[MLB] Rockies Score 8 Runs in the 7th Inning…!

 

(Denver = Wongeol Jeong) Dollander showcased his incredible talent once again.

On the 19th local time, rookie starter Dollander took the mound at Colorado’s home stadium, Coors Field, in a game against Washington. He retired the first batter, Wood, with a groundout.

He then struck out Ruiz and Lowe swinging, ending the first inning without allowing a run.

Dollander mixed his pitches well—fastballs in the 97 mph range, changeups around 89 mph, and curves in the 79 mph range—to face the Washington lineup. He especially troubled hitters with low inside pitches that hugged the zone.

Dollander allowed two runs in the second inning.

He got Bell to fly out to start the inning, but then gave up a single to García Jr. on an outside changeup. Next, he surrendered a two-run homer to Crews, who drove a cutter over the center field fence. The cutter, clocked at 87 mph, floated toward the upper part of the strike zone, giving Crews the opportunity to take the lead.

In the bottom of the second, Moniak tied the game.

With two outs, Stallings walked on four pitches. Moniak followed, lifting a 94 mph fastball over the center field wall. The game was tied 2-2.

In the top of the third, Farmer fielded a grounder by Ruiz and threw it to second base. Second baseman Schunk quickly fired to first, completing a double play and ending the inning.

In the bottom of the third, Washington starter Gore began to lose control, throwing several pitches well outside the strike zone, particularly against cleanup hitter McMahon.

Dollander began the fourth inning by surrendering a solo home run to Bell, who sent an outside curveball over the fence.

The Rockies’ defense faltered in the top of the fourth.

García Jr. hit a sharply bouncing infield grounder toward Farmer, which deflected off the outside of Farmer’s glove for an infield single.

Although Dollander continued to work the corners of the strike zone effectively, with runners on first and third and two outs, he gave up a three-run homer to Wood over the left field wall, losing his chance at a win. With that, the Rockies fell behind 7-2.

With two outs, Dollander faced Bell again. His 98 mph fastball caught the middle of the strike zone, but the ball went straight to third baseman McMahon for an out.

In the top of the fourth, the Rockies brought in Jake Bird from the bullpen. Dollander’s outing was nearing its end.

Washington’s starter Gore shut down the Rockies lineup through four innings, retiring seven consecutive batters.

In the top of the fifth, Dollander faced García Jr. again. After an eight-pitch battle, García Jr. drew a walk. Then, Crews hit his second home run of the game—a 96 mph fastball down the middle that sailed over the right-center wall for a two-run homer, making the score 9-2 and effectively sealing the game early.

Dollander threw 78 pitches through four innings, recording five strikeouts.

His pitching was solid.

In the first and second innings, he skillfully painted the edges of the strike zone. Although his control wavered slightly as the game progressed, with some pitches drifting out of the zone or over the middle, the variation wasn’t severe. However, he still showed signs of inexperience at the Major League level.

The Rockies found their opportunity in the seventh inning.

Moniak was hit by a pitch to reach first, followed by Beck drawing a walk to put runners on first and second. Then, Bouchard hit a triple to bring in two runs, narrowing the score to 12-4. Goodman drew a bases-loaded walk to force in another run.

Later in the inning, Beck hit a bases-loaded triple, adding three more runs. The Rockies scored eight runs in the seventh alone, cutting the deficit to 12-10.

In the seventh, Herget took over on the mound for the Rockies.

Herget got Ruiz to ground out to end the inning. In the top of the eighth, he faced four batters and recorded a strikeout and a lineout, holding Washington scoreless.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Rockies had a chance to come back.

Goodman walked on four pitches, and Moniak hit a triple to bring him home. However, the next batter, Beck, struck out swinging on a low outside fastball from Finnegan, ending the game with a 12-11 victory for Washington.

Colorado and Washington are scheduled for a doubleheader tomorrow, the 20th.