Rockies burned by balks, homers in six-run seventh
Esmil Rogers was nearly untouchable for six innings, but everything fell apart for him and the Colorado Rockies in the seventh inning as the Rockies dropped the first of a three-game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-1.
Rogers allowed just five hits, walked no one and struck out seven through six innings as the Rockies clung to a 1-0 lead. But Rogers walked the first two to start the bottom of the seventh, and a base hit to left loaded the bases. He was in position to get out of the inning after Jamey Carroll flied out to center and Dexter Fowler threw out Andre Ethier, who ran through a stop sign, at home for the second out. But after an intentional walk to Tony Gwynn Jr., Rogers was called for a questionable balk that scored the tying run. A single by Justin Sellers scored two more and chased a rattled Rogers from the game.
Reliever Matt Reynolds was charged with a balk after coming into the game in relief of Rogers, a call that led to manager Jim Tracy‘s ejection. Later in the at-bat, James Loney hit a two-run home run to put the Dodgers up 5-1. Matt Kemp followed with another home run, capping a six-run inning for the Dodgers.
The Rockies scored their lone run on a Carlos Gonzalez home run in the first inning. They produced just four more hits, a single by Mark Ellis, a double and a single by Troy Tulowitzki and a single by Todd Helton.
Jim Tracy should have pulled Rogers immediately after the “balk”. Rogers was visibly agitated and was not ready to continue. Who didn’t see Sellers’ hit coming?
Hard loss. Very aggravating.
Rockies still need to work on their lineup. As much as I like Fowler (and can put up with EYJ) I don’t think putting 2 soft hitters at the top of the lineup makes sense. Same with Herrera or Ellis.
You just cannot have a combined 6 home runs between your favorite 1-2 players!!!!!!
Helton is not chopped liver in the 3 hole. Let Cargo lead off to provide immediate punch (not to mention the #1 bats the most). Put your best 4 players in at 1-4. The speed is not really that crucial.
Cargo
Tulo
Helton
Smith
Fowler
Iannetta
Ellis
Nelson/Herrera
Can we please stop the insanity and play Seth Smith every day?
I like your line-up better than I usually do Tracy’s. Although I’d think I’d put Iannetta in front of Fowler (higher OBP and more power). I’d really wouldn’t have much of a problem with any lineup that kept their six best players (Tulo, Cargo, Helton, Iannetta, Smith, and Fowler) in the first six spots and leaving whoever is playing 2nd and 3rd in the 7 and 8 spots (taking into account that Helton and catchers need more days off than most). Fowler has a decent enough OBP (362) that I’m good with seeing him in the lead-off position or #2 (even though I know the current sabermetric thing is that the best hitter should hit second).
Agbayani I never had that ” “we’re back in the race” moment” as evident by some of my recent posts. All you have to do is look at the remaining schedule and where most of the games are played.
My lineup would look like this
1.Fowler
2.Helton
3.Cargo
4.Tulo
5.Smith
6.Kouzmanoff
7.Iannetta
8.Ellis
I just can’t see putting our two best power hitters in the 1st and 2nd spot of the lineup. Helton is no chop liver but he isn’t a 3 hole hitter at this stage of his career either. He isn’t the RBI guy you need in my opinion at the 3 hole. He is still an elite hitter, gets on base and takes pitches. Put him in the 2 hole so he will be on base for Cargo and Tulo. The only reason EY is in the lineup is his speed. That’s lame cuz he can’t do anything else. Can’t field, hardly gets on base to use that speed. 3B is a black hole right now, so I don’t care who you put there really. Ellis isn’t an above average player at 2B, but I do believe he has settled that position down to the point that you can live with him playing everyday. He is decent and isn’t killing you being in the lineup. Iannetta will never play more than 4 games a week under Tracy cuz Iannetta is his whipping boy. Either that or Iannetta gets tired going poop in the morning.
It’s too bad the rockies have kind of burned a bridge with Ian Stewart because he very well may be the best third baseman in the organization right now. He may not be the long-term answer, but he is certainly just as good offensively as any other option and is probably the best defensively. I am aware that he has struggled at the plate this year but so has everyone else, and he definitely has the most upside at the plate. I can’t understand why the rockies didn’t just stick with him all year and give him an opportunity to learn how to fail. Look what happened with the Braves and Uggla! He was just as bad as Stewart all year, and then he broke out of it.
Watched the game and the endless replays so here is my humble take on the balk issue and J Tracy’s management of the bullpen. But just sayin’ does JT have a clue as to how to manage a MLB baseball team?
First the balk called on Rogers by Davidson was not a balk – what it was was a different windup motion (still not a stretch motion) than what Rogers had typically used during the game to that point. Now who besides the somewhat casual fan of MLB baseball doesn’t know that Balkin’ Bob Davidson’s primary purpose in life is to call more balks than any other umpire that ever lived?
Now I am just guessing (not second guessing) here, but I would bet that J Tracy knows all this as well and at that point in the game JT SHOULD HAVE taken every precaution to make sure that Rogers did nothing to tempt Balkin’ Bob to rack up another notch on his Balkin’ Bob score card. Maybe something like just saying to Apodaca “…Balkin’ Bob is out there on third so go out and tell Esmil to use a simple strech motion (for this hitter) to avoid any possible balk call by Davidson.”
Second, after the two walks in that inning, J Tracy should have taken Rogers out of the game and used his completely full and fully rested bullpen to try and save the game. Might not have worked either (that’s true), but I’ll take Street, Lindstrom, Brothers, Reynolds and Betty to get the last nine outs and the win over a tired rookie that has just pitched his heart out for the team. But then to keep Rogers in the game after the single and then the balk call with no attempt to calm the rookie pitcher down – well this might have been the worst managed baseball game J Tracy has ever managed – and that’s sayin’ somethin’!
Contract or not – J Tracy should not be the Rockies manager starting in 2012!
Don’t necessarily agree with all your points, don’t necessarily disagree with all your points. But I do agree with canning Jim Tracy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was spitting mad last night and after watching replays…still dont think they were balks. Umpires are there to make sure the game is fair. Not to get their names mentioned.
Now on to Jim Tracy. I have laid off him since DOD and the Monforts announced he was coming back. Why complain if there is no sense anything will happen. But there were so many issues last night (I defended his line-up as at least understandable, including using Ianetta on Sat and Sunday now). But you enter the 7th without your pen warming up. Then you dont pull Rogers when the balk call was made. And while I understand the argument to walk the bases loaded again for a force on any base, you added pressure to a young man who was obviously just about spent (or to your relievers, which is why Lindstrom could not be brought in…as walking is not foreign to him). That was just a lousy managed inning last night. At least he had the deceny to get tossed. Personally I would have been gone as soon as the Rogers balk was called, because that was such an abhorent call.
No tv today and at this point, I dont think I will be watching this weekend at all. I am just sick after this game.
My Direct TV guide says the game is on 31.
I’ve never, to this point, written anything about Jim Tracy needing to go, but, alas, I’ll join the chorus. The tinkering has officially driven me insane.
Smith needs to play everyday — even against lefties. EY2 is incredibly fast, but he’s not a major league hitter.
Why are we suddenly committed to an A’s washout who’s been in Sacramento all year? Because he’s from Denver? Play Wiggy or Chris Nelson at third and leave it be. Wiggy’s an established big leaguer and Nelson has shown flashes of brilliance. (And enough of the calls for Ian Stewart. He’s a career .230 hitter in the bigs who needed to show himself this year. He went out and hit a buck and change. Let him be someone else’s project.)
Not sure why Iannetta wasn’t starting but with Fonz in there it’s like we started three minor leaguers against the Dodgers.
If for a moment the Rockies felt like they were still in the race, Friday’s road opener was all the wind coming out of the sails.
Jim Tracy may be a nice deckhand, but we need a new captain at the wheel.
The good news for Barry Bonds is that the Rockies play the Dodgers only 2 more times this year, so James Loney is unlikely to break the single season HR record.
Just like with Hammel (on numerous occasions), Tracy left Rogers in to long. To many games are thrown away with Tracy and if there were better decisions made throughout the season we would be right in the thick of this race. And we have to go through this next year as well?
I’m getting sick and tired of this organization going out and getting washed up career bench players and throwing them in the lineup. It is disrupting the development of our young players (Nelson and Stewart). I know for a fact both of these guys can hit as well as Wigginton or Kouz. If Tracy is a “do now” manager why does he treat these guys differently than Stewart and Nelson? We need to stick with our young guys in order to develop them (at least they have the potential to get better). The season is OVER so we need to know what we have next year. Playing Wiggington and Kouz will not win the team any more games than with Stewart and Nelson playing.
ColRox, I get your frustration, but I’m not sure that the team has good options. Stewart is injured, so he wouldn’t be playing regardless, but I think that he is done as a Rockie. He was given his chance, and he has failed. I think that the team picked up Kouz because it became disappointed with Nelson’s play and probably has concluded that Nelson is not our future 3B either. Kouz isn’t our future 3B either, just at best a stopgap for a short period of time. DOD will have to find a starting 3B in the offseason. What’s interesting to me is how much Wiggy’s playing time has declined. It appears that the team doesn’t think that he is in their plans for the future either, so I would expect to see him get traded in the offseason.
Sometimes picking up a retread player works out. For example, I think that Ellis is playing OK, and I could see him being signed for next season, or even two seasons. (Hopefully Rutledge will be the starter by late 2013 or early 2014, and maybe Field will have a shot by late next year or early 2013.