Tag: bud black

DENVER — In a monumental day for the Colorado Rockies, the franchise introduced Paul DePodesta as its new president of baseball operations Thursday.

It’s what Rockies fans wanted to see: Somebody from outside of the organization with no ties to the Monfort family and no ties to the Rockies whatsoever who can come in with a fresh set of eyes and change the losing culture that’s been here for years.

DePodesta, whose analytics savvy and ability to play salary cap tetris with the Oakland Athletics was chronicled in the 2011 movie Moneyball, appears poised to fully take the reins on the baseball side.

I specifically asked owner Dick Monfort on Thursday what his role would be moving forward in baseball operations. Rockies fans for years have been calling for him to step away from the baseball arm or even sell the team.

• Hear Lionel’s gut reaction to the introductory press conference in the video player below:

As Rockies introduce DePodesta, Dick Monfort signals he’ll step back from baseball ops

“I think they’re sort of pushing me out. Doesn’t it feel that way?” Monfort quipped. “Much has been said about what I do and don’t do. […] But I’m here to support people.”

“I’m not as bad as anyone thinks I am. I do care. I think that’s where it sort of gets foggy.”

He said he’s specifically there to support his son, Walker, who’s the executive vice president, and DePodesta. Now all we can hope is that DePodesta has the autonomy and the power to make baseball decisions – something he said was part of his conversations with the Monforts over the last several weeks.

“I got that sense that, [the owners believe] ‘We’ve done things a certain way for a while, they haven’t worked the way we wanted to. We’re ready for a change, and we’re ready to bring someone in here to effect that change’” DePodesta said Thursday.

He spoke of the task before him with a team that plays in a top-tier venue and has a regional fanbase but an on-field product that suggests an apathetic front office in recent years.

“Thirty different Major League Baseball teams all have their own challenges, and they’re all interesting challenges,” DePodesta said. “But let’s be honest, there’s no challenge as compelling as this one.”

Things, of course, will be intertwined. Walker Monfort will handle the business side, and he and Dick Monfort will write the checks for what DePodesta wants to do. There is no complete separation of baseball operations and business – but it is a fresh start.

You have to love what DePodesta said Thursday about his winning pedigree and changing the culture in Denver. The vibe we got at Coors Field was what fans have been hoping for: A new era on the baseball side of the Rockies organization.

Denver7 digital journalist Landon Haaf contributed to this story.

DENVER — Colorado Rockies General Manager Bill Schmidt has announced his resignation, three days after the team concluded one of the worst seasons in the history of the sport.

Schmidt had been with the Rockies since 1999, including serving as senior vice president and general manager for the past four seasons.

The decision to move on from Schmidt appeared mutual after the Rockies posted the most losses by a National League team in more than six decades and the worst run differential in more than a century.

“After a number of conversations, we decided it is time for me to step aside and make way for a new voice to guide the club’s baseball operations,” Schmidt said in the club’s statement. “It’s been an honor to serve in the Rockies family for over 25 years. I’m thankful to the Monfort family for the opportunity, to my family for their constant support, and our staff for their tireless dedication. Better seasons are ahead for the Rockies and our great fans, and I look forward to seeing it come to life in the years ahead.”

The club will begin its search for a new general manager immediately and indicated it would choose someone not currently with the team.

“We are setting our sights on finding the right leader from outside our organization who can bring a fresh perspective to the Rockies and enhance our baseball operations with a new vision, innovation, and a focus on both short and long-term success,” Rockies Executive Vice President Walker Monfort said in the team’s announcement. “This change delivers an opportunity to shape the future of our club and move forward into a new era of Rockies baseball.”

Montfort was promoted to the EVP role in June – days after the Rockies’ co-owners, including his father Dick Monfort, said the team needed “a new set of eyeballs.” That move also included news that Greg Feasel, the team president who’s been with the franchise since its inception, would step down at the end of the year.

More changes could be on the horizon after Colorado’s third straight 100-loss season, including the fate of interim manager Warren Schaeffer, who led the team to just 36 wins and 86 losses after taking over following the firing of Bud Black in the spring.

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies went down swinging in the ninth inning to end their unceremonious season, striking out three straight times Sunday in a loss where they didn’t score a run.

A fitting conclusion to a woeful, record-setting year.

By many metrics, this will go down as one of the most dreadful slogs in baseball history. Sure, they finished 43-119, which avoided becoming the worst team since baseball adopted a 162-game schedule in 1961, a mark that still belongs to the 2024 Chicago White Sox (41-121).

But that’s about all the infamy the Rockies could sidestep. Changes are sure to be forthcoming in an offseason directed by Walker Monfort, the son of owner Dick Monfort who was named executive vice president earlier this season. It could be a top-to-bottom overhaul after a third straight 100-loss season.

One of the most immediate decisions will be the future of interim manager Warren Schaeffer, who went 36-86 after taking over following the firing of Bud Black in May. General manager Bill Schmidt’s role may be in limbo, too. Schmidt became the fourth GM in franchise history in 2021 and has yet to see one of his teams make the postseason.

“The biggest thing, the most important thing, is that we learned we never want to be here again,” Schaeffer said. “That is blatantly obvious. If you gloss over that and say, ‘It’s going to be OK next year,’ that’s not good enough.

“For the men in that room, it’s the biggest lesson we can all learn — this isn’t good enough. We all need to get better. Everybody needs to get better moving forward.”

The numbers highlight the depth of the franchise’s on-field misery:

— Colorado’s 119 losses are the most in the NL since 120 by the 1962 New York Mets.

— The Rockies had a run differential of minus-424, the worst since 1900, surpassing the minus-349 of the 1932 Boston Red Sox. It’s also the most since the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, who were a minus-724, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

— Colorado was a majors-worst 18-63 on the road, which was a franchise record.

— The starting rotation finished with a 6.65 ERA, the highest mark since it became an official stat in both leagues in 1913.

“We had high hopes,” said starter and Denver native Kyle Freeland, whose 17 losses were the most in the majors this season. “Obviously, it flopped on us. We have to keep moving forward, continue to do the work.”

It didn’t help that slugger Kris Bryant was limited to 11 games this season as he dealt with a bothersome back. Bryant has played in only 170 games with Colorado because of injuries since signing a $182 million, seven-year contract before the 2022 season.

The Rockies received a breakout season from All-Star catcher in Hunter Goodman, who hit .278 with 31 homers and 91 RBIs. They have 2024 Gold Glove winners in Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle.

Colorado got a glimpse of some of its young prospects, too, like outfielders Zac Veen and Yanquiel Fernández, infielder Ryan Ritter and right-hander Chase Dollander all being called up.

The Rockies also drafted Ethan Holliday with the No. 4 pick this summer. His last name is well-known around the Mile High City thanks to his father, Matt, who helped ignite a magical late run in 2007 (nicknamed “Rocktober”) that paid off with the franchise’s only World Series appearance.

Since that time, they’ve had as many playoff appearances (three) as 100-loss seasons. Their 323 losses from 2023-25 is tied with Philadelphia (1940-42) for the fifth-most through a three-year span.

The Rockies finished 50 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West as they missed out on the postseason for a seventh straight year.

“We need to win differently in the West,” Schaeffer said. “These other teams are spending a bunch of money, and have all these huge names and power and OPS (on-base plus slugging) guys. We weren’t built like that this year. So we had to try win differently. It doesn’t mean we can’t win, but we just have to do it differently, commit to different things.”

Asked earlier this summer if a team sometimes needs to take a step back to go forward, Schmidt simply responded: “Sometimes you do. Sometimes you do.”

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AP Baseball Writers Ronald Blum and Janie McCauley contributed to this report.

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Willy Adames and Heliot Ramos hit home runs, and Trevor McDonald struck out 10 batters in seven innings to lead the San Francisco Giants to a 6-3 win over the Colorado Rockies on Friday night.

Adames opened the game with a two-run home run, his 29th of the season. With two games remaining, he is seeking to become the Giants’ first 30-home run hitter since Barry Bonds in 2004. Every other team in baseball has at least five individual 30-home run seasons since 2005.

Ramos drove in three in the second inning, scoring Jung Hoo Lee and Grant McCray with his 21st home run of the year.

Rookie Bryce Eldridge added a run for the Giants with a sacrifice fly in the fifth.

McDonald (1-0) allowed three runs and five hits for his first career win.

Colorado’s Ezequiel Tovar hit a three-run home run in the fifth on a first-pitch curveball from McDonald. Tovar entered the game swinging at first pitches 46.9% of the time, the eighth-highest mark in baseball.

Ryan Walker pitched the ninth for his 17th save of the season.

Germán Márquez (3-16) tied teammate Kyle Freeland for the most losses in baseball.

Key moment

Ramos’ second-inning home run gave the Giants a 5-0 lead. The ball was tracked at 439 feet, his longest hit of the season.

Key stat

The Rockies finished Friday’s contest with a minus-419 run difference, which will break the post-1900 record of 349 by the 1932 Boston Red Sox. Colorado has also allowed 1,013 runs, the first team to give up more than 1,000 since the 1999 Rockies allowed 1,028.

Up next

The Rockies will start Freeland (5-16, 5.00 ERA) against Giants RHP Justin Verlander (3-11, 3.88) on Saturday. Freeland was ejected in the first inning along with Adames and Rafael Devers in his last meeting with the Giants on Sept. 2.

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SEATTLE (AP) — Eugenio Suárez matched his career high with his 49th homer, leading the AL West champion Seattle Mariners over the Colorado Rockies 6-2 on Thursday night for their 17th win in 18 games.

A day after clinching their first division title since 2001, the Mariners were assured a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the AL Division Series when Cleveland lost to Detroit earlier Thursday.

Suárez connected on a hanging slider from Bradley Blalock (2-6) for a two-run homer in the second and Seattle never trailed as it won its seventh straight. Suárez, who also hit 49 homers for Cincinnati in 2019, added a run-scoring single in the fifth that raised his career-best RBIs total to 117.

Seattle won its 11th straight home game, tying the team record set from May 20 to June 8, 2001.

Colorado dropped to 4-17 in September and its 116 defeats are the most in the NL since the 1962 New York Mets lost 120.

Seattle’s Emerson Hancock, starting because Bryan Woo left his last start with pectoral tightness, allowed two hits in four scoreless innings with seven strikeouts. Caleb Ferguson (5-4) worked around a walk in the seventh.

Dominic Canzone grounded into a run-scoring forceout in the fourth, when Randy Arozarena hit a two-run, two-out single.

Key moment

Cal Raleigh remained at 60 homers and when he popped up to second base in the eighth, hundreds of fans at T-Mobile Park headed for the exits. He needs two homers to tie the AL record set by the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge.

Key stats

Colorado has allowed 1,007 runs, the first team to top 1,000 since the 1999 Rockies gave up 1,028. The Rockies minus-416 run difference will break the post-1900 record of 349 by the 1932 Boston Red Sox.

Up next

Rockies: RHP Germán Márquez (3-15, 6.49) starts Friday at San Francisco against RHP Trevor McDonald (0-0, 3.38)

Mariners: RHP George Kirby (10-7, 4.24) starts Friday’s series opener against the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers, who send RHP Emmet Sheehan (6-3, 2.86) to the mound,

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SEATTLE (AP) — Only fitting it was Cal Raleigh who catapulted the Seattle Mariners to their first AL West championship in 24 years Wednesday night.

The switch-hitting catcher launched two more homers to give him a major league-best 60 this season, and the streaking Mariners clinched the fourth division crown in the franchise’s 49-year history with a 9-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies.

The lone big league team that’s never been to a World Series, Seattle last won the AL West in 2001 when it set an American League record with 116 wins — thanks in large part to a prolific rookie season from new Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki.

But similar to that team, winning the AL West required more than a record-setting performance from one player. In addition to Raleigh, the 2025 Mariners had four other All-Stars: outfielders Randy Arozarena and Julio Rodríguez, as well as right-hander Bryan Woo and closer Andrés Muñoz.

Even with that quintet, the Mariners entered the mid-summer break just six games over. 500, a mark that held prior to the July 31 trade deadline. President of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto felt compelled to add to a team that entered August 4 1/2 games back of the division lead, and did so in a meaningful way.

The Mariners acquired slugging third baseman Eugenio Suárez and multi-talented first baseman Josh Naylor from the Arizona Diamondbacks, and getting ahold of both has proven to be quite the shrewd move. Since the deadline, the Mariners have gone 31-17, and clinched a playoff spot on Tuesday night thanks to some late-game heroics from Naylor.

It hasn’t just been a potent Mariners lineup — one which entered Wednesday’s game with the third-most homers in the majors — that has powered the club back to the postseason for the first time since 2022.

Despite injuries to the likes of right-handed starters Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryce Miller and Logan Evans, the Mariners’ rotation has held together. Veteran right-hander Luis Castillo has been both steady and available all season, while Woo broke out in a big way in his first All-Star campaign.

Woo leads all Seattle pitchers in wins, innings pitched, strikeouts and Wins Above Replacement. However, he won’t take his next turn in the rotation, as his scheduled Thursday night start against the Rockies is being skipped due to pectoral tightness, Seattle general manager Justin Hollander said Tuesday.

Having a healthy Woo for the postseason would go a long way for the Mariners, who are closing in on a first-round bye.

Of course, it won’t be easy for the Mariners in October. Still looking for its first pennant, the franchise has never made it further than the AL Championship Series in five postseason appearances.

But as Seattle has proven all season, it is hardly a one-dimensional club, even if Raleigh has drawn ample headlines with his propensity for the longball. Instead, it’s a deep team, one with multiple All-Stars and a handful of starting pitchers that would be aces on other teams.

Only time will tell if this Seattle squad has what it takes to write a new chapter, and go further in the postseason than any previous Mariners team.

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SEATTLE (AP) — Josh Naylor hit a two-out, bases-clearing double in the eighth inning to send the Seattle Mariners to the playoffs with a 4-3 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night.

The Mariners (88-69) won for the 15th time in 16 games to secure the team’s second postseason appearance since 2001. They can wrap up the AL West title as soon as Wednesday.

Seattle came into the game needing a win and a victory by the New York Yankees, who did their part by beating the Chicago White Sox. But for most of the game, it appeared the Mariners would have to wait. They trailed 3-1 through seven innings and finished the game with just three hits.

Their last hit, from Naylor, was all they needed. The Mariners loaded the bases in the eighth when reliever Juan Mejia (2-2) hit two batters and walked another. Naylor then drove a 2-0 fastball from Victor Vodnik into the left-center gap to score three runs.

Gabe Speier (4-3) pitched the eighth for Seattle, and Andres Munoz struck out two in a perfect ninth for his 38th save.

In his sixth career start, Rockies right-hander McCade Brown held Seattle to one run on two hits in five innings while setting a new high for strikeouts with 10. Brown entered the game with 11 career strikeouts and his previous best was four, which he reached in the second inning Tuesday.

It was just the second time a Rockies pitcher reached double-digit strikeouts this season. Kyle Freeland had 10 against the Padres on Sept. 5.

Key moment

Dominic Canzone had a solo homer for Seattle in the fifth, his 11th.

Key stat

Seattle is a major league-best 24-6 at home since the All Star break.

Up next

Rockies RHP Tanner Gordon (6-7, 6.00 ERA) starts Wednesday against Mariners RHP Luis Castillo (10-8, 3.63).

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DENVER (AP) — Agustín Ramírez homered and drove in three runs, and the surging Miami Marlins beat the Colorado Rockies 8-4 on Wednesday night.

Javier Sanoja had three hits and Lake Bachar (7-2) tossed two shutout innings in relief of Ryan Weathers for Miami, which has won six of its last seven and handed Colorado its 21st lost in the last 25 games.

Mickey Moniak hit his 23rd home run for the Rockies (41-111), who need one win in their last 10 games to avoid matching the 2024 Chicago White Sox for the most losses for a season in the modern era.

Colorado needs two victories to surpass the 1962 New York Mets, who had the fewest wins by an NL team.

The Rockies took a 2-0 lead in the second inning on a sacrifice fly and an RBI single. Miami scored a run in the third and two more in the fourth to go ahead, 3-2, but Jordan Beck’s RBI single in the bottom of the inning tied it.

Ramírez had a sacrifice fly in the sixth off Jaden Hill (1-1) and Heriberto Hernández added another sacrifice fly in the seventh. Ramírez hit a two-run homer to left field in the eighth — his 21st of the season — and Joey Wiemer had a pinch-hit RBI single in the ninth.

The start of the game was delayed by 40 minutes due to inclement weather.

Key moment

Bachar halted Colorado’s momentum with two clean innings. The Rockies had 10 baserunners — eight hits, two walks — in four innings against starter Ryan Weathers.

Key stats

Colorado pitchers combined to issue nine free passes — eight walks and a hit-by-pitch. The Rockies have plunked three Miami batters through the first two games of the series.

Up next

Miami RHP Sandy Alcantara (9-12, 5.53 ERA) will take the mound against Rockies RHP Tanner Gordon (6-6, 6.14) on Thursday.

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DENVER (AP) — Eury Pérez pitched five scoreless innings, Dane Myers and Jakob Marsee each drove in two runs and Miami beat the Colorado Rockies 6-5 on Tuesday night for the Marlins’ fifth win in their last six games.

The Rockies, who were 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position, scored five runs in the last two innings but still lost their 110th game of the season.

Pérez (7-5) gave up a hit, walked none and had six strikeouts. Ronny Henriquez pitched 1 1/3 innings for his seventh save.

Javier Sanoja, Heriberto Hernández and Eric Wagaman — who recorded his fourth consecutive multi-hit game — had two hits apiece.

Myers, who was activated off the 10-day IL earlier Tuesday, doubled to drive in Hernández and Wagaman, and then scored on a double by Sanoja that chased Rockies starter Kyle Freeland (4-16) to make it 6-0 in the sixth.

Colorado’s Mickey Moniak hit a three-run home run in the eighth. Brenton Doyle singled to lead off the ninth and scored on a sacrifice fly by Yanquiel Fernández before Moniak capped the scoring with an RBI single.

The game was delayed about an hour due to rain in the sixth.

Key moment

Joey Wiemer was hit by a pitch, moved to third base on a single by Sanoja and scored on a sacrifice fly by Otto Lopez. Agustín Ramírez walked before Marsee doubled to drive in Sanoja and Ramírez and give the Marlins a 3-0 lead in the third.

Key stat

Moniak’s homer off Michael Petersen snapped a string of five consecutive games without allowing an earned run — the club’s longest such streak of the season, according to Elias Sports Bureau. Marlins relievers hadn’t allowed an earned run in 25 innings.

Up next

Marlins starter Ryan Weathers (2-1, 2.73 ERA) is set to start Wednesday against Colorado’s McCade Brown (0-4, 9.88).

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SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jackson Merrill homered and Randy Vásquez struck out a career-high nine in six strong innings for the San Diego Padres, who beat the last-place Colorado Rockies 2-0 on Thursday night to open a four-game series.

The Padres pulled within 2 1/2 games of the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West and opened a four-game lead over the New York Mets for the second of three National League wild cards.

The Padres were coming off a home series loss to Cincinnati and won for just the fourth time in 11 games. They have the easiest remaining schedule among playoff contenders but dropped consecutive series to Minnesota and Baltimore before taking two of three at Colorado last weekend.

Merrill hit an opposite-field shot to left off McCade Brown (0-4) with two outs in the fourth. His 11th homer of the season gave San Diego a 2-0 lead.

Luis Arraez singled home Freddy Fermin in the third.

Vásquez (5-6) held the Rockies to four hits and walked none. His previous strikeout high was six, accomplished four times.

Key moment

A trio of Padres relievers finished the four-hitter. Robert Suarez retired the side on nine pitches in the ninth for his NL-leading 37th save.

Key stat

Four of Merrill’s five homers since July 12 have been to the opposite field.

Up next

Rockies RHP Tanner Gordon (5-6, 6.60 ERA) and Padres left-hander JP Sears (8-10, 5.01) are scheduled to start Friday night.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Blake Snell struck out a season-high 11 in six innings, Mookie Betts hit a grand slam in the eighth and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Colorado Rockies 9-0 on Wednesday night for their fourth straight win.

Helped by their third series sweep of the Rockies this season, the Dodgers increased their NL West lead to three games over San Diego, which lost 2-1 at home to Cincinnati.

Betts went 4 for 5 with five RBIs, capped by his seventh career slam on a 3-0 pitch from reliever Anthony Molina to make it 8-0. Andy Pages and Ben Rortvedt singled and Shohei Ohtani reached on catcher’s interference to load the bases.

Teoscar Hernández followed with a solo shot off Angel Chivilli, his third homer in two games.

Betts’ two-out RBI double highlighted a four-run second against Rockies starter Kyle Freeland (4-15). The left-hander gave up four runs and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings with five strikeouts.

Snell (4-4) allowed singles to Tyler Freeman and Hunter Goodman plus two walks in ending a personal three-game skid with his first win since Aug. 16. It was a big bounceback from the left-hander’s last start in which he gave up nine hits and five runs over five innings at Pittsburgh last week. The two-time Cy Young Award winner has 124 strikeouts in 14 career starts against the Rockies.

Dodgers catcher Will Smith was scratched minutes before the game with right hand soreness. It’s the fifth game he’s missed since taking a foul ball off his hand on Sept. 3.

Key moment

After Dodgers reliever Michael Kopech loaded the bases with three straight walks with one out in the seventh, Alex Vesia came in and struck out pinch-hitter Mickey Moniak and Freeman to end the threat.

Key stat

In the last five games, Dodgers starters in the first five innings have allowed a total of three hits.

Up next

Rockies RHP McCade Brown (0-3, 12.54 ERA) starts Thursday at San Diego against RHP Randy Vasquez (4-6, 3.91).

After a day off, Dodgers RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto (11-8, 2.72 ERA) starts Friday at San Francisco against RHP Justin Verlander (3-10, 4.09).

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Teoscar Hernández hit two home runs and Emmet Sheehan pitched seven splendid innings to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers past the Colorado Rockies 7-2 on Tuesday night.

Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts also went deep for the Dodgers, who increased their lead in the NL West to two games over San Diego. The second-place Padres lost 4-2 at home to Cincinnati.

Sheehan retired his first 15 batters before Kyle Karros, son of former Dodgers first baseman Eric Karros, singled to left field leading off the sixth. In 2023, Sheehan threw six no-hit innings in his major league debut.

The right-hander struck out nine Rockies and allowed just one earned run, when Tyler Freeman hit an RBI single in the sixth.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tyler Glasnow and Blake Treinen combined to pitch eight innings of no-hit ball before Tanner Scott gave up Colorado’s first hit in the ninth and the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied for a 3-1 victory Monday night.

Glasnow struck out 11 and walked two on 105 pitches — one off his season high — 65 for strikes over seven innings in his first career start against Colorado.

Blake Treinen followed with a 1-2-3 eighth. Scott came on in the ninth and promptly gave up a double to Ryan Ritter before retiring the next three batters to end the game.

The Dodgers remained a game ahead of second-place San Diego in the NL West race.

Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto had a no-hitter broken up with two outs in the ninth inning at Baltimore on Saturday night, and the Orioles rallied for a 4-3 win.

The Dodgers took a 3-1 lead in the seventh on Mookie Betts’ two-out, two-run single to center that scored Andy Pages, who was hit by a pitch, and Shohei Ohtani, who doubled with two outs.

The Rockies led 1-0 on Kyle Farmer’s sacrifice fly that scored Jordan Beck, who walked leading off the second. The Dodgers tied it 1-1 on Freddie Freeman’s RBI double off reliever Juan Meija in the bottom of the sixth.

Glasnow was scratched from his last scheduled start Friday at Baltimore due to back tightness, although exams showed no issue. The right-hander has not won since his first start of the season on March 31 against Atlanta.

Through 14 starts coming in, Glasnow is 1-3 with a 3.41 ERA, recording 81 strikeouts against 32 walks. His .181 opponents’ batting average leads all NL starters, while his 10.62 strikeouts per nine innings ranks sixth. He’s had 10 no-decisions.

The Rockies have lost 10 of 12.

Key moment

Scott got his 21st save but not before blowing what could have been the Dodgers’ 24th no-hitter in franchise history. Their last one was a combined effort against the Padres in Mexico in 2018.

Key stat

The Rockies’ 104th loss set a franchise record. It’s the third straight season they’ve had 100 or more defeats.

Up next

Rockies RHP Germán Márquez (3-12, 6.19 ERA) starts Tuesday against Dodgers RHP Emmet Sheehan (5-3, 3.59).

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HOUSTON (AP) — Yordan Alvarez homered for the first time since returning from a fractured right hand, helping Framber Valdez and the Houston Astros beat the Colorado Rockies 4-0 on Wednesday night.

Alvarez hit a two-run drive off Angel Chivilli in the eighth inning for his fourth homer this season. The slugger was activated from the 60-day injured list Tuesday and went 0 for 2 with two walks in his first game back.

Valdez (12-7) allowed three hits — all singles — in seven innings. The left-hander struck out five and walked two.

Cam Smith also went deep for Houston, which remained 1 1/2 games ahead of Seattle for the top spot in the AL West.

Colorado wasted a sharp performance by rookie right-hander Chase Dollander (2-11), who matched a career high with seven strikeouts in six innings of one-run ball.

Jesús Sánchez hit an RBI single for Houston in the first, and Smith led off the seventh with his first homer since June 28. It was Smith’s eighth homer on the season.

Houston played without manager Joe Espada, who missed the game due to an illness. Bench coach Omar Lopez managed in his absence.

Tyler Freeman had two hits for the Rockies, but All-Star catcher Hunter Goodman was ejected by home plate umpire James Hoye after he struck out in the sixth inning.

Key moment

On his 99th and final pitch of the night, Valdez stranded the tying run at the third base by getting Kyle Karros to fly out to left.

Key stat

Valdez is 4-0 with a 1.40 ERA in four career starts against Colorado.

Up next

Astros right-hander Jason Alexander (4-1, 4.59 ERA) faces Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland (3-13, 5.31 ERA) when the series concludes on Thursday.

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PITTSBURGH (AP) — Braxton Ashcraft and highly touted rookie Bubba Chandler combined for a three-hit shutout as the Pittsburgh Pirates breezed past the Colorado Rockies 9-0 on Friday night.

Ashcraft (4-2) struck out six with one hit and a walk to win his second consecutive start. Chandler, a hard-throwing 22-year-old right-hander considered the top pitching prospect in baseball, followed with four innings of scoreless relief to get the save in his major league debut.

Spencer Horwitz, Tommy Pham and Alexander Canario homered for Pittsburgh, which has won three of four. Andrew McCutchen doubled twice and drove in four runs off Colorado’s Antonio Senzatela (4-15), who struggled against the Pirates for the second time in three weeks.

Earlier this month in Denver, Senzatela was shelled for eight runs while failing to make it out of the first inning. The major-league worst Rockies somehow rallied to win that one 17-16.

Not this time.

Ashcraft retired nine of the first 10 batters he faced and quickly worked around a leadoff single by Moniak in the fourth. He breezed through the fifth before giving way to Chandler, the latest in a long string of young pitchers the Pirates have drafted and cultivated in recent years, led by reigning NL Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes.

While Chandler gave up hard contact a couple of times — including a leadoff double by Orlando Arcia shortly after entering in the sixth — he also struck out three and hit triple digits on the radar gun with his fastball several times.

Key moment

McCutchen wasted little time getting to Senzatela. He smacked a two-run double to center in the first and did it again in the second and Ashcraft made sure the big early lead didn’t go to waste.

Key stat

4 — the number of pitchers with four-inning save in their big-league debut since saves became an official stat.

Up next

The series continues Saturday when Pittsburgh’s Mike Burrows (1-4, 4.46 ERA) faces Colorado’s Kyle Freeland (13-12, 5.16).

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