dangerous now.”
— Confidence: “I think we are playing right now the way we always thought we would, so I don’t even look at it like we got really hot,” said right-hander , who has salvaged his season after going down to Triple-A Albuquerque for a tuneup. Since returning from Triple-A, Gray has a 1.66 ERA with a .137 batting average against in three starts.
— Defense: Statistically, Colorado’s defense lapsed a bit in July when it posted a .985 fielding percentage, below its .988 mark for the season. Still, the Rockies made big plays in big moments.
“It makes me feel pretty invincible, really,” Gray said. “They make me feel really good. Sometimes you think you’ve given up a hit and then you turn around and see that they’ve caught the ball. So it’s like, ‘OK, that’s pretty cool.’ ”
Left-hand man. Lefty reliever pitched live batting practice Wednesday afternoon, testing the plantar fasciitis in his left foot.
“It feels good, and I was pleased with the majority of my pitches,” said Rusin, who has been on the disabled list since July 24. “If I feel good tomorrow, with no problems, I’ll got out on a (Triple-A) rehab assignment.”
Rusin can’t get back fast enough for the Rockies, whose bullpen has suffered due to the lack of an effective lefty.
“I’ve obviously struggled this season, so I’m really motivated, because I feel like I’ve been letting the team down,” said Rusin, whose 6.81 ERA and seven home runs surrendered over 39⅔ innings has been a major disappointment, and a big step down from last season when he posted a 2.65 ERA over 85 innings and served up only nine homers.
Black expressed confidence that Rusin can turn around his season.
“I do think he can bounce back and give us the same sort of performance he gave us last year,” Black said. “Once he gets through this disabled list and is healthy, I think he can perform like he did. Because his stuff is still there.”
Looking ahead
Rockies RHP Antonio Senzatela (4-3, 5.01 ERA) at Cardinals RHP Miles Mikolas (10-3, 2.82), 11:15 a.m. Thursday, MLB Network; 850 AM
Since being called up from Triple-A on July 3, Senzatela is 2-2 with a 4.13 ERA over four starts. He’s 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA in his career vs. the Cardinals, and he pitched one of the best games of his career against them last May in Denver, tossing a career-high eight shutout innings. In his only previous start at Busch Stadium, on July 24, 2017, Senzatela pitched four innings, giving up four runs on six hits. In his last start, Mikolas was charged with two runs on six hits and one walk while striking out two in six innings against the Cubs. Both runs came on Javy Baez’s home run, snapping Mikolas’ streak of 41 consecutive innings without giving up a longball. The right-hander has allowed three or fewer runs in seven consecutive starts, although he has failed to strike out more than six batters in any of those outings. However, he did induce 13 groundball outs and two double plays in his last start. — Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post
Friday: Rockies RHP German Marquez (6-7, 3.43 ERA) at Brewers RHP Junior Guerra (6-7, 3.43), 6:10 p.m., ATTRM
Saturday: Rockies LHP Tyler Anderson (6-3, 3.69) at Brewers RHP Freddy Peralta (4-2, 3.61), 5:10 p.m., ATTRM
Sunday: Rockies RHP Jon Gray (9-7, 4.99) at Brewers LHP Wade Miley (2-1, 1.53), 12:10 p.m., ATTRM
