Rockies – Mets Recap

By Zach Cohn

Mets win series 2-1.

Game 1 – Rockies 2, Mets 1

Win: Matt Belisle (3-3)

Loss: Chris Capuano (2-4)

Save: Huston Street (12)

The Gist: The Rockies bats continued to stay quiet, and if it was not for the suddenly hot Chris Iannetta, they would have lost again. Iannetta doubled in the 5th and scored, and roped a laser home run over the left field fence in the 7th, breaking the 1-1 tie. The quality starts continue to pile up for the Rockies. Jhoulys Chacin pitched six strong and gave up only one run.

AP/Ed Andrieski)

Pivotal Play: The easy answer here is to say Iannetta’s game breaking frozen rope was the key play, but his double was more pivotal. Going into the 5^th, the Rockies had not scored in 16 innings. Iannetta ripped the ball to left center, and because he was hustling out of the box, he legged out a double.  That extra hustle became crucial, because when Chacin grounded out later in the inning, Iannetta moved up to third. If Iannetta settled for a single, the Chacin groundout would have been a rally killing double play. With Iannetta on third instead, Fowler drove him home, and got the Rockies off the schnide.

Final Thoughts: Bottom line is the Rockies offense continues be abysmal, but it was still refreshing to snap a four-game losing streak…The bullpen held up this evening, preserving the Rockies win…Tulo’s Babe Ruth like start to the season seems like a long time ago. Last time the Rockies played the Mets, Tulo hit a home run in each game of the series. Nowadays Tulo’s hitting numbers are much more pedestrian. The first time Tulo played the Mets, he was hitting around .350.  His average has plummeted to .250. Should he switch his walk up song again, maybe?

Game 2 – Mets 4, Rockies 3

Win:  Mike Pelfrey (3-3)

Loss: Jason Hammel (3-2)

Save: Francisco Rodriguez (10)

The Gist: Cargo, Tulo, and Smith all hit home runs, so the Rockies won easy right? Wrong.  All three Rockies home runs were only solo shots, and that was the only offensive production the Rockies received all night. The Mets grinded out 4 runs, and the Mets bullpen squashed any possible late inning rally.

Pivotal Play: Mets pitcher Mike Pelfrey hit a two run, two out double in 4th, which proved to be the difference maker. This was the perfect example of adding insult to injury – The Mets Ronny Paulino ripped a line drive off of Hammel for an infield single. Hammel, now a little hobbled, then gave up a walk, and the double to Pelfrey, who ended up beating the Rockies from the mound and the plate.

Final Thoughts: This was the first time this season the Rockies hit three home runs and did not win the contest. The Rockies have been having issues stringing hits together, and getting ducks on the pond, and that led to their demise in this game…Cargo hit his first home run of the season at Coors, crushing one into the Rockies bullpen…Here’s a troubling stat – the last time the Rockies scored more than six runs in a game was April 20^th, 17 games ago.

Game 3 – Mets 9, Rockies 5

Win: Jonathon Niese (2 -4)

Loss: Ubaldo Jimenez (0-3)

The Gist: Carlos Beltran belted three two-run bombs (from both sides of the plate), and Ubaldo continues to struggle on the bump.  Beltran’s stat line was as pretty (3 HR’s, 3 R, and 6 RBI), as Ubaldo’s was ugly (3.2 IP, 3 H, 5 R, and 6 BB).

(AP-Ed Andrieski)

Pivotal Play: The Rockies are down 3 – 1 and Ubaldo was in a jam.  Runners on 2^nd and 3^rd, two outs, but the opposing pitcher was at the plate. This is best-case scenario for Ubaldo. Get Niese out, get out of trouble, and keep yourself, and the team, in the game. But, instead, Jimenez walked him, and Reyes promptly hit a two RBI single, extending the Mets lead to 5-1, which they never relinquished. It was also Ubaldo’s last pitch of the afternoon. Tracy then yanked him.

Final Thoughts: The Rockies are no longer in first place in the NL West.  Their “comfortable” four-game lead has evaporated. The Rockies currently sit one game back of the Giants.  San Fran is 8 and 2 in their last 10.  The Rockies are 2 and 8…Ubaldo’s control is just not there, which must be even more frustrating for Ubaldo then it is for Rockies country.  He only gave up three hits in his three innings, but he walked six, which led to the five earned runs…Helton is the only starter hitting above .300. As a team, the Rockies are hitting .231, which is 28^th in the league. Considering how they are underperforming at the plate, they should be happy to be only one game back of first place.