Rockies Review: April 19, 2019 - Chuck gets nasty with rare feat in consecutive games

Hitting a home run in consecutive pitches is an impressive feat for any team. For any player to do so in consecutive at bats is rather remarkable, too.

But on consecutive days, to end one game and start another?

That’s just Nazty.

With two outs and two strikes on him, down 3-2 in the 12th inning to the Phillies, Charlie Blackmon delivered a mammoth walk-off home run to lift Colorado to their sixth-straight victory against Philadelphia.

It was the Rockies first walk-off win in the 12th inning or later since 2014 against San Diego and the first via home run that late in a game since the Spilly Slam – a walk-off grand slam courtesy of Ryan Spilborghs – in the 14th inning in 2009 against San Francisco.

Not one to rest on his laurels, Blackmon proceeded to launch a leadoff home run in his next at bat some fourteen hours later.

Chuck’s accomplishment was a first for a Rockies player and the first in MLB since the New York Yankees’ Brett Gardner followed his walk-off homer with the leadoff variety on July 27-28, 2017.

During Friday night’s win, German Márquez pitched five innings and allowed two runs on 10 hits, all of which were singles, marking just the fifth time for a Rockies pitcher and first since Jeff Francis on June 9, 2012.

Philadelphia left 19 runners on base, their most in 15 years and most on record in a road game for a franchise started in 1883.

Centerpiece

Nearly 92-percent of the time Larry Walker played the field, the Hall of Famer was station in right field, where he won seven Gold Glove Awards.

Flanked by Dante Bichette and Quinton McCracken, he started in center field against the New York Mets for the 14th time of the season on this day in 1996. Bichette’s two-run homer flipped the lead and Walker followed with a long ball of his own to seal the Rockies 5-3 victory over the Mets.

Walker started in center 54 times that year. Following a broken left collarbone colliding with the wall that cost him two-and-a-half months, McCracken was inserted as the every center fielder.

During the remaining nine years of his career, the Canadian MVP played center field only seven more times, but would start at first base three times and go on to play second base and third base during a wild game in Anaheim against the Angels in 1998.

Fun Fact

In 1998, Bobby M. Jones – not to be confused with his former teammate on the Mets and Padres, Bobby J. Jones – strikes out six in relief during Colorado’s 5-3 loss against Atlanta.

On This Day In Baseball History

Due to renovations being made to Jack Murphy Stadium, the San Diego Padres play a doubleheader in Hawaii at Aloha Stadium on this date in 1997, losing both games to the St. Louis Cardinals.