Rockies’ excellent road trip ends with shutout loss to Nationals

The Rockies’ terrific roadworthy travel had a Clark Griswold ending.

Flummoxed by Washington journeyman right-hander Paolo Espino, the Rockies mislaid 3-0 Sunday day astatine Nationals Park. The Rockies person been unopen retired 16 times this season, each of them coming connected the road.

Espino, 34, facing Colorado for the archetypal time, pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing 3 hits, striking retired 7 and walking three.

The Rockies saw their five-game roadworthy winning streak travel to end, but inactive finished with a 7-2 grounds connected their travel done Philadelphia, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. It marked the archetypal clip the Rockies won 7 games connected a roadworthy travel of astatine slightest 9 games since May 16-25, 2017.

On Sunday, the Rockies flashed backmost to the archetypal fractional of this play erstwhile victories, runs and clutch hits were scarce. They managed conscionable 5 hits Sunday, and though they drew 4 walks, they went 0-for-5 with runners successful scoring position, near 8 men connected basal and struck retired 12 times.

The Rockies had the bases loaded successful the sixth inning but Ryan McMahon flew retired to heavy near field, ending the rally. With 2 outs successful the eighth, Charlie Blackmon doubled and Trevor Story singled, but reliever Andres Machado struck retired C.J. Cron to quelch the rally.

Jon Gray gave the Rockies a decent commencement but manager Bud Black made the determination to assistance him successful the 5th inning for pinch hitter Rio Ruiz. Black was trying to jumpstart the Rockies’ stalled offense, but with 2 connected and 2 out, Ruiz grounded retired to second.

Gray surrendered 2 runs connected 3 hits, struck retired 5 and walked two. That Nats tagged him for a tally successful the first, combining a azygous and a stolen basal by Alcides Escobar and an RBI azygous by Yadiel Hernandez.

Gray’s worst transportation of the crippled arrived with 2 outs successful the 3rd to the unsafe Juan Soto. Gray near an 0-1 slider sitting implicit the sheet and Soto slaughtered it for a 454-foot homer to center. It was Soto’s 26th homer, with 15 of them coming successful the 2nd fractional of the season.

The Rockies are disconnected Monday earlier opening their last homestand of the play Tuesday erstwhile they big the Dodgers for the archetypal of 3 games. Then comes 3 games against the Giants. The Dodgers and Giants are locked successful a choky conflict for the National League West title.