Rockies, Freeland undone by one bad curveball in 4-2 loss to Giants

Rockies Report, Game 97:

ROCKIES BOTTOM LINE: Kyle Freeland had a perfect through 3 1/3 innings, and through five innings had limited the San Francisco Giants to a single run on three hits.

But in nine pitches of the sixth inning, the game got away from Freeland — and the Rockies, who were looking to keep alive a chance at a winning road trip against their California division rivals.

A pair of singles to lead off the sixth inning set up San Francisco third baseman Casey Schmitt for a chance, and he pounced, drilling a Freeland curveball 415 feet over the left-center-field fence to provide the Giants all the offense they would need in dealing the Rox a 4-2 defeat in front of 35,190 at Oracle Park on Saturday afternoon.

The run stood up because Giants starter Tyler Mahle squelched the Rockies for seven innings, scattering five hits and three walks. The only run he surrendered came via a third-inning balk, which scored Brett Sullivan.

“[Mahle] was really good. He had hop at the top today. His splitter against the left-handers was good,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said. He used his fastball a ton. We had no answer for him today.

Kyle Karros drew the Rockies within two runs in the eighth with a solo home run, his ninth homer of the season, as he sustained his recent torrid pace. But that was as close as the Rox could draw in their comeback.

Hi Kyle 👋
Bye Kyle 🤟 pic.twitter.com/D6hdRk3WaW

— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) July 11, 2026

Colorado fell to 39-58.

ROCKIES STARTER’S REPORT

Everything until the sixth inning went swimmingly for Freeland, and in the end, his six-hit, no-walk day over six innings was good — but marred by the one big shot.

“I thought Kyle was excellent today. He was efficient. He attacked the strike zone,” Schaeffer said. “Thought his fastball was really good, his changeup was really good. It just felt like he was in command of the game.

“So, other than the one swing from Schmitt, it was a really good outing for him.”

Unfortunately for Colorado, that was all it took. Freeland fell to 2-8, with his ERA standing at 7.36 entering the All-Star break.

BITS AND PIECES

IT WAS DECIDED FOR THE ROCKIES WHEN: JT Brubaker finished off a two-inning save with a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

NUMBER TO NOTE: 7.36 — Freeland’s earned-run average, the worst among 164 pitchers with at least 50 innings pitched this season.

WHAT’S NEXT: The final game before the All-Star break, with Michael Lorenzen and Trevor McDonald drawing the assignments for the Rockies and Giants, respectively. First pitch is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. MDT.

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