Desmond's day backs Senzatela's sparking debut in Rockies defeat of Padres

The Colorado Rockies made a few roster changes ahead of their first series of the 2019 season against the San Diego Padres.

Many of them may end up being temporary, especially as the team looks to return to full health in the coming weeks.

But Antonio Senzatela may be here to stay.

Reactivated from the Injured List just a few hours before the game, he made his season debut and it was a sparkling one against the division leaders. He went nearly seven and gave up a single run, following up on German Marquez’ sterling performance on Sunday, making Ian Desmond’s three-RBI night decisive.

For the first time this season, the Rockies scored in one of the first two innings of a game. Trevor Story led off the second with a single back up the middle and advanced on a walk drawn by Mark Reynolds.

Noel Cuevas, who was called up from Triple-A this afternoon, moved the runners up with a productive out. Both runners were able to trot home on a line drive double to center off the bat of Ian Desmond, giving the Rockies an early 2-0 lead.

The Padres struck back in the fourth on the only major mistake of the game for Senzatela and even then it wasn’t a terrible pitch that Franmil Reyes just went with and line barely over the wall in right field for a solo home run.

The Rockies answered in the sixth with a solo home run of their own. Nolan Arenado, after driving one to the warning track for an out in the first, got into one just a little bit better to left for his second home run of the season and his second home run in the last two games.

Colorado added a pair of runs in the seventh beginning with Desmond’s first home run of the season, a no-doubter to left. That was followed with a double from Drew Butera who was also making his 2019 season debut for the club, pulling one just inside the line in left.

He moved up on a Senzatela sac bunt and scored on a groundball to first from Charlie Blackmon.

And suddenly, doing all the little things and getting one or two big swings didn’t seem like a fairy tale for the offense.

Senzatela pitched into the seventh getting a fly out, surrendering a single to Austin Hedges, and watching Garrett Hampson make a tremendous jumping catch on a liner before Bud Black decided his night was done.

He turned to Carlos Estevez who got a dribbler to the catcher out of Hunter Renfroe for the final out of the inning.

Estevez stayed on for the eighth, working a clean inning featuring a three-pitch strikeout of Manny Machado all on fastballs (the final one at 99 mph) then gave way to Scott Oberg in the ninth.

Oberg surrendered a solo home run to Wil Myers who drove one deep over the wall in center. He bounced back to strike out Eric Hosmer and get Fernando Tatis to ground out but Austin Hedges kept the Padres hopes alive by staying back on a slider after a long battle and lining a double to left.

Black went to his closer for, believe it or not, his first save attempt of the season. Wade Davis looked every bit like a guy who hasn’t been used much this year, firing four wild ones to Luis Urias to bring the tying run to the plate but he was able to strike out Ian Kinsler on a full count, half-swing to end the game in a 5-2 win for the Rockies.

Stats

Antonio Senzatela: 6.2 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K

Carlos Estevez: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

Scott Oberg: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 K

Wade Davis: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, S (1)

Ian Desmond: 2-for-4, 1 R, 3 RBI

Nolan Arenado: 1-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, HR (2)

Mark Reynolds: 1-for-2, 1 R, 2 BB

What’s Next

Jon Gray will take the ball in the second game of this two-game set, looking for the Rockies first series win of the season. He faces off against lefty Nick Margevicius. First pitch Tuesday night scheduled for 7:10 Mountain Time.