Walt Weiss isn’t the only one sick to his stomach.
Colorado Rockies fans are feeling nauseous after enduring what turned into an 11-game losing streak on Wednesday night in Anaheim as they dropped their second consecutive game in which they scored just one run.
Joking aside, Weiss never made it to the ballpark on Wednesday. He was taken to the hospital after enduring stomach pains, when the doctors discovered that he needed his appendix removed.
At the park, the Rockies lost without Weiss, in the 11th inning when Albert Pujols hit a bases loaded sacrifice fly to score the winning run.
The Rockies once again simply weren’t firing on all cylinders. When the pitching actually performs, it seems that the offense can’t get anything going. That was the case on Wednesday, as the Rockies scored just one run on 10 hits. Eight of the hits came with two outs, but the Rockies were only able to put one run across the plate.
For the Rockies, there is one aspect of the team that has given their fans hope. The offense was supposed to be so good that they would be able to overcome a poor starting pitching performance on many nights. However, that offense isn’t showing up. They aren’t taking walks and they aren’t taking good at-bats. They aren’t taking an opposite field approach, but instead are swinging at anything and everything, which is making the opposing pitcher’s job really easy.
The Rockies also took a hit in the health department. In the 1st inning, starter Jordan Lyles was drilled with by an Albert Pujols line drive on his hand. The fingers immediately became bruised, which cost Lyles his start. Christian Bergman was summonsed from the bullpen to begin the 2nd inning.
It has been a while since there has been a positive for the Rockies. Regardless of how they have played over the past few weeks, the work that Christian Bergman gave the club was phenomenal. He came in on short notice and delivered 5-1/3 innings of nearly perfect work.
Bergman was successful for one simple reason. He attacked the strike zone. He wasn’t afraid of the Angels hitting the ball and he trusted his defense. The results were great. He gave the Rockies a chance to win the game and also didn’t force the bullpen to have to pick up at least eight innings. The Rockies are in desperate need of more outings like Bergman provided.
The Rockies nearly took the lead in the 10th inning when future-former Rockies Troy Tulowitzki got a hold of a pitch and drilled it to deep left-center field. It was good enough to get over the fence, but Angels centerfielder Mike Trout leaped and robbed the home run. It was a spectacular catch, so spectacular that Trout made it look easy.
After losing 11 straight the Rockies won’t get a break. They are headed 3o miles up the road to Los Angeles to take on the Dodgers. Chad Bettis will get the start on Thursday night for the Rockies against Brett Anderson, then the Rockies will draw Clayton Kershaw on Friday and Zack Grienke on Saturday.
The goal for the Rockies is still the same. This team never had a true shot at making the postseason. However, they are in the process of getting back to respectability. A really bad losing streak doesn’t change that goal. This is a team that has been completely embarrassing over the past three seasons.
The Rockies are at a crossroads. They need to decide who they are. Are they going to be the laughingstock of the National League, or will they decide that they are going to demand respect and at least be a formidable opponent? Will they play selfishly or will they try to learn to win as a team? If Rockies fans are being honest, they could not have seriously expected the rebuilding process to only take one offseason. This is a team that is going to require at least two years to get to the point where fans can expect anything close to contention from them.
It’s a tough time to be a Rockies fan and it doesn’t look like it’s getting any easier.
