Inexperienced Rockies hammered again, drop series to Nats with sloppy play

DENVER – It just wasn’t their day. Or their series. The Colorado Rockies got pummeled by the Washington Nationals for their third straight game, showing just how much progress is still to be made. This was the first time in 2017 that the Rockies lack of health and experience really showed.

Nolan Arenado put the Rockies on top in the bottom of the first with a solo home run deep over the left field fence. It was Arenado’s seventh home run and 16th RBI of the season. Arenado is now 9-for-14 with two doubles, three home runs, nine RBI and three walks in the 1st inning this season.

According to Pitch/FX data, Senzatela threw eight pitches in the first two innings that should have been called strikes but were instead called balls, resulting in three walks. Two of those free passes came in the second and were followed up by a Wilmer Difo double that tied the game at one. But Senza did a nice job to limit the damage to just that run, which was impressive considering how frustrated the 22-year-old must have been.

Then, after manager Bud Black had some words with home plate umpire Mike Winters, he went on to make his worst call yet in the third, taking his missed pitch total up to 10 for Senzatela on this gem:

Call hurts #Rockies
Ball 2 should be strike 1
Top 3 Senzatela vs Harper
0% call same
6.1in from edge pic.twitter.com/e0pQztiF6j

— Rockies Strike Zone (@RockiesUmp) April 27, 2017

It was just that kind of day for the rookie. He battled through some tough and arguably unfair obstacles but still came out with a decent line. Washington got a second run in the third when Trea Turner came in on a fielder’s choice after doubling. It looked like Arenado might have had a play at the plate but decided against it.

Charlie Blackmon extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a single in the third inning. He is batting 16-for-46 (.348) over the streak.

The Rockies tied it up in the fourth with a bit of small ball all of their own. Walks to Trevor Story and Gerardo Parra (with possibly some make-up calls in there) set the stage for an RBI single off the bat of Pat Valaika. It was Valaika’s second hit of the game.

The only run that Senzatela gave up that wasn’t at least a little unlucky was the solo home run to Adam Eaton in the fifth. Though, he did fall asleep on a double-steal in the sixth, allowing another run when pitcher Gio Gonzalez hit a weak grounder up the middle. A diving stop from Story prevented another run from scoring but that made it 4-2, Nationals.

His final line: 6 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K. His ERA on the season now sits at 2.81.

It was impressive that Senzatela was able to give the Rockies six innings despite throwing nearly 40 pitches over the first two frames and all things considered, he kept the Rockies in the game against a very good team who has put up some crooked numbers the past few days. Clearly, the Nats are hitting the ball extraordinarily well right now.

It certainly didn’t help Colorado’s cause that they grounded into inning-ending double plays in both the third and fourth with runners in scoring position.

In the top of the seventh, the Nationals added a fifth run on a play that encapsulated what this whole series has been like for the Rockies. Bryce Harper struck a hard grounder right at Mark Reynolds who made a sliding stop and looked like he would tag first and throw home for the inning-ending double play, but instead, he did neither, missing the bad and tossing the ball into Washington’s dugout allowing both runners to advance and the run to score. So close, yet so far away. The game got out of hand right after that as the Nationals poured in 11 runs in the frame. The Rockies plated a few in the bottom of the ninth but that was mostly for show as they took the 16-5 loss.

The game got out of hand right after that as the Nationals poured in 11 runs in the frame. The Rockies scored a few in the bottom of the ninth but that was mostly for show as they took the 16-5 loss.

And that is how the Rockies feel compared to these Nationals right now; close but so far away.

Colorado had been winning because of excellent pitching, phenomenal defense, and timely hitting. They had none of the three in this four-game set with the Nationals who came in positively on fire. The defense was especially bad, which is unusual. The final scores of the series will make it seem like they were thoroughly outplayed when they were just regularly outplayed but it just goes to show how far this young team still has to go this season …

But it’s a long season.