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Rockies Notes: Michael Lorenzen's Troubles Overshadow Colorado's Late Rally

The Colorado Rockies have a lot of problems on their hands.
Seth Dowdle|
Colorado Rockies outfielder Jake McCarthy.
Colorado Rockies outfielder Jake McCarthy. | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

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Colorado Rockies

The Colorado Rockies are falling into an eerily similar pattern: They just can’t seem to win a series.

After falling 8-6 to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the finale of this past weekend’s three-game set, the Rockies have officially dropped six series in a row dating back to April 30.

One could call this stretch of losing unprecedented, but it’s simply not. The Rockies have unfortunately been in much worse spots than this, which in some ways is a consolation prize.

The Rockies Fall Again

But for the players in the clubhouse and the fans who take their seats at Coors Field day in and day out, this stretch of losing has been nothing short of depressing.

What isn’t sad is the fight Colorado put up in Sunday’s 8-6 defeat. After going down 8-2 following two home runs by D-backs star Corbin Carroll, the Rockies rallied for four runs in the bottom of the eighth. All the tallies came via what baseball coaches worldwide would call “small ball.”

Willi Castro drove in Hunter Goodman with a sacrifice fly to make it 8-3. Jake McCarthy then followed that up with a ground-ball single to right field, scoring TJ Rumfield. Kyle Karros then singled home another run to make it 8-5 before Brett Sullivan concluded the scoring with another sacrifice fly. Poetic.

Unfortunately, that would be the end of the scoring festivities, and the Rockies wound up losing. Again. Also poetic.

Perhaps the most pressing matter from Sunday’s contest was the fact that Michael Lorenzen delivered another poor start. Through just 4.2 innings, Lorenzen allowed seven runs — only six were earned — on nine hits, two of which were home runs. He struck out five and walked three. Only 59 of his 101 pitches landed in the strike zone.

Lorenzen’s ERA is now an inflated 7.03, a far cry from what he’s put up in the past. Whether it’s the elevation that’s causing him to struggle or some other unforeseen factor doesn’t really matter. The only thing that’s certain is that Lorenzen is not the pitcher the Rockies thought they were getting out of free agency, and that’s thrown a major wrench into their plans for the starting rotation.

Up next for the Rockies is a three-game series with the Texas Rangers. It’s been said before, and it’ll be said many more times, but the team desperately needs to come out on top in at least two of these matchups versus the mediocre Rangers.

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Seth Dowdle
SETH DOWDLE

Seth Dowdle is a 2024 graduate of TCU, where he earned a degree in sports broadcasting with a minor in journalism. He currently hosts a TCU-focused show on the Bleav Network and has been active in sports media since 2019, beginning with high school sports coverage in the DFW area. Seth is also the owner and editor of SethStack, his personal hub for in-depth takes on everything from college football and MLB to hockey. His past experience includes working in the broadcast department for the Cleburne Railroaders and at 88.7 KTCU, TCU's radio station.

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