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De La Rosa, Rockies rap Reds

By Jack Etkin, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published July 26, 2008 at 8:41 p.m.

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Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa aided his winning effort against the Reds with a two-run single

Photo by David Kohl, Associated Press

Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa aided his winning effort against the Reds with a two-run single

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CINCINNATI — Far from here, Jeff Francis took another step forward Saturday that might see him back in the Rockies rotation for his next start.

Meanwhile, Jorge De La Rosa, backed by another robust offensive effort, stated his case to remain in the rotation by stifling the Cincinnati Reds as the Rockies won 5-1.

He allowed only two hits and one run -- career home run No. 607 by Ken Griffey Jr. -- in 62/3 innings and struck out eight. But in typical De La Rosa fashion, he walked five and threw two wild pitches in a 100-pitch outing.

A four-run fifth, which included De La Rosa’s two-run single, helped the Rockies break open the game as they bombarded Reds starter Homer Bailey --he yielded 15 hits in 42/3 innings -- to improve to 8-1 after the All-Star break.

Manuel Corpas and Taylor Buchholz followed De La Rosa with hitless outings as the Rockies recorded their 15th two-hitter and first since July 24, 2006, against St. Louis.

For the Rockies, this was the pivotal game of the three-game series, having won behind Aaron Cook on Friday and starting Ubaldo Jimenez on Sunday as they attempt a series sweep.

At some point soon, Francis will join those two rotation mainstays. He made his second rehabilitation start for Double-A Tulsa as he comes back from left shoulder inflammation. Francis allowed four hits and one run in 42/3 innings against Arkansas with no walks and eight strikeouts while throwing 77 pitches, 50 for strikes.

The Rockies finished with 16 hits, reaching double digits in hits for the seventh straight game. That last happened Sept. 10-18, 1999, when they had at least 10 hits in eight consecutive games.

The Rockies strafed Bailey for 14 singles and one double, including six consecutive one-out singles to finish his 93-pitch outing during a four-run fifth.

After some baserunning troubles in the third and fourth, the Rockies again ran into an out in the fifth. Brad Hawpe was cut down at the plate by right fielder Griffey, trying to score on Ian Stewart’s single. Hawpe came home standing up and might have attempted to slide had on-deck hitter Troy Tulowitzki been at the plate to signal Hawpe.

But he wasn’t, and for the second successive inning, the Rockies had a runner thrown out trying to score. Tulowitzki, who went 3-for-5 and has raised his average from .166 to .213 since returning from the disabled list Monday, and Yorvit Torrealba followed with run-scoring singles, and De La Rosa, who was 1-for-20 this season and 1-for-36 lifetime with two RBI, doubled the latter total when he lined a two-run single to left. Adam Dunn unsuccessfully tried to catch De La Rosa’s sinking liner but did keep the ball in front of him.

The 15 hits were the most allowed by a Reds pitcher since Jimmy Anderson gave up that many June 26, 2003. No Reds right-hander had surrendered 15 hits since Mario Soto yielded that number Sept. 6, 1982.

De La Rosa held the Reds hitless for 32/3 innings, a string that ended with one majestic swing. Griffey launched De La Rosa’s 1-1 pitch, a 93-mph fastball, into the left-field stands.

It was Griffey’s 14th homer this season, No. 607 in his career and tied the score at 1. Two more homers will tie him for fifth place all time with Sammy Sosa. De La Rosa joined a long line and became the 389th pitcher to surrender a home run to the 38-year-old Griffey.

The Rockies scored an unearned run in the second. De La Rosa sacrificed after successive one-out singles by Tulowitzki and Torrealba. Third baseman Edwin Encarnacion botched Willy Taveras’ bouncer and then threw wide of first base as Tulowitzki scored.

The Rockies ran themselves out of potentially productive innings in the third and fourth. Matt Holliday started the third with a single and broke for second on a steal attempt. Center fielder Jay Bruce caught Hawpe’s flyball, but Holliday, with the play in front of him, didn’t stop in time and was doubled off first base.

Bruce cut down Torrealba at the plate in the fourth, an inning that again began when he followed Tulowitzki’s single with one of his own. De La Rosa attempted a sacrifice, but catcher David Ross threw Tulowitzki out at third.

Comments

  • July 27, 2008

    9 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    Scootie writes:

    It's interesting to me that all the Hurdle bashers stay amazingly quiet after a game like this. Hurdle made a great call last night. I likely kept the momentum in the Rockies favor and could have been a game saving decision. Hurdle used his gut last night and didn't hesitate to take DeLarosa out with one out to go in the 7th. Some managers may have been tempted, with a 4 run cushion and 2 outs, to let him get the final out of the inning. Hurdle steps up and makes the right call at the right time. I'm a Hurdle fan and think successful in-game decisions like these get overlooked. Yet....let him make a decision that doesn't work out and all the Hurdle bashers flock to the Blogs.....He's a good man and a fine skipper (nope....I don't know him, never met him and he's not paying me to say this - just my .02)

  • July 27, 2008

    10:35 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    tulorockies writes:

    Hurdle is the worst gameday manager in baseball. He sells out his own players and never gives credit to his coaching staff when the team succeeds.

  • July 28, 2008

    12:21 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    Chadley25 writes:

    The so-called "Hurdle bashers" are not, to my knowledge, saying that the man is incapable of making a good call or never manages a team that wins a single ball game. They're saying -- correctly -- that in his tenure as the Rockies manager, he's been unsuccessful. The raw data back that statement up unequivocally, too, so I would hardly call them "bashers."

    I say Todd Helton hasn't been earning his enormous paycheck for at least 3-4 years now. That doesn't make me a "Helton hater," it's just simple facts. He's not hitting and driving in runs the way you'd expect a superstar player making $16 million a year should do. Same with Hurdle. He's been in that dugout for a long time now, and the Rockies have only one time even sniffed a winning season.