Back-to-back Wild Pitches Doom Rockies against Diamondbacks

Brenton Doyle scoring for the Rockies against the Diamondbacks

Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images

August 12, 2024

Diamondbacks 5, Rockies 4

PHOENIX (Aug. 12) — Back-to-back wild pitches in the bottom of the seventh flipped a 4–3 Colorado Rockies lead into a 5–4 Arizona Diamondbacks victory Monday night.

The two mishaps spoiled the first major league start of Bradley Blalock, whom the Rockies landed in the trade that sent Nick Mears to the Milwaukee Brewers the day before the 2024 Trade Deadline. Blalock, who was called up from Double-A Hartford Monday night, had allowed three runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings, walking none and striking out four.

Diamondbacks starter Brandon Pfaadt lasted seven innings, allowing four runs on eight hits. He walked none while striking out eleven.

Rockies – Diamondbacks Game Summary

The Diamondbacks took a 1–0 lead in the bottom of the second on back-to-back doubles by first baseman Josh Bell and left fielder Jake McCarthy. In the top of the third, the Rockies tied it on a double by right fielder Jake Cave and single by catcher Elias Diaz. It became a 3–1 Rockies lead in the top of the fourth, with the first being a manufactured run. Center fielder Brenton Doyle lined a single to left and stole second during the at-bat of third baseman Ryan McMahon, up next. McMahon advanced Doyle to third when he grounded to second. Second baseman Brendan Rodgers brought Doyle in with a sacrifice fly. A two-out rally brought in the third run. It came thanks to consecutive singles by first baseman Michael Toglia, Cave, and Diaz, with Toglia scoring on the Diaz single.

Rodgers robbed center fielder Alek Thomas of a base hit in the bottom of the fifth, diving to his right at full extension to glove a line drive out of the air. The following half-inning, Rodgers extended the Rockies lead to 4–1 with a towering home run to the picnic area overhang in left-center.

Diamondbacks Chip Away, Take Lead

It became a 4–3 game in the bottom of the sixth after a one-out single by second baseman Kevin Newman, a two-out double by Bell, and a follow-up single by McCarthy. One inning later, Rockies reliever Anthony Molina ran into trouble after consecutive two-out singles by right fielder Corbin Carroll and Newman. In came Tyler Kinley to face designated hitter Joc Pederson with runners on the corners. A wild pitch on a stolen base attempt by Newman tied the game as Newman reached third. One pitch later, another wild pitch brought Newman across to give the Diamondbacks a 5–4 lead.

Ryan Thompson pitched a perfect top of the eighth for the Diamondbacks, as did Kinley in the bottom of the eighth for the Rockies. Toglia led off the ninth with a single to left off Justin Martinez, bringing up Cave, who was a home run shy of the cycle. But a liner to second turned into a 4–3 line-drive double play, bringing up Diaz with the bases empty. His grounder to short ended the game and gave the Diamondbacks the victory.

What Went Right for the Rockies

Defense

Aside from the diving catch by Rodgers, Doyle ran down two deep drives in the gap to rob extra-base hits. “I was told before the game that this defense was really good,” a grinning Blalock said. “I was excited to be pitching for them.”

Starting Pitching

Blalock missed a Quality Start by one batter, but it was not a bad outing by any means. The rookie, making his second big-league appearance and first major league start, left the game with the lead and put the Rockies in good position to win the game.

“We liked what we saw,” manager Bud Black — who met Blalock for the first time five hours before the first pitch — said. “I liked the overall stuff. He threw strikes, got the ball in the strike zone. No walks, pitching into the sixth inning. It was a good starting debut. There are some things he can polish as he moves forward, but overall, I like the arm.”

Bounce-back Run

A half-inning after the Rockies fell behind, 1–0, Cave and Diaz combined to get the run back. “That boosted my confidence,” Blalock said, “being able to go out there knowing that the game was tied back up. It was good. I was wanting to keep putting up zeroes and letting the offense do their thing.”

What Went Wrong for the Rockies

Wild, Wild Seventh

Back-to-back wild pitches by Kinley in the bottom of the seventh turned a one-run Rockies advantage into a one-run Diamondbacks lead. It came after Molina could not put the Diamondbacks away with two outs. Instead, he yielded singles to both Carroll and Newman. On the Newman single, Carroll reached third, setting the stage for the wild pitches to bring runs across. “Trying to execute a really nasty pitch a couple of times when ahead in the count to a really good hitter came back to bite us,” Black said.

Looking Ahead

Pfaadt (7–6) grabbed the win, with Molina (1–1) taking the loss in relief. Martinez notched his third save of the season.

The Rockies (44–76) and Diamondbacks (67–54) will play the second game of their three-game series Tuesday evening. It will be a battle of left-handers, Austin Gomber (3–8, 4.92 ERA) for the Rockies and Eduardo Rodriguez (1–0, 4.76 ERA) for the Diamondbacks. First pitch will be at 6:40 pm Arizona Time/7:40 pm Mountain Daylight Time.