Rockies play 15-inning battle on 4th of July

All I can say about the 15-inning game between the Rockies and Giants at Coors Field on July 4th is “What a battle!” There was a premium match up between Jason Hammel of the Rockies and Matt Cain of the San Francisco Giants. During the early part of the game both Hammel and Cain were doing well, as the game remained scoreless for the first two and a half innings. In the bottom of the 3 rd the Rockies had the first run on the board as Jonathan Herrera sacrifice flied to center to score Dexter Fowler. The Rockies added two more runs in the fifth and sixth including a Chris Iannetta solo blast. Jason Hammel pitched a shutout through 7 innings. Then the 8 th inning came around. After only three pitches, it became a 3-2 game. Nate Schierrholtz had a pinch-hit solo shot, which was followed up by an inside-the-park home-run by Andres Torres. Jim Tracy could have let Hammel go eight or even the whole game by the way he pitched but brought in Matt Belisle. Belisle did his job and got the out. Tracy then brought in lefty Joe Biemel, who has been one of the best 8 th inning pitchers (1-0 with 14 holds and a 2.39 ERA) this season. In my opinion, he is a pitcher who should have been in the all-star conversations. Biemel gets his out but allows a runner to get on base and then Rockies 8th inning man Rafael Betancourt is sent in. A couple of years ago Betancourt was the best set up man in all of baseball, but in this game he gives up a run and the run gets charged to Joe Beimel. After eight, the score is tied, 3-3. The real marathon began in the bottom of the 9 th after Huston Street pitched a solid inning. Clint Barmes got on base, and in a surprising move by Tracy he lets Huston Street bat. This was Street’s first at-bat in professional baseball. Street fouls out and with one out in the inning Dexter Fowler walks with Clint Barmes putting the potential winning run on 2 nd. Jonathan Herrera makes the second out, putting with the last shot into the hands of possible Rockies All Star Center Fielder Carlos Gonzalez. He grounds out sending the game into extra innings.

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In the tenth inning the Giants sent in Denny Bautista, a former Rockies reliever. The Rockies had runners on first and third but left them stranded. Esmil Rogers, who was just called up from Colorado Springs earlier in the week pitched a solid 11th. The Rockies stranded one in the bottom of the 11th. The Rockies got four solid innings of long relief for Esmil Rogers including a dramatic 13th inning. The Giants had a lead off triple off of Aubrey Huff which was misplayed by Seth Smith. The lead off runner scores 87.5 percent of the time. Pat Burrell pinch hit for the newly acquired Chris Ray and struck out as did Eli Whiteside. Juan Uribe walked but Rogers was able to get Edgar Renteria for the out. The Rockies blew a chance in the 14 th when after being given back-to-back intentional walks, bases loaded and no outs and stranding those runners (the Rockies left 20 men on base in this game). In the bottom of the 15th with the game beyond five hours long (it would end after five hours, twenty four minutes making it the longest game in Coors Field history) Dexter Fowler led off with a triple. Jonathan Herrera, and Carlos Gonzalez were both intentionally walked. Todd Helton had the chance to win it and came through with a walk off sacrifice fly for the win. Randy Flores was credited for the win for the Rockies and Guillermo Mota took the loss for the Giants.

By Eric Wright
MLBcenter.com Colorado Rockies Correspondent

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