DENVER -- Yes, it was ugly. But a five-run eighth on seven hits -- after managing only two runs on six hits in the previous seven innings -- restored some face to the Rockies and a small measure of respect, turning an 11-run deficit into a 13-9 loss and forcing the Padres to go to their closer to secure the victory.
At 6-32, the Rockies are now tied for the worst 38-decision start of all time, matching the 1988 Orioles, the 1895 Louisville Colonels, the 1884 Kansas City Cowboys and the 1876 Cincinnati Reds.
But their performance late in the series opener with San Diego gave the remaining fans a sign of hope -- or at least proof of life.
Jordan Beck sparked the eighth-inning rally with a leadoff homer to right-center and was followed by back-to-back singles by Ryan McMahon and Hunter Goodman, both 3-for-5 on the night, with McMahon opening the sixth with an opposite-field solo shot and Goodman hitting doubles in the second and ninth.
“It was good to show no quit right there,” McMahon said. “Hopefully, we can build off that momentum and bring that into the next game. But I think it was bigger for us just to have some success like that.”
Kyle Farmer added a two-run double and pinch-hitter Sean Bouchard and Brenton Doyle rounded out the five-run rally with a pair of RBI singles. Of Bouchard’s 10 hits this season, four have come from 12 pinch-hit plate appearances.
“It was great for those guys,” manager Bud Black said of his team’s strong finish, adding two more runs on three hits and a walk in the ninth. “This group, they don't quit. They keep fighting. Never once tonight did they not give a good at-bat. I’m so proud of the guys.”
If nothing else, the Rockies made sure Padres manager Mike Shildt got his steps in, forcing five calls to the bullpen in hopes of running the relievers ragged to open a three-game set at Coors Field.
For McMahon, however, the late-innings rally mirrored the razor-sharp focus on the moment that helped him bust out of his slump, going 11-for-27 with two doubles, a triple, three homers and six RBIs in his last eight games.
“I just take it one pitch at a time,” McMahon said of the approach heading into the eighth inning. “I know it's cliche, but that's literally the only way to go about it, right? I mean, you're getting your [butt] kicked ... all you can do is go up there and try to do the best you can do and hope that you can keep passing the baton.”
There were plans percolating in the Rockies’ dugout, however, and as the momentum built, the hitters were quick to recalibrate the possibilities in front of them.
“The talk was to make them bring in the closer,” Black said. “In this park, nobody's comfortable. That mindset is a good one. That was the talk in the dugout. Each guy had to do his part, and for the most part, throughout the lineup those last few innings, every guy had pretty good at-bats.”
For the first three frames, things looked too much like business as usual for the Rockies, who were shut out in three straight games in San Diego from April 11-13 and had a 32-inning scoreless streak against the Padres dating back to Aug. 18, 2024 -- their longest scoreless stretch against any team in franchise history.
A lot went wrong to set up the comeback that fell just shy of succeeding -- three errors Friday for a franchise-tying eight in three games (Sept. 16-18, 2003) and they gave up at least eight runs for the fifth straight game, tying another franchise record last logged from June 9-14, 2012.
But even while competing with a dramatic Nuggets overtime playoff game down the block, the Rockies made the scattered fans who remained sit up and take notice.
“The momentum in this game is real,” Black said. “Once you start getting hits, there's a feeling that happens. You can see the crowd get into a little bit. The guys, their awareness gets a little bit heightened. They get better, they get locked in in their at-bat. We need more of that, plain and simple. We need some momentum offensively, and that carries over, inning to inning and, at times, game to game. That's something we've lacked a little bit, that overall offensive momentum, but today was really, really good. We played the game.”