PHOENIX – The Colorado Rockies lead the majors in total hits with 233. Saturday night, however, they could have used one more.
The Rockies didn’t get it despite finishing with nine hits and walking seven times, losing 3-2 in extra innings to the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
Cody Ross’ sacrifice fly to center field off reliever Edgmer Escalona drove in A.J. Pollock with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning.
Pollock led off the inning with a single off Escalona (1-1). With one out, he stole second base and went to third on a throwing error by Rockies catcher Wilin Rosario. The Rockies then intentionally walked Miguel Montero to have Escalona face Ross.
Ross hit a ball more than 400 feet to center that gave the Rockies had no chance to throw out the speedy Pollock.
“That guy has good stuff. He throws hard; has a good slider,” Ross said of Escalona. “I was just looking for something out over the plate that I could get some good wood on, and fortunately it got in the air, and Pollock was able to score easily.”
Arizona won its sixth extra-inning game without a defeat this season.
The Diamondbacks turned three double plays in the first five innings.
The Rockies loaded the bases in the first and fifth innings against Diamondbacks starter Wade Miley but failed to score each time.
Miley struggled with his control more than in any of his previous four starts this season. He lasted only 4 1/3 innings and threw 98 pitches, walking seven.
“You miss that many opportunities, it’s going to come back to haunt you,” Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. “You can’t miss that many opportunities and expect to win the game.”
Miley walked four in the first inning but got out of the situation with a double play and a strikeout.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen four walks in an inning without a run,” Weiss said.
The Rockies trailed 2-0 on Pollock’s solo home run in the first inning and Ross’ two-out triple to drive in Montero from first.
Rockies starter Jeff Francis gathered himself and didn’t allow another run over the next four innings. Then, the Rockies got four innings of scoreless relief from their bullpen.
“Jeff did his job. Bullpen did their job. Our offense didn’t do their job,” Weiss said.
Rosario homered off reliever Brad Ziegler in the sixth, and the Rockies tied it when Troy Tulowitzki singled in Dexter Fowler with the tying run with two outs in the seventh.
Fowler had reached second on a hustle double, sliding head first and avoided the tag. Tulowitzki was thrown out at second trying to stretch his hit into a double.
The Rockies had their best late chance to take the lead in the eighth when Michael Cuddyer and Rosario singled to start the inning.
But Cuddyer was picked off on a throw from Montero to shortstop Cliff Pennington, and Rosario was doubled off second base after straying too far off the bag on a line out to Parra in right field.
“Definitely odd. I think that’s a good word,” Cuddyer said, describing the game. “Sometimes it happens, unfortunately. You don’t get the big hit, and we didn’t (Saturday). We had a lot of opportunities to get it but we just didn’t come up with it.”
Rockies rumpus
Diamondbacks shortstop Didi Gregorius felt soreness from the contusion on the right side of his head a day after being hit in the helmet by a pitch from the Rockies’ Josh Outman in the seventh inning Friday. Gregorius did not play in Saturday’s game. ... The Diamondbacks played a man short on their 25-man active roster on Saturday while deciding whether to make a roster move involving Gregorius. ... Diamondbacks OF Jason Kubel, on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left quadriceps, played in an extended spring training game Saturday and is scheduled to continue his rehabilitation at Triple-A Reno on Monday and Tuesday.
