Jon Gray earns his 50th career win as Rockies sweep Pirates

Jon Gray teased the visiting Pirates before slamming the door shut; allowing a triple by Adam Frazier and a home run by Bryan Reynolds in the first inning. After surrendering the 2-0 lead to Pittsburgh, Gray didn’t allow another hit or run in the next five innings, leaving for a pinch-hitter in the sixth, and the Rockies’ bats did the rest; scoring five runs between the fourth and sixth innings, enough to give Gray the 50th win if his major-league career.

“(Starts) like this (are) the ones I appreciate the most,” Gray said after the game. “You can be down three or four runs early on and you stretch it out to six innings, seven innings sometimes — our offense has a chance to catch up.”

Gray’s 50th career victory broke a tie with teammate German Marquez — who won Tuesday’s game with a near no-hitter — to move into seventh place on the Rockies’ all-time list. Pedro Astacio is up next with 53; a number that Gray may not be able to surpass before the Jul. 30 trade deadline. Gray, a free agent after the season, is widely expected to be dealt before he has the opportunity to leave the Rockies and Coors Field for a more pitcher-friendly home.

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NEXT UP: Rockies (34-47, 4th in NL West) vs. Cardinals (40-41, 3rd in NL Central) | Thursday, Jul. 1 at 6:40 p.m. | COL: Antonio Senzatela (2-7, 4.76 ERA) vs. STL: Adam Wainwright (6-5, 3.59 ERA)

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NOTES

• Brendan Rodgers got the start on Wednesday, going 2-for-2 with a pair of walks. Rodgers, now hitting .279 on the season, has hits in six of his last seven starts. In those last seven games, he’s hitting .391 (9-for-23).

• Garrett Hampson went 4-for-5 on Wednesday, raising his batting average to .257. In order to carve out more playing time, however, Hampson needs to hit right-handed pitching better. Against lefties, Hampson’s hitting a robust .329, but against right-handers, he’s a moribund .209.

• The Rockies will have three prospects in the Futures Game: OF Ryan Vilade (.260-2-11 for Triple-A Albuquerque), C Willie MacIver (.286-10-30 for Double-A Hartford), and 1B Michael Toglia (.234-10-34 for High-A Spokane). Longtime Rockies third baseman Vinny Castilla will manage the National League squad.

• Manager Bud Black turned 64 on Wednesday. Black, with 308 wins in his five seasons as the Rockies’ manager, ranks third all-time behind Don Baylor (440 in six seasons) and Clint Hurdle (534 in eight seasons), but his .491 winning percentage is the best in team history.

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THE FINAL WORD

“It says a little something about Jon’s competitiveness, his ability to make pitches in certain parts of the game. We’ve seen him sharper, but he battled through it. Jon deserved the ‘W’ in this one because he battled hard.” — Rockies manager Bud Black, on Jon Gray, who earned his 50th career win on Wednesday

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STARTING LINEUP

LF Raimel Tapia
CF Garrett Hampson
RF Charlie Blackmon
1B C.J Cron
2B Ryan McMahon
SS Brendan Rodgers
3B Joshua Fuentes
C Dom Nunez
SP Jon Gray

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INJURY WATCH

• Mychal Givens (strained lower back) was placed on the 10-day IL on Jun. 17. He’s expected to throw in rehab games for Triple-A Albuquerque on Jul. 1 and 2, and is expected to return to the Rockies in early July.
• Kyle Freeland (right hamstring cramp) left his Jun. 28 start. It’s hoped that he can make his next scheduled start.
• Austin Gomber (left forearm tightness) was placed on the 10-day IL after leaving his Jun. 19 start. He played catch on Jun. 28 in an effort to build toward throwing bullpen sessions, meaning that he likely won’t return until mid-July.
• Robert Stephenson (strained upper back) was placed on the 10-day IL on Jun. 28.
• Matt Adams (right elbow soreness) was injured during the Jun. 8 game and was placed on the 10-day IL on Jun. 9. He started taking batting practice on Jun. 26 and may be sent on a minor-league rehab assignment soon.
• Jordan Sheffield (torn right lat) was injured on Jun. 3 and was placed on the 10-day IL. He is expected to miss at least two months.
• Scott Oberg (blood clots) had surgery prior to the end of Spring Training. He was placed on the 60-day IL on Mar. 27 and his season is in doubt.

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Shawn Drotar is the host of “The Fan Late Night with Shawn Drotar;” weeknights from 10:00 p.m. to midnight — only on 104.3 The Fan

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