Rockies win their first road game, as bats heat up in the late innings

Major League Baseball’s new “California tiebreaker” takes some getting used to. But on Tuesday in San Francisco, the Rockies beat the Giants in extra innings the old-fashioned way.

Even though the 10th inning began with Rockies outfielder Yonathan Daza standing on second base, Ryan McMahon and C.J. Cron hit back-to-back home runs to lead the Rockies to a 7-5 victory and their first road win of the season.

The Rockies battled toe-to-toe with the Giants for most of the evening, and when pinch-hitter Garrett Hampson smacked a solo homer to center in the top of the ninth, it looked like the Rockies had the game in hand.

However, Giants shortstop and regular Rockies nemesis Brandon Crawford returned the favor against Colorado closer Daniel Bard, leading the game to the decisive 10th, where Bard earned the win despite the blown save.

Reliever Carlos Estevez gave up a run in the 10th, but put the game away for the Rockies, who now have a chance to steal a road series against the NL West co-leaders on Wednesday.

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NEXT UP: Rockies (9-14, 5th in NL West) at Giants (15-9, T-1st, NL West) | Wednesday, Apr. 28 at 7:45 p.m. | COL: German Marquez (1-1, 3.45 ERA) vs SF: Alex Wood (2-0, 0.75 ERA).

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NOTES

• Ryan McMahon appears to be in the midst of a breakout season. His eighth home run of the season on Tuesday ties him for the major-league lead, while his 15 RBI and .895 OPS both lead the Rockies. The versatile McMahon has alternated between second and third base all season long, playing solid defense at both positions, as well.

• Charlie Blackmon’s bat might finally be heating up. Blackmon went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI and a walk on Tuesday, gaining 21 points on his season batting average, which still sits at a disappointing .169.

• Rockies batters drew seven walks on Tuesday, when Rockies pitchers surrendered only one; a recipe for success even against superior teams like the Giants.

• Kyle Freeland threw a bullpen session prior to Tuesday’s game and told MLB.com, “I feel great, first and foremost — that’s the main thing that I feel happy about. I’ve tried to stay as positive as I possibly can throughout this whole process.” Freeland is hoping to rejoin the Rockies’ rotation in early May.

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THE FINAL WORD

“(Giants reliever Gregory Santos) had a little cut action on most of his stuff, so I was trying to get a good pitch, trying to get on top of it. He made a mistake, and I didn’t miss it.” — Ryan McMahon, on his 449-foot, 10th-inning home run to center on Tuesday night

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STARTING LINEUP

LF Raimel Tapia
SS Trevor Story
2B Ryan McMahon
1B C.J. Cron
RF Charlie Blackmon
3B Josh Fuentes
C Dom Nunez
CF Sam Hilliard
P Chi Chi Gonzalez

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INJURY WATCH

• Kyle Freeland (strained left shoulder) was placed on the 10-day IL on Apr. 1. He has been throwing bullpen sessions and is expected back in early May.
• Brendan Rodgers (strained right hamstring) was placed on the 10-day IL on Apr. 1. He has been practicing and could potentially return before the end of April.
• Chris Owings (left thumb surgery) was placed on the 60-day IL in mid-April and will likely be out until the All-Star break.
• 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. Follow him on Twitter at @sdrotar.

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