But the Rockies torched the Reds for 15 hits — including two home runs by Hunter Goodman — as they cruised to a 13-2 victory at Great American Ball Park.

Toss in 5 1/3 shutout innings by right-hander Tomoyuki Sagano, and it was close to a perfect roadie for the Rockies. Cincy spoiled the shutout in the ninth off reliever Jimmy Herget when Will Benson tagged him for a two-run homer.

Colorado improved to 4-1 on its six-game road trip and is just three games under .500 (14-17).

Key moments: Colorado made a statement in the first inning, with both the bat and glove. Brenton Doyle hit a one-out double, and Goodman and Willi Castro drew two-out walks. Up stepped catcher Brett Sullivan, who ripped a three-run triple to right off lefty Brandon Williamson’s 1-1 sinker.

In the bottom of the frame, shortstop Ezequiel Tovar made a scrambling, diving stop on Sal Stewart’s grounder behind second base, then Tovar nailed Matt McClain at the plate for the final out of the inning. Instead of getting banged up in the first inning, Sugano got a fresh slate and shut down the Reds for the rest of his outing.

Who’s hot: Goodman hit 3 for 4 with a walk and now leads the team with nine home runs. His average has climbed to .269. It marked the first time in his career that Goodman hit two home runs as a designated hitter. Sullivan hit 3 for 4 with two doubles and three RBIs and is batting .289.

Sugano has been everything the Rockies hoped when they signed him to a one-year, $5.1 million contract. The 36-year-old right-hander is 3-1 with a 2.84 ERA after allowing just four hits, three walks, and two strikeouts.

Who’s not: Jordan Beck, who got the start in left field and hit leadoff. He was 0 for 6 with two strikeouts and grounded into an inning-ending double play in the second. Beck’s average is down to .153 with a .440 OPS.

Tovar was golden with his glove, but his batting slump is the worst of his career. After a 1-for-4 game (he had a leadoff walk in the second inning and a single off Trevino’s knuckleball in the ninth), Tovar is batting .195. Over his last 10 games, the shortstop has gone 3-for-33 (.090) with one walk and 12 strikeouts.

Worth noting: Last season, the Rockies did not win their 14th game until June 15 at Washington, improving to 14-57.

Mickey Moniak clubbed a double off Trevino in the ninth to extend his hitting streak to 13 games.

Pitching probables

Thursday: Rockies RHP Michael Lorenzen (2-2, 5.97 ERA) at LHP Andrew Abbott (0-2, 6.59), 10:40 a.m.
Friday: Braves RHP Grant Holmes (2-1, 3.62) at Rockies LHP Jose Quintana (1-2, 4.91), 6:40 p.m.
Saturday: Braves LHP Chris Sale (5-1, 2.31) at Rockies TBD, 6:10 p.m.

TV: Rockies.TV
Radio: 850 AM & 94.1 FM

Pose a Rockies- or MLB-related question for the Rockies Mailbag.

WhatśśŇőap surprised you so far with the Rockies?

— Ed Helinski, Auburn, N.Y.

Wow, Ed, that is the question of the moment. Let me start by saying that there have been plenty of pleasant surprises in the early going. There have also been a few disappointments. Let’s get to it.

Good surprises

• Colorado’s 13-16 record. Heading into Tuesday’s game at Cincinnati, the club was on pace to finish 73-89. I don’t think the Rockies will win that many games, in large part because they might trade a few veteran starters in late July/early August, which could cost them some games. But the record is encouraging. Of course, I picked the Rockies to lose 102 games, so what do I know?

• Antonio Senzatela’s resurgence. I’ll be honest, I thought “Senza” was done, regardless of his role. But as I write this, he has a 0.50 ERA and looks like a different pitcher, dominating out of the bullpen. In fact, he is a different pitcher.  Senzatela threw his very hittable four-seam fastball 57% of the time last season, more often than all but 13 qualified pitchers in the majors. This season, he’s using his four-seamer just 37%, while incorporating his cutter (28%) and a sinker (12%), pitches he didn’t have in his repertoire last season.

• Mickey Moniak’s staying power. The No. 1 draft pick for the Phillies in 2016 had a good first season with the Rockies, but I wasn’t sure it was sustainable. Last season, Moniak set career highs in games (135), runs (62), hits (117), triples (eight), home runs (24), RBIs (68), stolen bases (nine), slugging (.519), and OPS (.824). Moniak has had hot streaks before, but then cooled off for long periods. But right now, he’s playing like an All-Star, slashing .316/.353/.684 with a team-high eight home runs.

• Troy Johnston’s hot start. When the Rockies claimed Johnston off waivers from the Marlins in November, I considered him a minor addition and a player for spring training depth and competition. It’s looking like I was way off base. Not only has Johnson slashed .315/.371/.449 with two homers and is tied for the team lead with 16 RBIs, but he’s brought fun and energy to the clubhouse.

•  Chase Dollander’s 180-degree turn. Everyone knows that the right-hander has ace-like stuff. However, harnessing that stuff was problematic last season (2-12, 6.65 ERA overall, 2-6, 9.98 ERA at Coors Field). But Dollander has been outstanding this season (3-2, 2.25 ERA, .200 batting average against), even though the Rockies have used an opener for all but one of his games.

Bad surprises

• Shortstop Ezequiel Tovar’s slow start. He looks lost at the plate right now and is hitting .200. He’s getting beat on fastballs up in the zone and waving over the top of sliders down and away. His strikeout rate is 30%, and his 48% chase rate is the highest in the majors. He’s too good a player for his slump to continue, but the trend is troubling.

• The slumps of Jordan Beck and Brenton Doyle. The Rockies need their defense in the outfield, but they are liabilities at the plate right now, which is why they are getting relatively limited playing time and hitting at the bottom of the order. Beck is hitting .154 with just three extra-base hits (one homer, two doubles). Doyle is hitting .208 with just three extra-base hits (one homer, two doubles). Entering the season, they were viewed as pillars of Colorado’s rebuild, but right now, they are players in limbo.

Patrick, we Rockies fans can clearly see the team is improved and more competitive this season. Do the players hear the same from opponents, and do you hear it from outside media?

— Dom, Longmont

Dom, I honestly don’t know how most opposing players view the Rockies. However, when the Padres were in Denver recently, several of their players said they thought the Rockies were a much-improved team.

I think a lot of media members — those who pay attention — understand that Colorado is better. Still, the stigma of three consecutive 100-loss seasons, including the 119-loss debacle last year, is hard to erase. For example, some of the New York Mets writers were apoplectic when the Rockies swept the Mets in Queens over the weekend. And an as the worst team in the majors, despite their much-improved record.

Patrick, do you agree that we’ve seen these two patterns so far in 2026? Pattern 1: You were precisely on target in projecting that the Rox will be improved, but probably won’t win 70 games this season. Pattern 2: The Rox are a Jekyll-and-Hyde team; alternating between playing a beautiful game one day and an ugly game the next (which is an improvement on three years of two or three ugly games for every one beauty).

And what does Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer see in Victor Vodnik? Is any Rox reliever less effective than Vodnik so far this year?

— Dave Stauffer, Denver

Dave, I agree with both your “patterns.” We’re going to see a lot of growing pains this season because the Rockies are still a flawed team. But give the players, coaching staff, and front office credit; they are at least a competitive team this season. That wasn’t the case last season when they had an almost unfathomable minus-424 run differential.

As for Vodnik, what Schaeffer sees is a pitcher who consistently throws 97-99 mph, can top 100 mph, and fearlessly attacks hitters. He can be erratic, as we saw last week when the Padres scored five runs off him in the ninth. But I wouldn’t give up on Vodnik.

We have two similar questions regarding Chase Dollander.

Chase Dollander seems to have kind of figured out his pitching. Do you think they’ll stay with an opener for him for a few more outings, or is this opener thing going to stick around for a while for his outings

— Kyle, Thornton

When the Rockies use an opener, why do they bring Chase Dollander in afterward? He is clearly the one handling most of the innings. Twice now, he has not been the starter but still pitched longer than any other pitcher. It seems easier to have him start the game.

— Freddy, Thornton

Guys, Dollander got the start in New York against the Mets and pitched seven strong innings. After the game, however, manager Warren Schaeffer was unclear whether he would continue to use Dollander as a traditional starter.

This is what I wrote:

“Dollander got his first official start of the season, as opposed to entering the game in the second inning after Colorado used an opener. Schaeffer said he doesn’t see a difference.

“No change from what he’s been doing,” he said. “Whether you start him or bring him out of the ‘pen, he’s going to be the same guy. It was just the state of the bullpen. We used a lot of leverage relievers in the first game, so it just made sense to start him.”

Schaeffer had previously said he thought that Dollander benefited from “the routine” of having an opener ahead of him, and also said that Dollander benefited from not having to face a batting order three times. We’ll see if Schaeffer sticks with that plan, especially now that right-hander Ryan Feltner is on the injured list with right ulnar nerve inflammation.

Fresh off a three-game sweep against the Mets in New York, the Rockies were looking to stay hot. Instead, defensive miscues early and a 1-for-11 performance with runners in scoring position cost them in a 7-2 loss.

The Reds, winners of 10 of their last 13 games, improved to 19-10. The Rockies slipped to 13-17.

Key moments: Rockies lefty Kyle Freeland, coming off the injured list, had a rough first inning, but it wasn’t all of his own making. He issued a leadoff walk to Dane Myers, but had him picked off, only to see first baseman Troy Johnston drop the ball. Then Elly De La Cruz dumped an RBI bloop single behind Johnston into shallow right field. Next came Freeland’s one big mistake. He left a pitch middle-up to Spencer Steer, who smashed it for a two-run homer. At that point, Steer was 3 for 8, with three homers off Freeland (five innings, four runs on five hits, one walk, four strikeouts).

Colorado hung around until the eighth when Cincinnati ripped reliever Tanner Gordon for three runs on five hits, including a two-run homer by Cruz.

Who’s hot: Colorado’s Edouard Julien continued to rake from the leadoff spot, going 3 for 4 with a walk and a solo home run in the second. Julien is hitting .308 and has driven in 12 runs. Rookie TJ Rumfield, who was the designated hitter on Tuesday, hit 2 for 4 with a double and a single. He’s hitting .260.

Who’s not: Shortstop Ezequiel Tovar remains stuck in the worst slump of his career. Tovar’s 0-for-4 night included a strikeout with two runners on in the eighth. Tovar’s average is down to .193. He is batting .068 (2-for-29) over his last nine games.

Worth noting: Mickey Moniak, who started in center field, went 1 for 5 and struck out twice, but he singled in the eighth to extend his hitting streak to 12 games.

Injury update: Right-handed starter Ryan Feltner played catch Tuesday and began working his way back to the rotation. The hope is that he won’t have to go to the minors on a rehab assignment. Feltner left his last start against the Padres at Coors Field last Thursday with what was diagnosed as right ulnar nerve inflammation. He’s eligible to come off the IL on May 9.

Pitching probables

Wednesday: Rockies RHP Tomoyuki Sugano (2-1, 3.42 ERA) at Reds LHP Brandon Williamson (2-2, 5.40), 4:40 p.m.
Thursday: Rockies RHP Michael Lorenzen (2-2, 5.97) at Reds LHP Andrew Abbott (0-2, 6.59), 10:40 a.m.
TV: Rockies.TV
Radio: KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM

Colorado (13-16) completed the job by taking both games of Sunday’s doubleheader at Citi Field, beating the Mets, 3-1, in Game 1, and blanking the Mets, 3-0, in Game 2 behind a gritty seven-inning performance by starter Chase Dollander.

“This team doesn’t quit … this team is special,” Dollander told reporters in New York. “We have a chance to do something special. So keep an eye out for us. It’s going to be fun.”

The pressure was on Dollander to keep the Rockies rolling. Michael Lorenzen and Jose Quintana were both excellent in the first two victories over the Mets. All told, the three starters combined to pitch 19 1/3 innings and post an 0.93 ERA.

“That was huge, especially where we are with our (taxed) bullpen,” manager Warren Schaeffer told reporters. “We needed it, and the boys stepped up. That’s the thing about this team. When certain guys are down, or certain areas of the team are down, other guys are picking them up. That’s a good sign.”

The Rockies swept the Mets for the first time since May 4-6, 2018. More pertinently, they captured their third series of this season. That’s an illustration of how much better they are now compared to their dismal 2025 season. En route to 119 losses, Colorado did not win its third series until July 18-20 vs. Minnesota.

In Sunday’s Game 2, Troy Johnston smacked an RBI single to score Tyler Freeman to get Colorado on the board in the second. Hunter Goodman’s two-run home run off right-hander Kodai Senga in the third. Goodman’s seventh homer put the Rockies ahead 3-0.

That’s all they needed because Dollander dominated: seven strikeouts, five hits, and two walks as he reduced his ERA to chintzy 2.55. He gutted it out on a day when he didn’t have his best stuff and frequently got behind in counts.

Asked what was working, Dollander replied, “If you had asked me that in the fourth inning, I would have said nothing. But I think both fastballs were working — when I commanded them -and the slider was on another level. I just kept attacking and concentrated on pitching in the strike zone.”

Dollander got his first official start of the season, as opposed to entering the game in the second inning after Colorado used an opener. Schaeffer said he doesn’t see a difference.

“No change from what he’s been doing,” he said. “Whether you start him or bring him out of the ‘pen, he’s going to be the same guy. It was just the state of the bullpen. We used a lot of leverage relievers in the first game, so it just made sense to start him.”

In the first game of the afternoon, Quintana, the 37-year-old lefty, gave Colorado 5 1/3 superb innings. He was backed up by another shutdown performance from the bullpen and timely hits.

Improving Rockies’ early season hits, misses, questions and predictions | Journal

Boos rained down on the Mets from the fans in Queens after they lost for the 15th time in their last 17 games and have been outscored 87-39 during that span.

Quintana found himself in deep trouble in the first inning when the Mets packed the bases on walks by Bo Bichette and Luis Robert Jr., followed by a single by Mark Vientos. But Quintana struck out Marcus Semien and Brett Baty to escape the jam unscathed.

New York's only run off Quintana came in the fifth on a leadoff home run by Tyrone Taylor.

Johnston's bases-loaded single scored Edouard Julien in the fourth off Mets ace Nolan McLean, and his base-loaded double-play grounder scored Julien again in the sixth. Colorado scored its third run in the seventh on a leadoff double by Brett Sullivan and a one-out RBI single by Jake McCarthy.

Juan Mejia, Jaden Hill and Victor Vodnik combined to pitch 3 2/3 scoreless innings. Vodnik rebounded from his painful blown save in Colorado's 10-8 loss to the Padres on Thursday to pitch a perfect ninth and claim his fourth save.

Pitching probables

Monday: Off day
Tuesday: Rockies TBD at Reds RHP Chase Burns (2-1, 2.57 ERA), 4:40 p.m.
Wednesday: Rockies TBD at Reds LHP Brandon Williamson (2-2, 5.40), 4:40 p.m.
Thursday: Rockies TBD at Reds LHP Andrew Abbott (0-2, 6.59), 10:40 a.m.

TV: Rockies.TV
Radio: KOA NewsRadio 850 AM & 94.1 FM;

Moniak entered the weekend on a tear that even the “Splendid Splinter” would admire. The Rockies outfielder/designated hitter entered a three-game series vs. the Mets riding an eight-game hitting streak in which he slashed .419/.455/.871 (1.326 OPS), with three home runs, five doubles, six RBIs, and a stolen base.

“I’m bursting with pride and joy,” said Bill Moniak, Mickey’s grandfather, whom Williams tutored back in Bill’s minor league days.

Bill, 86, lives in an assisted-living complex near San Diego. The TVs there don’t carry the Rockies games, but that doesn’t mean Bill hasn’t watched nearly every inning.

“Until they get this figured out for me, I’ll keep watching on my phone,” he said. “It’s a pain in the neck, but I keep watching on that little screen.”

On Thursday, he watched his grandson hit two home runs during a 4-for-5 performance in Colorado’s crushing, ninth-inning loss to the Padres at Coors Field.

“Mickey was a heck of an athlete, and he could have been a big-time quarterback, but he always loved baseball, just like I did,” Bill said. “I remember from the time he was about 3 years old, he would carry around a little Wiffle ball and bat, and he’d say, ‘Papa, Papa, throw it to me.’ ”

That 3-year-old kid blossomed into a baseball phenom that the Philadelphia Phillies selected No. 1 overall in the 2016 draft out of La Costa Canyon High School near San Diego. He received a $6.1 million signing bonus from the Phillies.

Mickey credits his grandfather and his father, Matt, who played briefly at San Diego State, for his love of the game.

“My granddad was at almost every tournament,” Mickey said. “He used to go with my dad and I to Arizona on baseball trips. I remember he was with us when we went to a tournament in Steamboat Springs when I was 10. He’d take me to batting cages wherever we could find them.”

Bill grew up in the tiny borough of Youngsville in Warren County, Penn. The winters were too cold and snowy for the local high school to field a baseball team, but Bill, who stood 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, was a gifted outfielder and honed his skills in sandlot games during the summer.

So gifted, in fact, that in the summer of 1958, he signed with the Boston Red Sox for the princely sum of $25,000. Coming straight out of high school, he was one of the first “bonus babies” the Red Sox ever signed. The left-handed hitter never made it to the majors, but played six minor league seasons. Bill finished with a .271 average and 26 career home runs.

During spring training in 1961-63,  Bill was instructed by Williams, who worked for the club as a special batting instructor after finishing his Hall of Fame career in 1960. Williams took a special interest in Carl Yastrzemski, who replaced him in left field and would one day join Williams in Cooperstown.

“Ted was a good guy, but you had to do it Ted’s way, ” Bill recalled. “There was no other way. And Ted was, shall we say, colorful, with his language.”

One morning during spring training, Williams brought out his fungo bat to hit fly balls to the Red Sox’s young outfielders. They started razzing Williams, even though they were quite aware of his greatness. Williams had a career batting average of .344 and hit 521 home runs. He hit .406 in 1941, the last player to hit .400 in a season.

“Hey, why don’t you hit the ball? You call that hitting the ball?” We thought you were the great Ted Williams!”

It turns out that “Teddy Ballgame” didn’t take too kindly to that.

“So Ted sticks his arm up in the air, like he always did, and waves everybody in,” Bill recalled. “He says, ‘OK, you smart-asses, we’re going to handle this.’ So he hit to us for probably an hour straight. I’d never seen so many 400-foot fungo shots before. He was just hitting BBs. He’d run us from one line to the other — left to right, right to left — over and over. We laughed so hard that day, I’ll tell you.”

But Bill’s most memorable Williams story took place in a spring training batting cage. It’s a story Mickey has heard, “about 100 times.”

“I was having a great spring, hitting over .400,” Bill recalled. “But Williams wanted me to hit his way. I told him, ‘Ted, I don’t feel good about this.’ He says, ‘Damn it, kid, try it my way.’

“I mean, I’m 21 years old, so what am I going to do, tell Ted Williams he doesn’t know what he’s talking about?”

Bill ended up striking out four times trying out Williams’ swing and stance. The next game, three more strikeouts.

“So I went back to my old way of hitting, and I hit a home run in my first at-bat and went 4 for 4,” Bill recalled with a laugh. “The next thing I know, I see Ted, his arm up in the air, and he waves me over. He puts his arm around me, and says, ‘If anybody ever tells you again how to hit a (blanking) baseball, you tell them to take it and shove it where the sun don’t shine.’ ”

Still, Bill hung on to the basic tenets of hitting that Williams imparted, and he passed those along to his grandson.

“The main thing that sticks out is what Ted Williams taught my grandfather about approach,” Mickey said. “The basic idea is to know strikes, and know that you own the pitcher. Hit your pitch; the pitch you want. If he throws you a strike on the corner, tip your cap. One strike, you still own him. Two strikes, you choke up a little bit and put the ball in play. I don’t choke up on the bat, but I get the idea.”

Mickey’s dad has been a huge influence, too, but in a different way than Bill.

“From a young age, he was the parent who never pushed me,” Mickey said. “He was a surfer and dirt biker — all of that Southern California stuff. But he was incredible. Any tournament I wanted to go to, he’d get me there on the weekends. I was always dragging him with me to go hit, and he did it.

“I’m not sitting here without him. I always tell people that when I got drafted first overall, and I told him I didn’t want to play baseball anymore, he’d have been good with it. He was going to support me no matter what. But I always wanted to play big-league baseball.”

Moniak needed support from both his dad and his grandpa during his up-and-down career with the Phillies. He spent parts of three seasons with the organization before being released. It was a similar story with the Angels, where a breakout 2023 campaign was followed by a subpar 2024 season. The Angels released him at the end of last year’s spring training, and the Rockies swooped in and signed him just before Opening Day to a one-year, $1.25 million contract. His .270/.306/.518 slash line with 24 home runs during his first season with Colorado earned him a one-year, $4 million contract to avoid arbitration.

Moniak has been essential to the Rockies’ rebuild, not just on the field but in the clubhouse.

“Behind closed doors … he’s part of what keeps everything around here loose and keeps everybody ready to play,” manager Warren Schaeffer said. “What he provides off the field is just as big as what he’s providing on the field, but he’s in a really good place offensively, too.”

And that’s not easy. As Williams famously said, “The hardest thing to do in baseball is to hit a round baseball with a round bat, squarely.”

As for Mickey’s baseball bond with his grandfather, it’s still going strong.

“He texts me after almost every game,” Mickey said. “He always tells me, ‘Grip it n’ Rip it,’ and he’s been telling me that since I was a little kid.”

And 10 years after the Phillies picked him No. 1 overall, Mickey is gripping and ripping as well as he ever has.

“Mickey’s turned out to be a pretty good ballplayer, don’t you think?” his grandfather said.

“The ultimate goal is to bring consistent winning seasons to this organization,” Schaeffer said on the day he slipped off the interim tag and was officially named Rockies manager. “You’re going to see winning baseball in Denver a lot sooner than you think.”

Raise your hand if you were skeptical.

I don’t blame you. Three consecutive 100-loss seasons, topped off by last year’s 119-loss disaster, tend to squeeze the optimism out of even the most positive fans. But Scheaffer might be on to something.

Entering Sunday’s doubleheader vs. the Mets (Saturday’s game at Citi Field was rained out), the Rockies are 11-16. They have been solid at home (7-6), though predictably wobbly on the road (4-10). They are on pace to finish 66-96, which would be a 23-game improvement from last season. I picked the Rockies to lose 102 games, so they are exceeding my expectations — at least in the early going.

Some very early observations, questions, and predictions with 16.6% of the season in the books:

The bullpen has been excellent: Even with the Padres’ ninth-inning rally vs. Victor Vodnik last Thursday, the relievers have been the best thing about the Rockies this season. Colorado’s 3.77 ERA ranks 12th in the majors, and considering the Coors Field factor, that’s pretty good. Former starter Antonio Senzatela looks reborn. He’s given up two runs over 18 innings (0.50 ERA) with 18 strikeouts vs. four walks.

Is the bullpen’s excellence sustainable? History tells us no. The wear and tear of the season usually causes Rockies relievers to implode in August and September. Schaeffer and the front office are well aware of that history, which is a reason why we’re seeing Colorado use so many “bulk relievers.” Pitchers like Jimmy Herget, Chase Dollander and Senzatela have been purposely scheduled for multiple innings, with the hope that late-game relievers won’t be toast in August. We’ll see if it works.

Can Dollander become a true ace? Yes, he can. It’s not just that his stats — 2.88 ERA, .198 batting average against, 32 strikeouts vs. seven walks — but his demeanor, self-confidence, and easy power that give him a chance to be great. Of course, a true ace doesn’t have a reliever opening games for him, but I imagine that set up is going to change sooner rather than later.

Who’s a possible All-Star? Right now, the Rockies have two candidates — catcher Hunter Goodman (.264 average, .870 OPS, six homers) and outfielder Mickey Moniak (.315, 1.050, eight). But there are two caveats here. First, Goodman’s 37.3% strikeout rate is much too high. Second, Moniak has had hot streaks before. Can he be productive for a full season?

But wouldn’t it be cool if Moniak gets to play in the All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia? Remember, the Phillies selected him with the first overall pick in the 2016 draft.

Ezequiel Tovar will play better: The shortstop has not played well thus far, at least not by his standards. His .967 fielding percentage ranks 10th in the majors, his 3.70 range factor is ninth, and his 0.0 DWAR ranks 23rd. His numbers will improve because he’s a talented, athletic shortstop who could still end up in the Gold Glove conversation.

However, Tovar looks lost at the plate right now, as evidenced by his .216/.255/.330 slash line that includes just one home run.  His strikeout rate is 28.4%, his walk rate is just 2.9%, and his chase rate is a very hight 48.5%. Those are reasons why he’s hitting low in Schaeffer’s lineup.

When Tovar hit .269 with 26 homers and 45 doubles in 2024, I thought he was just getting warmed up. It’s early, but he needs to become a more disciplined hitter to become the star so many envisioned.

What’s up with Brenton Doyle and Jordan Beck? There have been flashes that they could be pillars of the Rockies’ outfield for years to come. That’s not happening right now.

Beck isn’t getting on base consistently (.204 on-base percentage), so he’s not getting consistent playing time, which, in turn, is part of the reason why he’s hitting just .160 with one home run. He’s in no-man’s land right now. He might be a slow starter, but he’s going to need to earn more at-bats to climb out of his funk. That’s not easy in the big leagues.

Doyle is beginning to hit the ball hard again, and the Rockies need his defense in center field. But he’s striking out 35% of the time, and his track record shows he’s a streak hitter. Right now, he’s slashing .219/.288/.288 with one home run and a .143 average with runners in scoring position. The jury is still out on his future.

TJ Rumfield is a real find: The rookie first baseman is everything that former first baseman Michael Toglia was not. In Friday night’s win over the Mets, he put together a seven-pitch at-bat against Freddie Peralta with the bases loaded in the fifth inning. Rumfield didn’t get a hit, but he grounded out and scored a run. He takes unselfish at-bats, which is not always easy for a rookie. He’s hitting a solid .292 (7 for 24) with runners in scoring position.

Major decisions loom for the front office: Paul DePodesta, president of baseball operations, has been progressive since taking over the front office — pitch-calling “suggestions” from the dugout, a lot of new people on staff, and beefing up the analytics department.

Former general manager Bill Schmidt was criticized for holding on to players and getting nothing in return. So I’ll be curious to see how many veteran starters DePodesta will put on the market as the Aug. 3 trade deadline comes into view. Right-handers Michael Lorenzen and Tomoyuki Sugano, and lefty Jose Quintana, are all pitching on one-year deals. Lorenzen has a $9 million club option for 2027, but I doubt the Rockies will pick it up. Senzatela is also in the final year of his contract.

The wild-card here is lefty Kyle Freeland, who’s in his 10th year with the Rockies. He’s pitched terrifically so far, but his stint on the injured list means his player option likely won’t kick in. He needs to pitch 170 innings for his $17,000 option to vest for 2027.

The resurgent Rockies held on to beat the Mets, 4-3, at Citi Field on Friday night behind a terrific start from Michael Lorenzen and some timely hits.

The Mets, who took two games from the Twins after losing 12 games in a row, usually dominate Colorado, especially in Queens. But Colorado made the key plays in the key moments on Friday night.

Colorado rebounded after a painful ninth-inning loss to the Padres on Thursday at Coors Field.

Key moments: Right fielder Troy Johnson delivered a two-run single in the seventh inning to score Hunter Goodman and TJ Rumfield and increase Colorado’s lead to 4-1. Johnson’s big hit came off reliever Sean Manaea.

In the eighth, after New York tagged Jaden Hill for two runs on four hits in one-third inning, right-hander Antonio Senzatela rode to the rescue. He got Mark Vientos to line out to a double play to end the inning. Senzatela pitched a perfect ninth, striking out pinch-hitter MJ Melendez with a 98 mph fastball to end the game. Senzatela notched his second save and lowered his ERA to 0.50.

Who’s hot:  Lorenzen, who struggled to begin the season, pitched seven terrific innings. Although the Mets knocked out seven hits, he limited them to one run, didn’t walk any, and struck out three. Lorenzen induced three groundball double plays to get himself out of trouble.

Who’s not: The Rockies’ lineup on the road. Although the Rockies came up with key hits, they also struck out 15 times, were 2 for 12 with runners in scoring position, and left 11 runners on base.

Worth noting: Colorado snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Mets and won for just the second time in its last seven games at Citi Field.

Injury update: Right-handed starter Ryan Feltner was placed on the 15-day injured list Friday with right ulnar nerve inflammation. Feltner exited Colorado’s 10-8 loss to the Padres on Thursday after pitching just two innings when he felt tightness in his right triceps and numbness in his fingers.

that he’s hopeful that Feltner’s stint on the IL will not be a long one.

“The MRI looked pretty good,” Schaeffer said. “We are hoping (Feltner is on the IL for the minimum 15 days). ItśśŇőap just a little elbow inflammation.”

To replace Feltner on the roster, Colorado called up left-hander Sammy Peralta from Triple-A Albuquerque on Friday. Peralta, 27, was claimed via waivers from Milwaukee earlier this month. In seven appearances with the Isotopes, he has a 3.72 ERA with seven strikeouts and three walks over 9 2/3 innings.

Pitching probables

Saturday: Rockies LHP Jose Quintana (0-2, 6.23 ERA) at Mets RHP Kodai Senga (0-3, 8.83), 2:10 p.m.

Sunday: Rockies TBD at Mets RHP Nolan McLean (1-1, 2.67)

Monday: Off day

TV: Rockies.TV

Radio: 850 AM & 94.1 FM

The Rockies’ late-game reliever took note of a leadoff walk that haunted him, expressed frustration about the groundballs that found holes, and took responsibility for a poorly executed pitch that turned a significant Rockies’ victory into a stinging 10-8 defeat.

Leading the Padres 8-5 entering the ninth at Coors Field on Thursday afternoon, the Rockies were on the cusp of clinching the three-game series. But Vodnik walked Jackson Merrill, and then saw Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts and Miguel Andujar rap out groundball singles.

Then Vodnik threw a first-pitch cutter to Gavin Sheets. Bang: a three-run 379-foot homer down the right-field line. Ecstasy to agony.

“On the Gavin Sheets homer, it was a pitch I didn’t execute,” said Vodnik, who was charged with his second loss and his second blown save as his ERA spiked to 7.59. “It was a backup cutter. The Padres did a good job of executing, and I got a bit unlucky on those groundballs, and I didn’t execute when I had to.”

It was the second time this season that Sheets crushed Colorado. On April 10 at Petco Park, Sheets hit a three-run, walk-off home run off Roberto Mejia to beat the Rockies, 5-2.

Wasted in Colorado’s defeat on Thursday was left fielder Mickey Moniak’s 4-for-5 performance that included two solo home runs. Adding oomph to the gut-punch loss was the injury suffered by starter Ryan Feltner.

Feltner pitched just two innings before being removed from the game because of right triceps tightness. Starting second baseman Willi Castro departed after three innings because of pain in the patella tendon in his right knee.

“We have been working on (the triceps) in the training room for the last few days, and it just got a little tight in the second inning, so we took precautions,” Feltner explained.

His anger was evident on the mound at the end of the second when he snapped his glove when he struck out Jake Cronenworth to end the inning.

“That wasn’t the exact moment (of the injury), but that was frustration there,” he said.

Feltner said that the concern of a major injury is “pretty low,” but added, “There is no prognosis right now.”

Castro said the decision to pull him from the game was precautionary and said he didn’t expect to miss much playing time.

Moniak, meanwhile, continues flashing star power. Ten years after he was the first player selected in the major league draft, he’s playing as if he belongs in the Midsummer Classic in Philadelphia in July.

After batting .270 and hitting 24 homers for the Rockies last season, he’s hitting .324 with a 1.097 OPS this season. He believes the Rockies are making strides, but couldn’t hide his disappointment in letting a win slip away.

“At the end of the day, the name of the game is to win.  We weren’t able to get that done, but that’s baseball,” said the 27-year-old Moniak, who was selected in the first round by the Phillies in 2016 out of La Costa Canyon High School in Carlsbad, Calif.

“Vic has been huge for us this year, but he just had a tough day,” Moniak continued. “That’s how it goes sometimes. I have all the confidence in the world in that guy. As much as this one hurts, we have to move forward.”

The Rockies begin a six-game, seven-day road trip in New York on Friday when they play the Mets at Citi Field. Moniak expects the Rockies to rebound from Thursday’s loss.

“I think so,” he said. “It’s been a year so far, with a lot of highs and some lows. Now it’s just going to be about finding that consistent high and figuring out ways to win baseball games. As bad as this one sucked, we had a .500 homestand against two good teams (Dodgers and Padres), and we easily could have been above .500 on the homestand.”

Pitching probables

Friday: Rockies RHP Michael Lorenzen (1-2, 7.48) at Mets RHP Freddy Peralta (1-2, 4.05), 5:10 p.m.

Saturday: Rockies LHP Jose Quintana (0-2, 6.23) at Mets RHP Kodai Senga (0-3, 8.83), 2:10 p.m.

Sunday: Rockies TBD at Mets RHP Nolan McLean (1-1, 2.67)

TV: Rockies.TV

Radio: 850 AM & 94.1 FM

Their 8-3 victory over the Padres on Wednesday night at Coors Field offered the latest proof.

One night after losing a 1-0 game at home for the first time since Aug. 1, 2006, the Rockies rebounded with an impressive performance and snapped their seven-game losing streak to San Diego. Behind a strong start from Tomoyuki Sugano and a huge night at the plate from Hunter Goodman, Colorado improved to 10-15, including a 7-5 record at Coors.

Great shakes? No, but compared to a year ago, it’s baseball nirvana.

“There is a lot of confidence in this group and we have shown that we can do good things,” said Goodman, who hit 3 for 4 with a solo home run and two doubles. “You are not going to keep us down to three hits. You’re not going to do that a lot, and I think we have confidence as a group that we are going to bounce back, especially in this ballpark.”

After the first 25 games of last season’s 119-loss debacle, the Rockies were 4-21 and had already suffered a six-game losing streak and an eight-game losing streak, and they were three games deep into another eight-game skid.  In 2025, the Rockies did not win their 10th game until June 2, to improve to 10-50.

Sugano, who pitched poorly in Colorado’s 7-1 home loss to the Dodgers last Friday, handled the Padres for 5 2/3 innings. The veteran right-hander allowed one run on five hits, struck out four and walked one. He was never in serious trouble, though he departed the game with Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts on base after back-to-back, two-out singles. But reliever Jaden Hill cleaned up the mess by getting Gavin Sheets to ground out to second.

“Sugano has been fantastic,” manager Warren Schaeffer said. “He’s locating the heater, and tonight the slider was really good, and the sweeper was good. He was just competing and attacking the zone. He’s a professional, and you can tell that when he goes out there.

“I think every time out there is probably a different pitch working for him. Tonight it was the sweeper and the slider.”

Sugano, who improved to 2-1 with a 3.42 ERA  through his five starts with Colorado, said he’s enjoying his time in Colorado.

“It’s a new team, new coaching staff, new environment, and good teammates,” he said through his interpreter, Yuto Sakurai. “Overall, it’s a very good environment for me so far.”

Last season, the Rockies’ offense often got stuck in a rut and stayed there, spinning its wheels. In their 1-0 loss on Tuesday night, the Rockies managed just three hits. But they pounded out 15 hits on Wednesday, and scored five of their eight runs with two outs.

Goodman launched a 427-foot leadoff home run in the eighth, his sixth homer of the season, tying Mickey Moniak for the team lead.

Moniak continues to rake. He hit two doubles and drove in a run, and has hit safely in his last seven games, slashing .346/.393/.654 during the streak. Rookie first baseman TJ Rumfield drove in Goodman with an RBI single in the fourth and scored Moniak with a double in the sixth. Rumfield and Moniak are tied for the team lead with 13 RBIs.

San Diego veteran right-hander Walker Buehler dominated the Rockies on April 10 at Petco Park, pitching six scoreless innings, allowing just three hits, walking none, and striking out four. Wednesday night, he got the hook after just 2 2/3 innings. The Rockies wrecked Buehler for four runs on eight hits, and he walked three.

The differing results were not solely due to different ballparks. The Rockies attacked Buehler differently this time around.

“It’s another step forward for us,” Schaeffer said. “Just the fact that we forced him to throw so many pitches within the first three innings (82), just tells me we are spitting on the balls.

“It’s so simple. I don’t want to make too much out of it, but it’s baseball. It’s spitting on the balls and offering at pitches in the zone. That’s what we did tonight. It was good and we have to do it again tomorrow.”

Colorado will attempt to win its third series of the season on Thursday afternoon vs. the Padres. Last season, Colorado didn’t win its third series until July 18-20, when it took two of three games from Minnesota at Coors.

Pitching probables

Thursday: Padres RHP Matt Waldron (0-1, 14.73 ERA) at Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner (1-1, 6.00), 1:10 p.m.

Friday: Rockies RHP Michael Lorenzen (1-2, 7.48) at Mets RHP Freddy Peralta (1-2, 4.05), 5:10 p.m.

Saturday: Rockies LHP Jose Quintana (0-2, 6.23) at Mets RHP Kodai Senga (0-3, 8.83), 2:10 p.m.

TV: Rockies.TV

Radio: 850 AM & 94.1 FM

The building continued on Tuesday night at Coors Field when the hard-throwing right-hander allowed one run on three hits and struck out nine over six innings. Dollander’s metel was tested, but he never blinked.

But then, neither did Padres starter Randy Vasquez. He pitched seven scoreless innings, struck out five, and set the table for the Padres’ 1-0 victory in front of an announced crowd of 15,672.

It was just the fourth 1-0 home loss in franchise history. The last time the Rockies lost a 1-0 game at home was on Aug. 1, 2006, vs. Milwaukee when Josh Fogg was Colorado’s starter. All of the other three 1-0 losses came during the 2006 season: April 16 vs. Philadelphia, July 25 vs. St. Louis, and that  Aug. 1 loss to the Brewers.

Colorado fell to 9-15, and its offense remains an enigma, but Dollander’s performance has been one of the most encouraging developments of the early season.

“I keep saying it, but all of the work I put in during the offseason is starting to show,” said the right-hander, who relied on his four-seam fastball, slider, and sweeper on a night when he couldn’t command his changeup.

Coors Field beat up Dollander last season (2-6, 9.98 ERA and 12 homers allowed in 11 starts). But he’s pitched well here thus far this season (0-2, 1.74 ERA with no homers allowed in two games).

“He’s just attacking with all he has, and he’s not even thinking about (Coors),” manager Warren Schaeffer said. “Kudos to him. He looks like a completely different guy this year. I’m very happy for Chase.”

But no matter the venue or the game’s texture, San Diego continues to own Colorado. Dating back to last season, the Padres have a 15-3 record against Colorado, and have won seven straight and 10 of the last 11 games.

In a pitcher’s duel more reminiscent of San Diego’s Petco Park than Coors, the Rockies managed just three singles all night. Schaeffer tipped his cap to Vazquez, who thrives when he pitches deep into a game. In games when he’s pitched five or more innings, he’s gone 12-3 with a 2.12 ERA, and the Padres are 23-7 in those starts

“Vazquez was awesome,” Schaeffer said. “It was the cutter. He jammed the lefties, running away from the barrel. With the righties, there was not a lot of hard contact at all. He was efficient with his pitches and attacking with that cutter. We really didn’t have an answer for it tonight.”

Dollander didn’t get the start — that honor went to opener Jimmy Herget — but Dollander’s performance this season continues to indicate that he’s Colorado’s ace of the future. After throwing a career-high 102 pitches (67 for strikes), he shaved his ERA to 2.88.

Dollander escaped potential disaster in the sixth and gave up just one run. In doing so, he displayed his growing maturity as a pitcher.

The Padres loaded the bases when Jake Cronenworth legged out a hustle double on a grounder to right-center, Fernando Tatis Jr. reached on a swinging bunt to third, and Jackson Merrill was grazed by Dollander’s inside curveball.

Dollander walked the dangerous Manny Machado on a 3-2 fastball to force in the game’s first run, but struck out Xander Bogaerts to end the inning.

Herget, who said during the offseason that he would like a chance to be a starter, got his wish. Sort of. He was the opener for Dollander and quickly shut down the Padres in the first inning. Herget fanned Ramon Laureano, Fernando Tatis Jr., and Jackson Merrill in succession, needing just 14 pitches (10 strikes) to get the job done.

Before the game, Schaeffer said Herget has the perfect makeup to be an opener.

“I love Jimmy as an opener,” Schaeffer said. “He’s got the makeup for it. He’s got the want-to — he wants to do it. Those are two big factors. And he’s really good. He’s a good pitcher. It’s tough for a right-handed lineup to start out with him because he’s kind of funky.

Through 11 appearances, including three as an opener, Herget has a 1.50 ERA with 11 strikeouts and only two walks.

Pitching probables

Wednesday: Padres RHP Walker Buehler (1-1, 4.58 ERA) at Rockies RHP Tomoyuki Sugano (1-1, 3.92), 6:40 p.m.

Thursday: Padres RHP Matt Waldron (0-1, 14.73) at Rockies TBD, 1:10 p.m.

Friday: Rockies RHP Michael Lorenzen (1-2, 7.48) at Mets RHP Freddy Peralta (1-2, 4.05), 5:10 p.m.

TV: Rockies.TV

Radio: 850 AM & 94.1 FM