Tidings from Turambar: D-backs 4, Rocks 12

Record: 16-13. Pace: 89-73. Change on 2022: +1.

Ah yes, winning baseball.

It’s so nice, especially compared to the last three seasons, to be able to watch and write about a team that wins and looks like they want to keep winning.

Makes my job today easier (even should be lose) and makes the beer go down so much smoother too.

Today’s opening pitch beer is a colab by Pizza Port & Fremont called Shaka; piney goodness yo.

We start things off today with Marte drawing a walk, but despite that good start Rivera succumbed to junk pitches by Gomber and Gurriel grounds in to a double play to end the threat. Despite that the beer still tastes yummy folks.
Ryne (my wife thinks it should be pronounced Rin) Nelson has him myself a very comfortable first frame; throwing only 8pitches. Compared to Gomber with the Rocks hurling 22.
Considering the plethora of hits we’ve had this series that kind of math ain’t gonna add up in the Rockies favor.

Lol. Just as I type that Longoria crushes a bomb to give us an early 1-0 lead.

Whelp, Ryne’s not perfect and we find ourselves tied after the 2nd at 1-1. Honestly though, considering how we usually get SHELLED each time we’re up in Denver I’m just thrilled we got the bats for the challenge and our pen is no longer a dumpster fire.

God, I keep forgetting how bad King Alek has been with his bat so far this young season. He’s gotta push those numbers up, especially in a place like Coors.

Poop. Ryne’s good day comes to an end off of Cron’s bat crushing a 3run bomb thus ending our tie and shifting things to a 1-4 Rocks lead. Poop.
One more Rock runs crosses the plate in this benighted inning bringing our deficit to 4 runs and our work very much cut out for us.
That challenge finds us wanting in the top of the 4th and Ryne allows another run in the bottom of the frame making it a 1-6 game. So we’re off to the 5th with quite the hole to dig out of…..

No digging to be done in the top of the 5th but no more digging down by Ryne either who remains in for the simple reason that we’ve already won the series and have no need to stress the bullpen just yet.

Not sure if I should be giving Gomber more credit for how he’s pitched thus far or perhaps our collective bats have just been that underwhelming today after being so overwhelming the last two nights. Either way or some combination there of has brought us to this point and I’m not loving it.

So we’re now in the bottom of the 6th and Solomon’s come in to replace Ryne. Solomon succeeds in adding to my frustration and the Rockies score, and with the score now 1-10 I ask the bartender to change it to the game seven matchup between the Warriors and the Kings. At least that match up is competitive…..

Not too much is missed as I go on a brief shopping trip for my wife: CO tacks on two more runs in the 7th and we add on 2 in the 8th and 1 more in the 9th to make it a still very underwhelming 4-12 loss.

Hey. We still got the series win though and we’re still in control of our destiny. So keep your chins up SnakePitters; we endure.

Bells and whistles, by Jim

Oh. well. We have to settle for winning a series in Coors Field, rather than sweeping it. Considering our record there in 2021-22 was a combined 6-12, I’ll take it. To no great surprise, there was a dearth of Sedona Red comments, as we all quietly found better things to do this afternoon. April ends with a whimper, but the team are still at worst in a tie for first place, pending the result of the Dodgers game. Day off for the team tomorrow, with the schedule resuming on Tuesday in Texas. Not sure who’ll be pitching that one. MLB.com says Zac Gallen. but if the D-backs stay true to statements about sticking with a five-man rotation, there will need to be a roster move. Guess we’ll see!