Rox get to Sabathia, but fall in extras
CLEVELAND -- Colorado's Dustan Mohr swung through a fastball from Cleveland's Rafael Betancourt for a third strike to end the fourth inning -- and begin a pattern on Wednesday night.A Rockies offense that has been spotty everywhere -- more so on the road -- bore much of the blame for a 7-6, 11-inning loss at Jacobs Field in front of 20,986. But the work of six relievers demonstrated why Cleveland has one of baseball's best bullpens, and had much to do with Colorado falling to 4-25 on the road.
After Betancourt replaced ineffective Indians starter C.C. Sabathia with the bases loaded and a Colorado run across with one out in the fourth, the bullpen struck out 13 and held Colorado to three hits in 7 2/3 scoreless innings. The Rockies had scored five times in the third inning and a 6-2 lead and a rally going in the fourth before Betancourt fanned Preston Wilson and Mohr, who narrowly missed a home run earlier in the at-bat.
"They're good," Mohr said. "I don't know if we made them better than they are tonight or what ... Nah, I don't take anything away from them. They have the makings of a bullpen that can win a division."
The ills of the Rockies, the team with the National League's fewest wins, are documented daily. Things have been so dicey with the injury- and youth-laden club that the less than dominating work of Joe Kennedy, who couldn't protect the lead and gave up five runs in five innings, represented progress. But this one belonged to a bullpen that lowered its ERA to 2.49 and assured Cleveland of a five-game win streak.
Colorado's bullpen was not bad before Aaron Boone ended the game with a leadoff homer in the 11th off Blaine Neal (1-2). David Cortres entered with no outs and two on in the sixth, and escaped with one run scoring and a 6-5 lead, despite a 52-minute rain delay that interrupted the inning. Jay Witasick fanned four in two innings. Brian Fuentes gave up Jhonny Peralta's one-out homer to tie the game in the ninth, but fanned five in his two innings.
Cleveland's bullpen was simply better.
"In the fourth inning, we had a chance to stretch it out, take advantage of it, and we weren't able to," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. "We're up 6-2 with our No. 4 and No. 5 guys coming up. Betancourt was able to shut it down, and it stayed shut down after that.
"Those (bullpen) numbers aren't fabricated. They aren't manufactured. They've got some arms that will come after you."
Betancourt fanned four in 2 1/3 innings. Scott Sauerbeck retired the only man he faced. Matt Miller struck out four in two innings, Arthur Rhodes struck out the side in the ninth, Bob Wickman gave up a hit but escaped the 10th, and Bob Howry (4-1) struck out two in the 11th.
Colorado rookie Ryan Shealy's first Major League hit, a bases-loaded, two-run double with two out, set the pace in the third inning. Danny Ardoin, Garret Atkins and Wilson also had run-scoring singles. Atkins added an RBI single in the fourth.
The Rockies skipped Kennedy's last turn because he had been ineffective in his previous three starts. Hurdle graded Kennedy's performance Wednesday, saying, "I can't give him a plus, I can't give him minus, I'll give him a check."
Hurdle thought Kennedy's breaking ball had more downward motion, but three leadoff doubles and some two-strike miscues worked against that.
Kennedy gave up a two-run homer to Casey Blake in the first inning and said he might have been rusty after a nine-day layoff. He also said he simply tried to minimize damage after the leadoff doubles to Travis Hafner in the fourth, Boone in the fifth and Hafner in the sixth before Cortes replaced him. All three scored.
"If I look back on it, I wish I didn't pitch situational when I gave up leadoff doubles in the fourth or fifth, but the score dictated me to get the hitter out and not worry about the guy on second," Kennedy said. "If I look back, I wish I would have battled more in that situation. But when I've done that, I end up giving up three or four.
"I'm happy to not give up a big inning. That's what's been hurting me all year."
Source: http://colorado.rockies.mlb.com/
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