Clips for 7-12-10

MEDIA CLIPS – July 26th, 2018

Blackmon walks it off as Rox hold Astros to 1 hit By Thomas Harding and Anne Rogers MLB.com Jul. 25th, 2018

DENVER -- Standout starting pitching works for the Rockies, eventually -- even when the opponent is the defending World

Series champions. And Charlie Blackmon made sure.

Jon Gray held the Astros to one hit in seven innings, but had to wait along with the Coors Field crowd of 40,948, until

Blackmon's walkoff homer off Collin McHugh with one out in the bottom of the ninth gave the Rockies a 3-2 victory on

Wednesday night.

It was Blackmon whose 10th-inning error on Tuesday night, his first of the season, opened the door for a six-run rally and an 8-2 Astros victory. This time, Blackmon's 20th homer of the season -- and first career walk-off blast -- pulled the

Rockies to 1 1/2 games behind the National League West-leading Dodgers and one game behind the second-place D- backs.. 25th, 2018

"That's the beauty of baseball," Blackmon said. "You can stink, which is OK. As long as you don't stink the next time and the next time. That's what makes baseball great. It's a long season, and we have a chance."

The Rockies had lost their previous two games, but have won 16 of their last 21. The two-game split with the Astros, who lead the American League West, came after five straight series wins over teams above .500.25th, 2018

In his second straight standout start since a brief demotion to Triple-A Albuquerque, Gray struck out six and walked two.

The only run off him came on the only hit -- Jose Altuve's RBI double during a fourth inning in which the Rockies committed two errors. 1

"They definitely have a lot of dangerous hitters in there," Gray said. "I knew with this team, I just tried to be as down as much as I could and be unpredictable, use variance. We used the curveball a lot tonight, and it was a really good tool to get them off the fastball."

Gray's gem followed Tyler Anderson's 7 1/3-inning, two-run effort on Tuesday. Gray and Anderson allowed a total of two runs on four hits against the Astros, posting a combined 1.25 ERA over the two games.

"We thought this was going to be a good test for us, going up against a good team, but on the other hand, talking to

[Astros manager] AJ [Hinch], they know our talent, too," Rockies manager Bud Black said. "They know our level. It was good to see Tyler and Jon respond against two All-Star pitchers in [Gerrit] Cole and [Charlie] Morton. It was good to see our bullpen in the back end do their job..

Carlos Gonzalez's 12th homer, a leadoff blast in the second, was the only run off Morton, who gave up four hits and fanned five in six innings.

The Rockies tied it on a crazy play. With the bases loaded in the seventh, Astros third baseman J.D. Daviscaught Nolan

Arenado's popup in the Astros' dugout. Raimel Tapia tagged up at third, then made it home as Davis threw to the plate..

25th, 2018

On Tuesday, Tapia fouled off two bunts before striking out, and on Wednesday, he bunted into a fielder's choice to get Tom Murphy out at second. But his heads-up, game-tying play might have made up for the recent mishaps.

"I missed a bunt yesterday," Tapia said through an interpreter. "Today, I tried to bunt for a hit, and it didn't work out. But I was at first base and I said, 'Now that I'm at first base with one out, I need to go out there and make a big play to help the team out -- some way, somehow -- to help the team out."

Wade Davis (1-3), who allowed five runs in the 10th and took the loss on Tuesday, struck out a pair in a hitless ninth to earn the win., 2018

SOUND SMART

This was the third time in franchise history that the Rockies held their opponent to one hit. All three times have been

Interleague games. They limited the A's to one hit on June 20, 2006, then the White Sox on July 9, 2017.

YOU GOTTA SEE THIS

George Springer scowled as he took off his batting helmet to end the top of the fifth. No, he wasn't mad at the umpire for calling him out. He was mad -- stunned even -- that Rockies shortstop Trevor Story robbed him of a hit.

With his speed and signature spin move, Story grabbed the ball behind second base and launched it to first before

Springer could get there.

As for Story's response to Springer's scowl? All he could do was flash a grin and shrug.. 25th, 2018

MITEL REPLAY OF THE DAY

Tapia's dash home wasn't the only crazy play. In the top of the sixth, Alex Bregman hit a long ball to the left-field fence. Gerardo Parra made it to the wall, but a fan -- wearing Astros gear -- tipped the ball enough that Parra couldn't catch it. Rockies manager Bud Black challenged the call, and it was overturned. Bregman, who originally appeared to have a triple, was called out on fan interference. More >, 2018

UP NEXT

Left-hander Kyle Freeland (8-6, 3.28 ERA) will face the A's and lefty Sean Manaea (9-6, 3.38) in the opener of a three- game series at Coors Field on Friday at 6:40 p.m. MT. Freeland is 5-2 with a 2.76 ERA in eight home starts this year.

Rockies close deal for Jays reliever Oh By Thomas Harding MLB.com @harding_at_mlb 8:56 AM MDT

DENVER -- The Rockies completed a deal with the Blue Jays on Thursday to acquire right-hander Seunghwan Oh to bolster their bullpen for a pair of prospects who were ranked on the organization's Top 30 Prospects list. Both teams have officially announced the deal.

The Rockies sent outfielder Forrest Wall, a first-round pick in the 2014 MLB Draft and their No. 13 prospect; first baseman

Chad Spanberger, a sixth-round Draft pick in '17 and the No. 24 prospect, and a player to be named or cash to Toronto.

Oh, 36, pitched in Korea and Japan before joining the Cardinals in 2016. Entering Tuesday, he ranked fifth in the

American League with 48 appearances this season. Oh is 4-3 with a 2.68 ERA, two saves, 55 strikeouts and 10 walks in

47 innings.

Oh went 7-9 with a 2.85 ERA with the Cardinals from 2016-17. He is making $1.75 million this season and has a $2.5 million club option for 2019 that can automatically vest if he reaches 70 appearances. Additionally, Oh's contract is under club control through 2021.

Colorado's bullpen has shown improvement after struggling for much of June. From June 26 to Tuesday's 8-2, 10-inning loss to the Astros, the relief staff has had a 4.10 ERA -- but in the 15 wins during that period its ERA was 2.66. However, the Rockies needed to beef up the group.

They've relied heavily on righty setup men Scott Oberg and Adam Ottavino, as well as closer Wade Davis. While righty Bryan Shaw, who struggled early, has shown improvement since returning from a right calf strain, the Rockies still needed depth.

Also, the left side of the 'pen has struggled. Jake McGee and Chris Rusin have lacked consistency, and Rusin went to the 10-day disabled list Tuesday with right foot plantar fasciitis.

Oh's closing experience is impressive -- he had 19 saves in 2016 and 20 in '17 with the Cardinals.

This season, Oh's slash line has been far more impressive against right-handed batters (.168/.190/.269) than lefties

(.315/.413/.537). His career numbers are just as strong against righties (208/.242/.316), but not as lopsided against lefties

(.257/.328/.415) 4

Wall, 22, who was drafted out of Orangewood Christian High School in Maitland, Fla., was selected as an infielder, but has transitioned to the outfield. He was hitting a combined .260 with nine homers and 31 RBIs with 28 stolen bases in 39 attempts for Class A Lancaster and Double-A Hartford. Picked as an infielder who had suffered a shoulder injury in high school, Wall moved to the outfield as the Rockies attempted to take advantage of his speed.

Spanberger, who is also 22, was drafted out of the University of Arkansas. He was hitting .316 with 22 home runs and 75

RBIs for Class A Asheville. Last year, he hit .294 with 19 home runs in 60 games at Rookie-level Grand Junction.

Earlier reports had first baseman Sean Bouchard, also playing first base at Asheville, in the deal. But Bouchard participated -- and hit a home run -- in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday night, which was a clear indication he wasn't in the trade. Players who are dealt are usually removed from their game for fear of an injury scuttling all the negotiations.

Fan interference costs Astros at Coors Field By Thomas Harding and Brian McTaggart MLB.com 12:09 AM MDT

DENVER -- For a second Wednesday night, Rockies left fielder Gerardo Parra thought his eyes or his mind had deceived him. But he could laugh about it later.

The Astros' Alex Bregman? Not so much.

Bregman thought he had a triple off the top of the left-field wall to lead off the sixth inning. Instead, the play was overturned because a fan -- wearing Astros orange at Coors Field -- had reached over the fence and tipped the ball, thus robbing Parra of a catch. After a replay review, the call was overturned on fan interference, and the Rockies had a key out in their 3-2 victory.

The Astros were leading, 2-1, at the time of the play.

"I never saw the fan, never saw the glove, because I was focused on the ball," Parra said. "I was surprised, because I put up my glove and the ball almost hit me in my face. I said, 'What happened? Did the ball move at the last second?' I never saw the fan.

"When I saw the replay, I felt better. I said, 'I'm all right. I'm not crazy.' I thought, 100 percent, I had it.". 25th, 2018

That's where Bregman disagreed.

"There is no possible way that a left fielder jumping backward into a wall is guaranteed to make the catch," a fuming

Bregman said. "Changed the whole [expletive] game. We're up 2-1 at the time and I'm at third base. We need a fly ball to the outfield to get me in and it's 3-1.". 25th, 2018

Had the triple stood, it would have been the Astros' second hit of the game. They never got another against Jon Gray, who worked seven innings and was on the mound at the time of the overturned play, Adam Ottavino and Wade Davis.

Astros manager AJ Hinch was more diplomatic than Bregman.

"That play, it's happened a number of times, and it gives all benefit to the fielder," Hinch said. "Whether it's in foul territory or fair territory, I still don't understand when guys are colliding into walls or they're running all the way down the third-base line or first-base line we can assume catch.

"I understand it's impossible where you put them. Do you put them at first? Do you put them at second? Does Parra really catch that ball as he's backpedaling and colliding with the wall? The rule states that if he's in a position he's possible to make a catch, they're going to call him out, and they did. I think most home fans, in a situation like that, are going to start to interfere, because what's the downside?"

Well, that was the oddity. The fan, who was asked to leave in accordance with a Coors Field rule that says any spectator who interferes with a ball in play can be removed, was wearing a Justin Verlander Astros jersey.

In fact, for the heavily attended two-game set, there were many fans donning the road team's colors and supporting the

Astros. Although Rockies center fielder Charlie Blackmon good-naturedly tried to explain it as loyalty to the local football team, which happens to wear the Astros' colors.

"There were a few more Broncos fans in the crowd tonight," Blackmon quipped.

Rockies manager Bud Black credited Brian Jones, the Rockies' video coordinator, for the successful challenge. Jones, in his 17th year with the organization and 12th as the Major League video coordinator, called bench coach Mike Redmond, who relayed to Black, who issued the replay challenge.

"All 30 guys who do replay are on point all the time.," Black said. "Their role in all this is three hours of every pitch and every play. For us, that's 380 feet away. It's dark. I'm 61 years old. My eyesight is not there. How am I going to see it?"

Bettis 'looked good' during bullpen session Dunn looking to build back strength; Rox optimistic about Musgrave By Anne Rogers MLB.com Jul. 25th, 2018

DENVER -- Rockies manager Bud Black hopes that one day his young pitching staff can be reliable for years to come, much like the Astros' pitching staff.

Black mentioned Gerrit Cole, who earned the win in the Astros' 8-2 victory over the Rox on Tuesday, Justin

Verlander and Charlie Morton, who the Rockies faced on Wednesday, as veteran pitchers the Rockies can learn from.

"They pitch aggressively with the fastball, they throw strikes, they attack the hitters," Black said. "Our guys are learning that. They're not to the service time that other pitchers have. My hope is that Rockies fans will see our guys for a long time, and see them continue to grow into the championship pitchers they think they can be."

That starts with getting pitchers in both the rotation and the bullpen healthy, as the Rockies vie for a postseason berth in the competitive National League West.

Right-hander Chad Bettis, who has been on the disabled list with a right middle finger blister since July 3, threw a bullpen session on Wednesday and "looked good," Black said. The Rockies will continue to monitor Bettis for the next four or five days before sending him back to Triple-A Albuquerque to continue his rehab assignment.

In his last start for Albuquerque on Saturday, Bettis exited after four innings because the blister was bothering him again.

Prior to his departure, he threw 70 pitches and gave up two runs on five hits, including one home run. He struck out four with no walks.

"Chad's doing good," Black said. "Playing catch, threw a bullpen today and I'll follow up with him. He's doing fine."

Left-hander Mike Dunn is also on the mend. He received a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection in his left shoulder AC joint two weeks ago. Dunn, who was placed on the DL on July 7, had a checkup Tuesday and said everything looked good.

Dunn's hope is that he can start throwing a weighted ball on Monday and begin to build back strength.

"If we push through it now, it could counteract the whole thing," Dunn said. "We've just got to let the shot do its thing."

Left-hander Chris Rusin joined Bettis and Dunn when he was placed on the DL with left foot plantar faciitis before

Tuesday's loss to the Astros. Left-hander Harrison Musgrave was reinstated on Tuesday, and Black hopes the lefty, who is 1-3 with a 4.76 ERA, will continue contributing in his rookie season after injuries set him back last year in the Minors.

"We felt he was on the radar last year," Black said. "He was very close to making our team last year out of Spring

Training. So now, a year later, still the same pitcher, but healthy. He learned a lot last spring in big league camp. This year, we saw the same thing. A year of maturity, a year older and he's making contributions."

Rockies complete trade for right-handed reliever Seunghwan Oh By PATRICK SAUNDERS | [email protected] | The Denver Post PUBLISHED: July 26, 2018 at 8:55 am | UPDATED: July 26, 2018 at 9:15 am

The deal to shore up the bullpen is complete.

The Rockies announced Thursday morning that they have officially acquired right-handed reliever Seunghwan Oh from the Toronto Blue Jays. In return, the Blue Jays received minor-league infielder Chad Spanberger, minor-league outfielder

Forrest Wall and a player to be named later.

Oh, 36, is 4-3 with two saves, a 2.68 ERA, 10 walks and 55 strikeouts in 48 relief appearances. His 48 appearances are tied for fifth in the American League, while his 5.50 strikeout-to-walk ratio ranks 10th among AL relievers.

He’s pitched well lately, being scored upon just twice in his last 21 games since June 7, going 3-1 with one save and posting a 0.90 ERA.

In his two-plus seasons in the majors, Oh is 11-12 with a 2.81 ERA, 41 saves and a 1.091 WHIP. He’s averaged 2.1 walks and 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings.

The Rockies will only have to pay Oh about $500,000 for the rest of this season. The veteran has a $1.75 million salary, and his contract has a $2 million club option in 2019 with a $250,000 buyout.

Despite investing heavily in the bullpen during the offseason — the Rockies spent $106 million to sign right-handers Wade

Davis and Bryan Shaw, and left-hander Jake McGee, to three-year deals — the bullpen has been the team’s weak link, even as it’s stayed in the playoff hunt. The Rockies’ bullpen has a 5.26 ERA, the second-worst mark in the majors behind

Kansas City (5.46).

Spanberger, 22, a sixth-round pick in the 2017 draft, is hitting .316 with 22 home runs and 75 RBIs for Class A Asheville.

Wall, 22, has split the season between High-A Lancaster and Double-A Hartford, batting a combined .260, with 70 runs, nine home runs, 17 doubles, six triples and 31 RBIs. He’s also stolen 28 bases in 93 games. He was selected with the

35th pick of the first round of the 2014 draft.

Rockies’ Charlie Blackmon hits first career walk-off home run to defeat reigning world champions at Coors Field Meanwhile Jon Gray, recalled July 14 from a tune-up stint in Triple-A Albuquerque, turned in a second straight quality start By KYLE NEWMAN | [email protected] | The Denver Post PUBLISHED: July 25, 2018 at 9:56 pm | UPDATED: July 26, 2018 at 6:35 am

Charlie Blackmon blasted his first career walk-off home run Wednesday night at Coors Field, besting the reigning world champion Houston Astros 3-2 in a late-July game that had all the feel of October.

“It was a pretty good atmosphere tonight (even though) there were a few more Broncos fans than I would’ve liked to see,”

Blackmon joked of the Houston supporters. “But it was fun — it felt like everybody in the crowd was into it, and we played hard all the way.”

Colorado tied the game on Nolan Arenado’s unconventional popout RBI with the bases loaded in the seventh, in which

Houston’s J.D. Davis made a web-gem grab leaning over — and almost falling into — the Astros’ dugout. Speedster

Raimel Tapia tagged from third base on the play, scoring on an errant throw by Davis to make it 2-2.

Carlos Gonzalez got the Rockies rolling in the first — and had the purple-clad fans drowning out another strong showing by a large contingent of orange — with his 12th home run of the season, 417 feet to right off Charlie Morton for a 1-0 home-team lead.

“(Morton) was throwing cheese all over the place — 98 with a really good spinning curveball, so I was just ready to attack in that first at-bat,” Gonzalez said. “I got to a hitter’s count, 2-0, and he threw me a 97 fastball middle-in that I was able to turn on.”

Meanwhile Jon Gray, recalled July 14 from a tuneup stint in Triple-A Albuquerque, turned in a second straight quality start after his midseason demotion. He finished with one earned run off one hit, two walks and six strikeouts.

“I kicked everything backed to the basics, and started throwing the way I can,” Gray said. “I was attacking the zone and filled it up with strikes, even though I wish I threw more strikes toward the end of the game.”

The right-hander lived down in the zone with his fastball and was consistent with his offspeed pitches through the first three innings, retiring the initial nine Houston hitters he faced. Adversity reared itself in the fourth inning, though, when the

Astros tagged Gray for two runs on a walk, a hit and two errors.

Those misplays — one on a botched groundball to Ian Desmond down the first-base line, and another on a catcher’s interference call on Tom Murphy — gave the Rockies’ two errors in consecutive games for the first time this season.

But Gray overcame the mistakes for one of his best starts of 2018 against an aggressive Astros’ offense.

“They’re an attacking club — they come out swinging — and Jon came out and attacked them right back and made pitches,” manager Bud Black said. “He had good use of the curveball at times, and a good three-pitch mix with the fastball, slider and curve.”

Though Colorado didn’t benefit from its usual elite defensive play (its .989 fielding percentage ranks second in the NL) against the Astros, it did get two call reversals on replay reviews that kept Gray’s premium outing afloat.

First, Alex Bregman’s leadoff triple in the sixth for Houston was ruled fan interference — and therefore an out — after a fan with an orange Astros jersey leaned over the left-field rail and deflected the ball that was being tracked by Gerardo

Parra.

Gray used that out to settle into a one-two-three inning, and then benefited from an overturned call on Kyle Tucker’s attempted steal at second base to put an end to Houston’s quiet seventh. The 26-year-old Gray was then spelled by

Adam Ottavino in the eighth inning, and Wade Davis held the Astros scoreless in the ninth to earn the win, thanks to

Blackmon’s home run in the bottom half.

Kiszla: Get the woo out of here, Astros. With help of replay that detected fan interference, Rockies beat world champs. By MARK KISZLA | [email protected] | The Denver Post PUBLISHED: July 25, 2018 at 10:25 pm | UPDATED: July 26, 2018 at 8:50 am

Get the woo out of here.

During 2018, Rockies manager Bud Black had made two dozen previous challenges of a call made by the umpiring crew on the field. But with his 25th challenge of the season Wednesday night, Black demonstrated the real reason instant replay was invented for use in the major leagues.

Right there, in living color on the humongous video board in Coors Field, replay busted a Houston fan among the orange- clad, Ric Flair-wooing fools that invaded our ballpark. This yahoo was busted for reaching over the left-field fence and clumsily interfering with Colorado outfielder Gerardo Parra.

And replay proved conclusively what many of us have suspected: Front-running Astros fans don’t even know how to catch a baseball, much less how to act at a big-league game.

The majors adopted the current, extensive replay system four years ago, but I must admit a get-off-my-lawn grumpiness for the widespread use of this technology until the top of the sixth inning on a damp summer evening. Leading off the inning, Astros third baseman Alex Bregman smacked a pitch from Colorado’s Jon Gray toward the bleachers in left field.

The ball, however, died at the wall, with Parra camped out on the warning track, posed to turn the danger into a long out.

But instead of making the catch, Parra flinched and the ball bounced off his left shoulder. Bregman motored all the way to third base, putting himself in position to extend Houston’s 2-1 lead.

And that’s when Black hopped off the front step of the Colorado dugout, asking the umpire crew to take a look at what happened. Did he know immediately what happened?

“That’s 380 feet away. It’s dark. I’m 61 years old and my eyesight’s not there. How am I going to see it?” said Black, giving full credit to Brian Jones, the video coordinator that monitors every second of every game for possible replay challenges.

What happened is a man wearing an Astros jersey had reached over the fence with a glove. For a moment, let’s shelve the debate whether any self-respecting fan over the age of 12 should be caught with a mitt at a major-league game. But if you’re going to wear a glove in public, you should at least know how to operate it.

And Astros Fan made the worst play on a ball by somebody wearing an orange jersey in Denver since the last time Isaiah

McKenzie muffed a punt for the Broncos. Without the deflection off the fan’s glove, there would have been no triple by

Bregman.

The keen eyes of Jones caught the error. Replay overturned the mistake. Justice was served. The offending Houston fan was politely escorted away from his seat by an usher. Bregman was not pleased.

I’m not very good at reading lips, but Bregman reacted to the decision to erase his triple by shouting: “Well, that’s fabulous.”

Or perhaps he uttered words a wee bit saltier.

And, upon further review, Bregman certainly minced no words expressing his disapproval of the umps’ interpretation of what was revealed by replay. “It was a … joke,” Bregman told The Houston Chronicle, which deleted a spicy word or two for consumption of readers at the breakfast table. “And they should be … ashamed of themselves.”

Isn’t that the beauty of replay? Justice is in the eye of the beholder. Oh, well. Everybody except the Astros fans went home from LoDo happy. Charlie Blackmonsmashed a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth to give Colorado a 3-2 victory, ending two wild-and-crazy nights of baseball in a football town.

Woo!

Don’t get me wrong. I like Texans. If not for Texans, who would be so kind as to subsidize our Colorado ski resorts by paying full price for a lift ticket at the window? But allow me to offer a friendly piece of advice: For the past two evenings, there was a plague of Astros fans, many of whom didn’t know George Springer from Jerry Springer until last October, who swarmed our ballpark in LoDo wearing orange jerseys.

Hey, y’all. The only orange welcome at an athletic stadium in these parts is Broncos orange.

Don’t mess with us on this, Texas. 14

Blackmon’s homer in 9th gives Rockies 3-2 win over Astros

By Dennis Georgatos | Associated Press

DENVER (AP) — Charlie Blackmon didn’t have to wait long for a shot at redemption.

The night after Blackmon made a costly error in center field, he hit a solo home run with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Colorado Rockies held the World Series champion Houston Astros to one hit at Coors Field in a 3-2 victory

Wednesday.

Jon Gray pitched seven sharp innings and Carlos Gonzalez also homered for Colorado.

Blackmon, whose fielding error in the 10th opened the door to a big inning in Houston’s 8-2 win on Tuesday, drove a 3-1 pitch from Collin McHugh (5-1) into the Astros’ bullpen for his 20th home run of the season and second career game- ending hit.

“That’s the beauty of baseball,” Blackmon said. “You can stink, which is OK as long as you don’t let that make you stink the next time or the next time after that. That’s what makes baseball great. It’s a long season and it gives you another chance.”

It was a dramatic finish to a wild game in which the Astros had a triple wiped out after a replay review because of fan interference, and the Rockies scored the tying run on a foul popup.

AL MVP Jose Altuve ended up with Houston’s only hit — an RBI double — before leaving with discomfort in his right knee.

“Been bothering him a little bit for a few games now,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “Nothing’s wrong with it. He could’ve played through it. He fought to stay in the game, but we felt it was best to take him out and give him a little bit of a blow just given that he was limping.”

Wade Davis (1-3) worked a scoreless inning for the win.

Leading off the sixth, Alex Bregman cruised into third with an apparent triple off the wall that eluded the leap of Colorado left fielder Gerardo Parra.

Rockies manager Bud Black challenged for fan interference, and Bregman was ruled out after replays showed a spectator clad in an orange Astros jersey extended his glove over the railing enough for the ball to glance off it, changing its trajectory slightly at the moment Parra was reaching up to attempt the catch. The fan was escorted out of the ballpark by security.

After the game, Bregman disagreed heatedly with the decision, saying it changed the game.

“There is no possible way you can say the left fielder jumping backwards into a wall is guaranteed to make the catch,”

Bregman said. “We’re up 2-1 at the time. I’m at third base. We need a fly ball to the outfield to get me in and it’s 3-1. It’s horrible.”

Parra, however, said he had a bead on the ball and was stunned when it changed direction at the last moment.

“It almost hit me in the face,” he said. “I thought, ‘What happened? At the last second the ball moved.’ I never saw the fan touch the ball until I saw the replay, but I feel I would have had that ball.”

Colorado tied it 2-all thanks to heads-up baserunning by Raimel Tapia, who tagged up and scored from third when third baseman J.D. Davis sprinted toward the Houston dugout and tumbled over the railing as he caught Nolan Arenado’s foul pop. Davis’ teammate, Evan Gattis, broke his fall and helped push him back over the railing and onto the field, but Davis’ hurried throw home was off target as Tapia slid into the plate.

“It was just smart baserunning by Tapia and a simple wide throw by me,” Davis said.

Colorado grabbed an early lead when Gonzalez led off the second with a home run, his 12th of the season.

The Astros answered in the fourth to go in front 2-1. Bregman walked ahead of Altuve’s run-scoring double. Altuve went to third and Yuli Gurriel reached on first baseman Ian Desmond’s fielding error before Altuve came home with the go-ahead run on Marwin Gonzalez’s groundout.

Both starters pitched well but did not figure in the decision.

Gray allowed one hit and two runs — one earned. Charlie Morton gave up one run on four hits in six innings for Houston.

TRAINER’S ROOM 16

Astros: Altuve left in the bottom of the fifth. He was replaced in the batting order by J.D. Davis.

Rockies: Chad Bettis threw a light bullpen. He’s expected to make a second rehab start this weekend for Triple-A

Albuquerque. The first was last Saturday. He threw 70 pitches in four innings but had to stop when a blister on his right middle finger bothered him.

UP NEXT

Astros: After an off day, LHP Dallas Keuchel (8-8, 3.60 ERA) starts Friday night at home against Texas RHP Yovani

Gallardo (4-1, 5.56). Keuchel is 5-0 in his last seven starts.

Rockies: Open a three-game interleague series Friday night against Oakland. LHP Kyle Freeland (8-6, 3.28 ERA) faces

LHP Sean Manaea (9-6, 3.38). Colorado has won each of Freeland’s last four starts.

“Crazy all around” as the surging Rockies ride a wave of weird against the Astros By Nick Groke Jul 26, 2018 | The Athletic

DENVER — Jon Gray glanced up and wondered, for a breath, if he would be sucked into the sky. “It looked like there was a tornado above us,” the Rockies right-hander said. The weird was about to begin Wednesday.

With the wind blowing in every direction at Coors Field and the sky dark like a batter’s eye, the Rockies rode a string of three freakish outcomes for their most outrageous victory in a suddenly ramped-up season.

Charlie Blackmon nailed a walk-off home run to the bullpens in the ninth inning that gave Colorado a 3-2 victory over the

Astros at Coors Field and a LoDo crowd was still chanting “CHAR-LIE!” long after a wild two-game series left the Rockies at 54-47 and just 1 1/2 games back of the Dodgers in the National League West.

“Crazy all around,” Gray said. “A lot of weird plays. I’ve never seen that happen before.”

How it unpacked:

1. The Interference

Gray, the Rockies’ opening day starter who was demoted to Triple-A earlier this month then recalled before the All-Star break, was riding a one-hitter in the sixth inning when Houston’s Alex Bregman tagged a line drive to the left field wall.

The ball sneaked away from left fielder Gerardo Parra and trickled back to the grass and Bregman cruised to a triple.

Parra was dazed.

“At the last second, the ball hit me in the face,” Parra said. “I said, ‘What happened?'”

The Rockies quickly protested. Their video replay coordinator, Brian Jones, called quickly to the dugout. Manager Bud

Black asked for a review.

An Astros fan in a bright orange jersey had reached over the outfield railing and nipped the ball above Parra’s head.

“I was thinking, ‘Oh my god, I’ve never played such bad outfield in my life,'” Parra said. “But then I saw the replay and saw the fan touch the ball and I thought, ‘OK, I’m good. I’m not crazy.'”

Bregman was called out, the Astros lost a lead-off runner at third base and Gray cruised through two more innings. He gave up just one hit and the Astros scored just twice on him in the fourth, once from a Jose Altuve double then again on an Ian Desmond error, one of two Rockies miscues.

“I’m just attacking the zone and filling it up with strikes,” Gray said. 18

2. RBI foul-out

Technically, Nolan Arenado added to his team-leading RBI total when he popped out to Astros third baseman J.D. Davis.

But that sentence does the seventh inning sequence no justice.

The bases were loaded with an out on the board when Arenado reached for a slider from veteran right-hander Collin

McHugh, the Astros’ third reliever that inning. Arenado popped a ball to the sky. The tornado had turned to rain. The ball swirled toward the stands.

Davis dove over the Houston dugout railing to snow-cone a catch, but he got caught like a wet towel on a clothesline. And

Raimel Tapia tagged up and took off from third base.

The game’s official scorekeeper gave Arenado an RBI, but not a sacrifice. Black, though, wanted more. Colorado’s manager argued that Davis was given too much assistance from players in the Houston dugout, who helped him back to his feet to fire a throw toward home. If he had tumbled over the rail, maybe Charlie Blackmon could have scored from second.

Carlos Gonzalez, standing in the on-deck circle, was too stunned to hit.

“After that, I probably had the worst at-bat in my career because I didn’t know what was happening,” he said. “I was trying to get ready to hit, then the next thing I know there’s a guy flying into the dugout, he throws the ball to home, it almost hits me, then our manager goes to argue, their manager goes to argue.

“At that moment, I’m like, ‘I’ve got no plan what to do at the plate,'” said Gonzalez, whose homer in the second inning gave the Rockies an early 1-0 lead. “So I take a fastball right down the middle and then I struck out with a ball in the dirt. I had a brain fart.”

3. The Walk-off

On Tuesday, Rockies lefty Tyler Anderson and Astros All-Star Gerrit Cole dueled through seven innings in a gritty affair that left a 2-2 tie after nine innings. The Astros then blew up the 10th with six runs against Colorado closer Wade Davis for an 8-2 victory.

Their rally in extras kick-started on a misplayed ball in center field by Blackmon, the Colorado All-Star who let a ball get by him as Kyle Tucker turned a single into a trip to third base.

On Wednesday, Davis rebounded in the ninth, striking out two in a hitless inning. Blackmon, too, regained his place. 19

“That’s the beauty of baseball,” Blackmon said. “You can stink, which is OK, so long as you don’t let that make you stink the next time. It’s a long season. There’s always another chance.”

McHugh was in his third inning of relief when he fell behind Blackmon with a 3-1 count and one out. Blackmon was looking for a fastball and got one, a slicer low and inside that Blackmon lined over the chain-link fence in right-center field and into the bullpens.

“He was beating some guys with his heater,” Blackmon said. “Once I got ahead in the count, I was trying to get a good swing off. I wasn’t necessarily trying to hit a homer.”

Blackmon, in his eighth season, hit his first career walk-off home run.

The Rockies snapped a seven-game losing skid to the Astros. They are 13-5 in July, by far their best month this season, surging right before baseball’s trade deadline next week.

Earlier Wednesday, the Rockies agreed to a trade that will net them veteran reliever Seunghwan Oh from Toronto, multiple sources confirmed to The Athletic. They hope Oh provides a boost to a rattled bullpen.

The Rockies, though, are boosting themselves, now 3-2 since the break, with a series split against the World Series champion Astros and a series victory over the division rival Diamondbacks. If it is unfolding in strange ways on the eve of the dog days, they are riding the wave of weird without complaint.

“You always think you’ve seen it all,” Gonzalez said, “but baseball always gives you something to make you go crazy.”

Oh, What a Relief He Is -- Rockies Add Korean Reliever to Bullpen TRACY RINGOLSBY - JULY 26, 2018 | InsideTheSeams.com

Looking to reinforce the back end of the bullpen, the Rockies finalized the acquisition of Seung-Hwan Oh from the Blue Jays in exchange for three minor-league players on Thursday. The Blue Jays will receive infielder Chad

Spanberger and outfielder Forrest Wall as well as a player to be named later.

There were earlier reports that Sean Bouchard, a first baseman/outfielder who, like Spanberger, is with Low-A

Asheville, was part of the deal.

Oh, 36, comes with a low financial guarantee. He has a $1.75 million salary for this season with an option at $2.5 million in 2019 and a $25,000 buyout. The option, however, automatically vests if he makes 70 appearances. He appeared in 48 games with the Blue Jays, leaving him 22 appearances shy of next year's deal vesting.

A veteran in professional baseball in his native Korea and Japan, Oh pitched for the Cardinals the past two seasons, and then excercised an opt-out clause in the deal, and signed with the Blue Jays as a free-agent in the off-season.

He made a strong first impression, going 6-3 with a 1.92 ERA with the Cardinals in 76 relief appearances in

2016, but was 1-6 with a 4.10 ERA a year ago. With the Blue Jays this year he has a 2.68 ERA in 47 innings, striking out 55 with only 10 walks.

Oh is tied for fifth in the AL in 48 appearances, and his 5.5 strikeout-to-walk ratio is 10th among AL relievers. He has been unscored upon in 19 of 21 appearances dating back to June 7, having allowed two runs in 20 innings.

He, however, has struggled against left-handed hitters, who have hit .315 against him with 10 strikeouts in 56 at- bats compared to right-handed hitters, who have a .190 average and have struck out 45 times in 119 at-bats.

Spanberger, 22, is hitting .316 in 91 games at Asheville with 65 runs scored, 20 doubles, three triples, 22 home runs, 75 RBI, 20 walks and 82 strikeouts. A mid-season All-Star, Spanberger also has 16 stolen bases. He was the Rockies sixth-round draft choice a year ago out of Arkansas, and was ranked the 28th best prospect in the

Rockies system by Baseball America.

Wall, 22, opened the season at High-A Lancaster but was promoted to Double-A Hartford. He has a combined stat line of a .260 average, 70 runs scored, 17 doubles, six triples, nine home runs, 31 RBI and 28 stolen bases in 93 games. The Rockies competitive Balance Round A choice in the 2014 draft out of Maitland, Fla., High

School, and was ranked the 18th best prospect in the organization by Baseball America. He has had surgery on both shoulders, which led to him being moved from second base to center field.

Oh joins a bullpen that already included the Rockies major off-season decisions. They re-signed left-handed reliever Jake McGee to a three-year contract, and also signed three-year deals with free agent right-handers

Bryan Shaw and Wade Davis. McGee and Shaw were both guaranteed $27 million. Davis, the closer, is guaranteed $52 million.

Davis has a misleading 4.50 ERA. With a shutout ninth inning on Wednesday, which resulted in him earning a victory when Charlie Blackmon delivered a walk-off home run against the Astros, Davis has a 4.50 ERA. He, however, allowed 14 earned runs in 3 2/3 innings of four appearances, and has a 1.64 ERA in the 40 other appearances.

Shaw, who has shown signs of pitching better since coming off the disabled list, has a 6.97 ERA for the season.

His ERA was 7.57 in his first 41 appearancse, before being sidelined with a calf strain. In four appearances since returning, he has allowed one run in 4 1/3 innings. That run came on July 20 when he retired the first five batters he faced, striking out four, and then came out after giving up a two-out base hit. The runner eventually scored.

The left-handed McGee has a 5.97 ERA. He allowed only two earned runs in his first 11 appearances of the season. In the 29 appearances since he has a 7.77 ERA.

Life of a Closer: A Bad Night Skews Season Stats TRACY RINGOLSBY - JULY 25, 2018 | InsideTheSeams.com

Wade Davis lives the life of a closer, which means there is little, if any, margin for error. It also means a bad game or two can throw his stats out of whack.

Davis had one of those nights in the Rockies 8-2, 10-inning loss to the Astros at Coors Field on Tuesday night.

The Astros scored six runs in the 10th, the second largest run total allowed by the Rockies in an extra-inning game. The Rockies staff gave up eight runs in the 11th inning of an 11-3 loss to the Padres in the second game of a June 29, 1994 doubleheader at Mile High Stadium.

It was the 12th time the Rockies have allowed three or more runs in an inning in an extra-inning game.

Date Opp Result IP R 1994-06-28 (2) SDP L 3-11 11 8 7/24/2018 HOU L 2-8 10 6 9/9/2001 SFG L 4-9 11 5 5/20/2007 KCR L 5-10 12 5 5/11/2004 PIT L 10-15 12 5 6/9/2010 HOU L 2-6 10 4 4/6/2008 ARI L 2-5 13 3 5/3/2013 TBR L 4-7 11 3 4/12/1999 SDP L 5-8 11 3 9/6/2000 CHC L 5-8 13 3 1997-09-06 (1) STL L 7-10 10 3 4/8/2003 STL L 12-15 10 3 Davis is proof of how much impact a couple bad efforts can have for a closer. Consider he has allowed more than one earned run in four games. In 39 games he has allowed one or no earned runs. He has a 1.69 ERA in those 39 games, but the other four games inflate his season ERA to 4.61.

G W L SV-O ERA IP H R ER BB SO P/IP Season Total 43 0 3 28-32 4.61 41 29 22 21 21 45 17.1 Multiple ER 4 0 3 0-2 34.36 3 2/3 11 15 14 6 3 30.25 Fewer 2 ER 39 0 0 28-30 1.69 37 1/3 18 7 7 15 42 14.9 Tuesday night was the first time Davis worked more than an inning this year, only the fourth time since 2014.

That's the role of a closer, primarily limited to ninth-inning work. He, however, came into Tuesday's game with the score tied 2-2, and quickly dispatched the Astros in the ninth inning, prompting his return for a second inning of work. 23

EXTENDED RELIEF APPEARANCES Season 1 1/3 1 2/3 2 2 1/3 2 2/3 3 2018 1 0 0 0 0 0 2017 2 1 0 0 0 0 2016 0 0 0 0 0 0 2015 0 0 0 0 0 0 2014 1 0 3 0 0 0 2013 1 1 2 1 1 1 2012 6 5 9 1 1 1 Total 11 7 14 2 2 2 Davis threw 24 pitches before being relieved in the 10th inning, the fifth-highest pitch total he has had this season. In light of the fact a closer rarely works more than one inning, he rarely has a significant pitch total. Davis has thrown 24 or more pitches eight times this season.

PITCHING IN

Date Opponent W L SvOP IP H R ER HR BB SO #Pit 6/3/2018 LAD L 10-7 0 1 0 1 3 3 3 1 1 1 38 6/17/2018 @Tex L 13-12 0 1 0-1 0.1 2 4 4 0 4 0 38 5/4/2018 @NYM W 8-7 0 0 1-1 1 2 1 1 0 1 2 29 5/28/2018 SF W 6-5 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 27 7/24/2018 Hou L 8-2 0 1 0 1.1 4 5 5 1 1 1 26 6/7/2018 @Cin L 7-5 0 0 0-1 1 1 1 1 0 0 3 25 4/25/2018 SD W 5-2 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 2 24 4/27/2018 @Mia W 1-0 0 0 1-1 1 1 0 0 0 1 2 24 ERA: 19.29 0 3 2-4 7 14 15 15 2 10 11 211

Charlie Blackmon walks off on the champs By Patrick Lyons - Posted on July 25, 2018 | BSN Denver

DENVER – Charlie Blackmon hit a 435-foot shot that broke a 2-2 tie against the reigning World Series Champions

Houston Astros in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Colorado Rockies a 3-2 walk-off victory.

Leading up to Blackmon’s first career walk-off homer, the game was a whirlwind of odd events played beneath ominous skies.

The Rockies got on the board in the bottom of the second thanks to Carlos Gonzalez’ 12th home run of the season, a solo shot over the high wall in right. He turned on a center-cut, 97-mph, two-seam fastball and deposited it into the Rockies bullpen.

It was CarGo’s 1,279th career base hit, pushing him past legendary Rockies outfielder Dante Bichette for third place all- time.

Houston’s pitchers did well to pitch out of jams on numerous occasions whenever Colorado threatened.

After the CarGo homer, Trevor Story followed up with a single and Garrett Hampson would later walk in the inning, but both base runners were squandered: Story was caught stealing and Hampson was picked off.

With two outs in the bottom of the third, Charlie Blackmon was hit by an 82-mph curveball on his left foot. Ian Desmond slapped a broken bat dribbler into short right field for a single, extending his hit streak to eleven games.

Jon Gray appeared effortless in the early going. In the first three innings, he only went to a full count once and threw an economical 32 pitches.

In the fourth, Gray would give up his only hit of the ballgame, the only the Astros would muster through nine innings.

Gray walked Alex Bregman, bringing the reigning AL MVP, Jose Altuve, to the plate. With a perfectly executed hit-and- run, Altuve lashed a double into the right-center gap to score Bregman and tie the game at one apiece.

Then, the Astros would take the lead after things got a bit strange, defensively.

Desmond made his fourth error of the season on a hard grounder by Yuli Gurriel and Tom Murphy was charged with an error for catcher’s interference during Josh Reddick’s at bat. A mishandled ground ball by Desmond off the bat of Marwin

Gonzalez enabled Altuve to score easily and go ahead 2-1.

With those two defensive miscues, the Rockies made two errors on consecutive days for the first time all season.

The sixth inning featured the first bizarre occurrence.

Bregman hit a fly ball to left field for a triple that Gerardo Parra seemingly misjudged. Bud Black came out to speak to home plate umpire Jerry Layne about a potential fan interference. The Rockies challenged the play and after a review, the call was overturned and Bregman’s leadoff triple was ruled an out.

One inning later, another Rockies challenge went their way, overturning a stolen base by Kyle Tucker.

Two more runners were stranded in scoring position in the bottom of the sixth. Story and Parra drew walks and were moved up on Morton’s wild pitch. Rookie Garrett Hampson battled through an eight-pitch at-bat before succumbing to a strikeout via 82-mph curveball.

Tom Murphy blooped a single into right field off of reliever Joe Smith, who was immediately lifted for lefty Tony Sipp to face the left-handed hitting Raimel Tapia and Charlie Blackmon.

With runners on first and second, former Rockies pitcher Colin McHugh was summoned from the bullpen to face

Desmond. The first baseman singled on a ball that escaped the reach of the new second baseman Gonzalez to load the bases.

In yet another unusual play, third baseman J.D. Davis caught an Arenado pop fly in foul territory and nearly fell into his team’s third base dugout. In the ensuing attempt by Astros teammates to push Davis back onto the field of play, Raimel

Tapia tagged from third base and scored, tying the game, 2-2.

After the game, not a single Rockies player or staff had ever reported seeing a play like that in their life.

A Garrett Hampson triple over the head of centerfielder George Springer in the eighth also went nowhere.

Adam Ottavino dispatched the Astros on nine pitches in the eight and Wade Davis struck out two in the ninth.

That set the stage for Blackmon’s ninth-inning heroics.

With the win, the Rockies now find themselves at 55-47, just 1.5 games out of first place in the NL West.

STATS

Jon Gray: 7 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO, 97 pitches

Adam Ottavino: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 9 pitches

Wade Davis: (W, 1-3) 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 23 pitches

Charlie Blackmon: 1-2, 2 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI, HR

Ian Desmond: 2-4

Carlos Gonzalez: 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, HR

Tom Murphy: 2-4, 2B

Garrett Hampson: 1-3, 3B

Colorado Rockies acquire elite reliever in trade By Drew Creasman - Posted on July 25, 2018 | BSN Denver

DENVER – The Colorado Rockies have swung a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays for right-handed reliever Seung-Hwan

Oh, according to sources. The deal is not yet official.

They have sent back first-base prospect Chad Spanberger.

The 36-year-old South Korean has only spent the last three years in MLB but has been fantastic in this short amount of time. Debuting with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2016, he picked up 19 saves in 76 games, winning the closer job part-way through the season. He posted an ERA of 1.92 over 79.2 innings, striking out 11.64 batters per nine while walking just

2.03 in one of the more impressive stateside debuts we’ve seen in some time.

The following campaign, he lost his job as closer after picking up 20 saves but he saw his ERA balloon out to 4.10. He still struck guys out at a decent clip (8.19) and kept the walks in check (2.28), but the league appeared to adjust to him.

Moving over to the Blue Jays prior to the 2018 season, he has tallied a pair of saves pitching primarily in a set-up role but has gotten back to his elite run-prevention levels with an ERA of 2.68. His command, plus swing-and-miss profile, is as good as ever with 10.53 strikeouts per nine and just 1.91 walks per nine.

He is owed $2 million for this season and has a club option for $2.5 million for next season should the Rockies intend to keep him beyond the rest of this current campaign. His buyout is $250,000 should they decide to go the other way.

The former 2008 Olympics gold medal winner with South Korea joins a bullpen that was a focus for GM Jeff Bridich coming into the year but has still underperformed. Big-ticket free agents, Jake McGee and Bryan Shaw, have especially struggled, necessitating this move for another veteran bullpen arm.

He should be seen as great insurance for closer Wade Davis and set-up man Adam Ottavino whose roles could easily be shifted around if the need arises.

Colorado Rockies morning after: This is a different Jon Gray by Kevin Henry - 4 hours ago | RoxPile

When the Colorado Rockies took the field on Wednesday night, something was different. It was Jon Gray’s turn to start and the Rockies were wearing purple.

There are certain things I can count on in life. When Kyle Freeland is pitching, I can almost bet the Colorado

Rockies are going to wear purple. When Gray takes the mound, it will be the white jerseys with purple pinstripes. After all, the starting pitcher gets to pick the uniform worn that day or night and there are certain things that you seemingly just don’t mess with when it comes to uniforms … and maybe just a touch of superstition.

Gray … in purple? That’s a change. It’s symbolic in a way of who the 26-year-old right-hander has been since he returned to the Rockies after being sent to Triple-A in a somewhat surprising move on June 30. He’s seemingly a different pitcher with a different attitude. Colorado manager Bud Black talked about Gray’s focus before the game and his energy after the game.

Something is different with Jon Gray, the same pitcher who gave up five earned runs in four innings in his last start before being optioned to Albuquerque in late June. After all, in the starts since he has returned to the big leagues, he’s allowed two earned runs in 14.1 innings against two of the American League’s hottest teams in Seattle and Houston. Yeah, something is different.

After the game, Gray stood at his locker and laughed about curveballs and their spin rate and almost being blown over at the plate and on the mound when the Wednesday night wind at Coors Field felt more like what Gray used to feel on the plains of Oklahoma. He joked about wondering if a tornado was nearby. The former Sooner has plenty of experience with the wind coming sweeping down the plains … and wreaking havoc on a baseball game. He shrugged it off … and even said he joked with the umpire about it.

Focus and energy before the game. Laughter and joking after the game. It’s a completely different Gray than I saw in

Washington in April when he was in near tears after dropping a decision to the Nationals (allowing five runs in five frames). That pitcher was frustrated and searching for answers. This pitcher is feeling confident and allowed one hit in seven innings of work against the defending World Champions.

It’s a great sign for the Rockies as they continue a tough schedule and try to catch Los Angeles and Arizona in the division. Gray will likely draw his next start on Tuesday in St. Louis, a place that has not been friendly to the Rockies in seasons past. However, with a renewed approach and belief in himself and his abilities, even Busch Stadium may not seem so bad.

By the way, I asked Gray how long it had been since he chose to wear purple. He paused and said it had been a while.

So why did he choose purple on Wednesday night? He smiled and turned to his locker and pointed to his shoes. He wanted something to wear that would go with his shoes … so he chose purple. No superstition. No cleansing of spirits past (don’t forget, Gray is a ghost hunter). Just a simple reason to try something different.

Different is good. Just ask Jon Gray and the Rockies.

Colorado Rockies: What it means for Seunghwan Oh to be on the roster by Jake Shapiro - 14 hours ago | RoxPile

DENVER – The Colorado Rockies have acquired Seunghwan Oh from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for minor league infielder Chad Spanberger, minor league outfielder Forrest Wall and a player to be named later. The right-handed 36-year-old Korean was in his first season north of the border after two seasons with the St. Louis

Cardinals.

The idea of him being a good fit for the Colorado Rockies was first broached by my Rockie Road Podcast on Monday and there are several reasons.

The Rockies badly needed another reliever after investing $106 million into their bullpen this offseason, only to see it have the worst ERA in the National League. It’s truly been Adam Ottavino, a hope and a prayer for most of the season, save for the last month.

Oh’s 2.68 ERA over 47 innings this year will benefit the Rockies in a big way. Consider the fact that Oh has pitched nearly

60 innings in each of his three big league seasons and has done it with a sub-3.00 ERA leads you to the conclusion of him being a very solid reliever. At times, he was even the closer for the Cardinals after Trevor Rosenthal got hurt, accumulating 41 saves since the start of 2016.

This season, he has worked multiple innings in six of his 48 appearances, came on with runners inherited 13 times and his usage has been mostly split into thirds between the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. He has pitched with the Jays behind, ahead and tied, on no days rest and a lot of times on one day of rest.

Simply put, Oh gets the ball in any situation and does his job.

This was the task that Chris Rusin accomplished from the left side in 2017 … and which he has failed to do in 2018. The

Rockies needed a reliable everyman for their bullpen and they got it.

Colorado’s bullpen has actually been slightly better against left-handed batters than righties, despite not having a continent lefty. Oh is much better against right-handers than left-handers with a .491 point difference in OPS between the two sides of the plate.