Rockies Waste Early Chances Against Nationals Before Game Unravels

Colorado repeatedly put runners in scoring position but failed to break through before a six-run seventh inning turned a close game into an 8-0 defeat.

Jake McCarthy hits an RBI double in the second inning against the Washington Nationals at Coors Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Colorado Rockies’ 8-0 loss to the Washington Nationals looked like a blowout in the box score, but the game was decided well before Washington created separation.

Colorado had several opportunities to take control while the score remained close. Instead, the Rockies went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position, allowing one missed chance after another to slowly increase the pressure on the pitching staff to keep the game within reach.

Kyle Karros singled in the second inning and advanced when Daylen Lile mishandled the ball in left field. Colorado failed to bring him home after a baserunning mistake caught him between second and third.

Jake McCarthy doubled with one out in the third, extending his on-base streak to 17 games. Mickey Moniak flew out before Hunter Goodman struck out, leaving another runner stranded.

TJ Rumfield opened the fourth with another double, but Cade Cavalli struck out three of the next four hitters. Cavalli finished six scoreless innings with eight strikeouts, four hits allowed and two walks.

Colorado Ran Out of Chances

Jimmy Herget pitches in the seventh inning against the Washington Nationals at Coors Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Washington carried a 1-0 lead into the seventh inning. That narrow deficit should have kept Colorado within one swing of changing the game, but its inability to score meant every mistake felt like a nail being hammered into a coffin.

Jimmy Herget walked two hitters before Nasim Nuñez drove in a run with a single. Moniak misplayed the ball in left field, allowing another runner to score, and Luis García Jr. followed with a two-run home run.

The inning continued after Zach Agnos entered. José Tena and CJ Abrams singled before Dylan Crews brought home another run. Two throwing errors on the play allowed Washington to score again and stretched the lead to 7-0. The Rockies committed three errors overall, with two of the Nationals’ runs going into the books as unearned.

Colorado finished with six hits, four walks and 10 strikeouts. Washington collected 14 hits and went 5-for-17 with runners in scoring position, providing a sharp contrast between the teams’ ability to not let run scoring oppurtunities go to waste.

The defeat dropped the Rockies to 3-11 with a minus-29 run differential in series-deciding games. Colorado also finished its homestand 2-4 after losing two of three to Washington.

The Rockies will next travel to Milwaukee, where Tomoyuki Sugano is scheduled to face Shane Drohan on Friday. Colorado cannot repeat the same sloppy mistakes against the Brewers. Creating chances is great, but ultimately means nothing if those chances don't turn into runs.