Rockies chase Brewers into 9th, lose 5-7
Jim Tracy is taking a patient approach to managing his young Rockies this season
- Image by Getty Images via Daylife
This was a winnable game for the Colorado Rockies, despite starter Greg Smith giving up a 3-run home run in the 1st and a solo shot in the 5th. The Rockies led 1-0 coming out of the top of the opening inning. Unfortunately Smith, who was starting in place of injured lefty Jeff Francis, was overrun by the meat of the Milwaukee lineup.
Colorado played chase the rest of the game, matching Milwaukee most of the way until the Brewers opened up a 3-run lead in the bottom of the 8th. The Rockies got one back in the 9th, but Jason Giambi struck out to closer Trevor Hoffman with Carlos Gonzalez stranded on first.
Jim Tracy said it best… this was an acceptable loss for a team taking the long view. “We were never out of the game. And that’s all you can ask for day in and day out.”
That is the Colorado Mantra moving forward. Get wins where you can, fight hard to the final pitch, and don’t sweat the small stuff this early. A lot was made of Chris Iannetta’s struggles at the plate, but Tracy has no intention of tweaking his swing. Jim’s patience with his hitters paid off in a big way with Carlos Gonzalez last season, and Cargo came through with two ribbies on two hits tonight. Chris Stewart was 3 for 4 with an RBI.
