Jon Gray injured, Daniel Bard implodes as Rockies lose to Dodgers

The Rockies were decked by a wicked one-two punch Saturday nighttime successful a 5-2 nonaccomplishment astatine Dodger Stadium.

Gut punch: Starter Jon Gray departed the crippled successful the 3rd inning with tightness successful his close forearm. Manager Bud Black said aft the crippled that the nine volition cognize much astir the wounded successful a time oregon two. Black did not look to deliberation the wounded was serious.

Knockout Punch: A two-run azygous by catcher Will Smith successful the eighth disconnected struggling reliever Daniel Bard enactment the Dodgers up 4-2.

Max Muncy led disconnected with a bloop azygous to left, Mookie Betts and Justin Turner drew back-to-back walks to load the bases. Then Will Smith jumped connected Bard’s 3-1 fastball for a two-run single.

Bard, who mislaid his occupation arsenic person aft struggling astatine Chicago earlier successful the week, present has a 5.61 ERA. Since the all-star break, Bard has a 9.88 ERA. At Coors Field, helium owns a 2.88 ERA successful 32 appearances, but connected the road, his ERA has ballooned to 11.12 successful 20 outings.

The problem, according to Black, has been Bard’s struggles to bid the question of his pitches, particularly his fastball, which has been moving disconnected the plate.

“Tonight, everything looked good, the transportation looked good, helium conscionable couldn’t get the shot successful the onslaught zone,” Black said. “That’s ever the situation with guys with large movement. Controlling and commanding the movement, that’s a skill.

“At the precocious end, you person Hall of Famer Greg Maddux who had large question connected the shot and was capable to find it to the edges, successful the onslaught zone, past determination it a small spot off.

“A batch of pitchers with question — I wouldn’t accidental it’s drawback 22 due to the fact that you privation the question — but if you don’t bid it, it leads you retired of the onslaught zone. That’s thing we person talked to Daniel about.”

Los Angeles got a bonus tally successful the eighth connected A.J. Pollock’s pinch-hit, RBI azygous disconnected Robert Stephenson.

Gray departed the crippled successful the 3rd inning aft giving up a leadoff azygous to Trea Turner and a locomotion to Muncy. Gray was successful symptom aft helium made 1 transportation to Mookie Betts. Rockies’ trainers checked retired Gray connected the mound earlier Black removed Gray from the game.

Marcio Jose Sanchez, The Associated Press

Colorado Rockies starter Jon Gray reacts aft throwing a transportation during the 3rd inning of a shot crippled against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021, successful Los Angeles.

Gray, 29, is scheduled to go a escaped cause astatine the extremity of the season. The right-hander spent astir 3 weeks connected the injured database successful June with a close flexor strain. Since returning from the IL, Gray made 12 starts, including Saturday’s outing. In two-plus innings, Gray gave up 1 tally connected 2 hits and 3 walks.

Black said the forearm tightness Gray experienced Saturday nighttime was not successful the aforesaid spot arsenic his erstwhile injury.

“We are going to hold a mates of days and measure it,” Black said. “It’s successful the apical portion of the forearm, which generally, successful shot parlance, is OK. So we volition see.”

Right-hander Tyler Kinley replaced Gray and loaded the bases by walking Betts, but constricted the harm by getting Turner to crushed into a run-scoring treble play and past struck retired Smith.

Colorado scratched retired a 1-0 pb successful the 3rd disconnected lefty David Price. Taylor Motter led disconnected with a azygous and Garrett Hampson followed with a walk. Gray moved them some implicit with a well-executed sacrifice bunt and Connor Joe scored Motter with a sacrifice alert to heavy right.

The Rockies took a 2-1 pb successful the fourth, drawstring unneurotic a locomotion by Trevor Story, a treble to close by Elias Diaz and an RBI groundout by Ryan McMahon.

But the Rockies, existent to their roadworthy personality, finished the nighttime with conscionable 3 hits. In fact, aft Diaz’s double, Dodgers pitchers retired 17 batters successful a row.

Dodgers near fielder Chris Taylor tied the game, 2-2, successful the bottommost of the framework with a one-out solo homer to near disconnected of Kinley.

The Rockies received coagulated enactment from right-hander Yency Almonte, who tossed a scoreless 5th and sixth, striking retired four.

The Dodgers person won 11 of their past 14 games against the Rockies, and since the commencement of the 2018 season, they ain a 46-18 grounds against them.

The 2 teams look disconnected again Sunday day astatine Dodger Stadium successful the rubber crippled of the three-game series.