An impressive come-from-behind victory for the Colorado Rockies have them in a prime spot to take series from Los Angeles Dodgers.
If the Colorado Rockies are trailing late in games this season, the ballclub has shown a propensity to rally in the latter innings. They proved this true on Tuesday night against the three-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
Going into the eighth inning, Colorado was down 3-1 and it looked like Dodgers starter Justin Wrobleski had put the Rockies in a hole. Wrobleski was solid in his time on the mound, but some shaky Dodgers defense and even shakier relief pitching didn't help.
Oh, it proved helpful for the Rockies.
Now, though, Colorado, who ended an 11-game losing streak at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday night, can start a better streak on Wednesday night.
In case you missed it, Hunter Goodman was not in Tuesday's starting lineup due to an injury. It also looked like the Rockies missed having one of their big hitters in the lineup as well.
But the Tuesday night victory also accomplished something else. If you haven't checked out the National League West Division standings on Wednesday, then you'd see the Rockies and San Francisco Giants are just separated by one game.
Braxton Fulford played a big role
One person who made his presence felt in a big way late on Tuesday night was Rockies catcher Braxton Fulford. In the final at-bat from Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, Fulford took full use of the ABS system and had two ball calls overturned to strikes.
"In Triple-A and the big leagues, the idea is that you want to use them in big situations," Fulford said of the ABS system, according to Rockies reporter Thomas Harding for MLB.com. "Those were definitely high run-value situations, so that’s a no-brainer."
The changed calls also helped Rockies reliever Jordan Romano, who worked the late innings and picked up a save.
Both the Giants and Rockies have 38 wins right now, but Colorado has two more losses. So, this means that San Francisco is just one game ahead of the Rockies for fourth place in the NL West. In their last 10 games, both teams have gone 5-5. Colorado has gone 22-25 at Coors Field, while just 16-30 on the road.
Want an even bigger picture? The Rockies are eight games out of an NL Wild Card spot and eight games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres for second place in the division. Yes, the Dodgers have a 22-game lead over Colorado going into Wednesday night's final game in this three-game series.
First MLB start for Gabriel Hughes
This series finale also will be worth watching as the Rockies' first-round draft choice in the 2022 MLB Draft Gabriel Hughes will make his first MLB start. What a spot for Hughes to be in, reaching the big leagues for the first time and going up against a top ballclub like the Dodgers.
Hughes already got his feet wet in the big leagues with three scoreless innings and earning his first MLB save in Colorado's series against the Giants last week at Coors Field.
Now, it's time to see what Hughes can do against the Dodgers. This should be must-see TV for Rockies fans on Wednesday night.
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