DENVER -- The Colorado Rockies picked up another highly touted shortstop through the draft Monday night. Their current one definitely took notice.
"Better get my act together," Troy Tulowitzki joked.
Of course, Tulowitzki doesn't have anything to worry about at the moment. Especially the way he's been hitting.
Tulowitzki hit a three-run homer in the first and David Hale threw seven effective innings, lifting the Rockies to an 11-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The All-Star shortstop has been on quite a tear over his last eight games, going 17 for 33 to raise his average from .266 to .310.
"I'm getting better," Tulowitzki said. "But at the same time, I think I can be a lot better."
In the offseason, Tulowitzki was frequently mentioned in trade rumors. With the trade deadline next month, his name could be brought up again, even more so if the Rockies tumble out of contention.
With an eye toward the future, the Rockies took Brendan Rodgers with the No. 3 pick in the draft. Rodgers played shortstop for Lake Mary High School in Florida this past season and can't wait to start picking up some pointers from Tulowitzki.
Not so fast, though.
"Probably give him the cold shoulder," Tulowitzki quipped. "Keep that edge and make it tough for him."
Hale (2-0) was certainly tough on the Cardinals. The right-hander was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque to make a spot start and retired the opening nine batters before surrendering a solo homer to Kolten Wong. Hale allowed three runs and struck out seven.
Nolan Arenado added a two-run homer as the Rockies roughed up John Lackey (4-4), who surrendered 10 runs -- eight earned -- and 12 hits in four innings. His ERA rose from 2.93 to 3.74.
"It was a bad night all the way around," Lackey said. "This is going to sting a little bit."
St. Louis had a scary moment in the second when left fielder Matt Holliday fell awkwardly trying to chase down a bloop double by Carlos Gonzalez. Holliday grabbed his right leg and lay on the ground before gingerly walking off. The team said he suffered a right quadriceps strain.
"We don't know the extent right now," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. "We'll just have to wait and see."
Things went sideways for the Cardinals on the first batter, when Wong flubbed Charlie Blackmon's routine grounder. That paved the way for a five-run frame, which included Tulowitzki's homer along with RBI singles from Nick Hundley and Brandon Barnes.
DJ LeMahieu and Ben Paulsen each finished with three hits to help the Rockies improve to 4-4 on their 10-game homestand. Gonzalez had the catch of the night in the seventh as he lunged head-first to snare Peter Kozma's sinking liner in shallow right.
In an 11-3 game, no less.
Hale was brought back up to join a rotation thinned by an injury to Jordan Lyles, who's out after undergoing surgery to fix a torn ligament in his left big toe.
Although this was Hale's third start this season, it was the first time he's been added to the 25-man roster. His other two appearances were when he was added as a 26th man during doubleheaders.
One of the highlights of Hale's outing was striking out the side in the second. He made two mistakes, leaving a changeup over the plate to Wong in the fourth and elevating a fastball that Jon Jay hit for a solo homer in the sixth. Jay entered the game as a replacement for Holliday.
Asked if Hale might have done enough to stick around, Rockies manager Walt Weiss simply responded: "He's got a real good chance."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cardinals: RHP Lance Lynn is dealing with some forearm tightness in the aftermath of Sunday's start against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Matheny said trainers are monitoring Lynn and noted that with Thursday's off day, the pitchers in the Cardinals' rotation will have an extra day of rest.
Rockies: Reliever Rafael Betancourt went on the 15-day DL with what the team called vertigo symptoms. The right-hander has been dealing with a sinus infection for the last few weeks that's zapped his strength.
UP NEXT
Cardinals: RHP Michael Wacha (8-1, 2.18) leads the majors in road wins with six.
Rockies: LHP Jorge De La Rosa (2-2, 6.15) was effective in his last outing despite a cut on his middle finger.
"Better get my act together," Troy Tulowitzki joked.
Of course, Tulowitzki doesn't have anything to worry about at the moment. Especially the way he's been hitting.
Tulowitzki hit a three-run homer in the first and David Hale threw seven effective innings, lifting the Rockies to an 11-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The All-Star shortstop has been on quite a tear over his last eight games, going 17 for 33 to raise his average from .266 to .310.
"I'm getting better," Tulowitzki said. "But at the same time, I think I can be a lot better."
In the offseason, Tulowitzki was frequently mentioned in trade rumors. With the trade deadline next month, his name could be brought up again, even more so if the Rockies tumble out of contention.
With an eye toward the future, the Rockies took Brendan Rodgers with the No. 3 pick in the draft. Rodgers played shortstop for Lake Mary High School in Florida this past season and can't wait to start picking up some pointers from Tulowitzki.
Not so fast, though.
"Probably give him the cold shoulder," Tulowitzki quipped. "Keep that edge and make it tough for him."
Hale (2-0) was certainly tough on the Cardinals. The right-hander was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque to make a spot start and retired the opening nine batters before surrendering a solo homer to Kolten Wong. Hale allowed three runs and struck out seven.
Nolan Arenado added a two-run homer as the Rockies roughed up John Lackey (4-4), who surrendered 10 runs -- eight earned -- and 12 hits in four innings. His ERA rose from 2.93 to 3.74.
"It was a bad night all the way around," Lackey said. "This is going to sting a little bit."
St. Louis had a scary moment in the second when left fielder Matt Holliday fell awkwardly trying to chase down a bloop double by Carlos Gonzalez. Holliday grabbed his right leg and lay on the ground before gingerly walking off. The team said he suffered a right quadriceps strain.
"We don't know the extent right now," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. "We'll just have to wait and see."
Things went sideways for the Cardinals on the first batter, when Wong flubbed Charlie Blackmon's routine grounder. That paved the way for a five-run frame, which included Tulowitzki's homer along with RBI singles from Nick Hundley and Brandon Barnes.
DJ LeMahieu and Ben Paulsen each finished with three hits to help the Rockies improve to 4-4 on their 10-game homestand. Gonzalez had the catch of the night in the seventh as he lunged head-first to snare Peter Kozma's sinking liner in shallow right.
In an 11-3 game, no less.
Hale was brought back up to join a rotation thinned by an injury to Jordan Lyles, who's out after undergoing surgery to fix a torn ligament in his left big toe.
Although this was Hale's third start this season, it was the first time he's been added to the 25-man roster. His other two appearances were when he was added as a 26th man during doubleheaders.
One of the highlights of Hale's outing was striking out the side in the second. He made two mistakes, leaving a changeup over the plate to Wong in the fourth and elevating a fastball that Jon Jay hit for a solo homer in the sixth. Jay entered the game as a replacement for Holliday.
Asked if Hale might have done enough to stick around, Rockies manager Walt Weiss simply responded: "He's got a real good chance."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cardinals: RHP Lance Lynn is dealing with some forearm tightness in the aftermath of Sunday's start against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Matheny said trainers are monitoring Lynn and noted that with Thursday's off day, the pitchers in the Cardinals' rotation will have an extra day of rest.
Rockies: Reliever Rafael Betancourt went on the 15-day DL with what the team called vertigo symptoms. The right-hander has been dealing with a sinus infection for the last few weeks that's zapped his strength.
UP NEXT
Cardinals: RHP Michael Wacha (8-1, 2.18) leads the majors in road wins with six.
Rockies: LHP Jorge De La Rosa (2-2, 6.15) was effective in his last outing despite a cut on his middle finger.
8:40PM,EDT,June 8,2015
Coors Field, Denver, Colorado
Coors Field, Denver, Colorado
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| St. Louis - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| David Hale pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Wong flied out to right. | 0 | 0 |
| Carpenter lined out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Holliday grounded out to shortstop. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| John Lackey pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| Blackmon safe at first on error by second baseman Wong. | 0 | 0 |
| Blackmon stole second. | 0 | 0 |
| LeMahieu singled to right, Blackmon to third. | 0 | 0 |
| Tulowitzki homered to left (386 feet), Blackmon and LeMahieu scored. | 0 | 3 |
| González singled to center. | 0 | 3 |
| Arenado popped out to second. | 0 | 3 |
| Paulsen singled to right, González to second. | 0 | 3 |
| Hundley singled to center, González scored, Paulsen to second. | 0 | 4 |
| Barnes singled to right, Paulsen scored, Hundley to third. | 0 | 5 |
| Hale struck out looking. | 0 | 5 |
| Blackmon popped out to shortstop. | 0 | 5 |
| 5 Runs, 6 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| David Hale pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Peralta struck out swinging. | 0 | 5 |
| Reynolds struck out swinging. | 0 | 5 |
| Grichuk struck out swinging. | 0 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| John Lackey pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| LeMahieu lined out to center. | 0 | 5 |
| Tulowitzki flied out to right. | 0 | 5 |
| González doubled to left. | 0 | 5 |
| Jay in center field. | 0 | 5 |
| Grichuk in left field. | 0 | 5 |
| Arenado fouled out to third. | 0 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| David Hale pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Molina grounded out to third. | 0 | 5 |
| Heyward struck out looking. | 0 | 5 |
| Lackey flied out to center. | 0 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| John Lackey pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| Paulsen struck out swinging. | 0 | 5 |
| Hundley struck out swinging. | 0 | 5 |
| Barnes struck out swinging. | 0 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| David Hale pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Wong homered to right (418 feet). | 1 | 5 |
| Carpenter grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 5 |
| Jay hit by pitch. | 1 | 5 |
| Jay to second on wild pitch by Hale. | 1 | 5 |
| Peralta struck out swinging. | 1 | 5 |
| Reynolds grounded out to third. | 1 | 5 |
| 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| John Lackey pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| Hale struck out looking. | 1 | 5 |
| Blackmon reached on infield single to shortstop. | 1 | 5 |
| LeMahieu doubled to deep center, Blackmon scored. | 1 | 6 |
| Tulowitzki reached on infield single to third, LeMahieu to third. | 1 | 6 |
| González hit sacrifice fly to right, LeMahieu scored. | 1 | 7 |
| Arenado homered to left (426 feet), Tulowitzki scored. | 1 | 9 |
| Paulsen tripled to right. | 1 | 9 |
| Hundley safe at first on error by third baseman Carpenter, Paulsen scored. | 1 | 10 |
| Barnes grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Hundley out at second. | 1 | 10 |
| 5 Runs, 5 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| David Hale pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Grichuk lined out to left. | 1 | 10 |
| Molina doubled to left. | 1 | 10 |
| Heyward singled to left, Molina to third. | 1 | 10 |
| Easley hit for Lackey. | 1 | 10 |
| Easley hit sacrifice fly to right, Molina scored. | 2 | 10 |
| Wong struck out swinging. | 2 | 10 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Carlos Villanueva pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| Villanueva relieved Lackey. | 2 | 10 |
| Easley catching. | 2 | 10 |
| Hale struck out swinging. | 2 | 10 |
| Blackmon flied out to center. | 2 | 10 |
| LeMahieu singled to right. | 2 | 10 |
| Tulowitzki flied out to center. | 2 | 10 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| David Hale pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Carpenter flied out to left. | 2 | 10 |
| Jay homered to right (406 feet). | 3 | 10 |
| Peralta grounded out to third. | 3 | 10 |
| Reynolds singled to right. | 3 | 10 |
| Reynolds to second on passed ball by Hundley. | 3 | 10 |
| Grichuk struck out swinging. | 3 | 10 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Carlos Villanueva pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| González lined out to third. | 3 | 10 |
| Arenado struck out looking. | 3 | 10 |
| Paulsen hit a ground rule double to deep right center. | 3 | 10 |
| Hundley singled to center, Paulsen scored. | 3 | 11 |
| Barnes doubled to center, Hundley to third. | 3 | 11 |
| Hale grounded out to shortstop. | 3 | 11 |
| 1 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| David Hale pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Kozma hit for Villanueva. | 3 | 11 |
| Kozma flied out to right. | 3 | 11 |
| Heyward singled to right. | 3 | 11 |
| Easley grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Heyward out at second. | 3 | 11 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Mitch Harris pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| Cruz at third base. | 3 | 11 |
| Harris relieved Villanueva. | 3 | 11 |
| Kozma at shortstop. | 3 | 11 |
| Blackmon flied out to center. | 3 | 11 |
| LeMahieu grounded out to first. | 3 | 11 |
| Tulowitzki walked. | 3 | 11 |
| González popped out to shortstop. | 3 | 11 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Christian Friedrich pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Friedrich relieved Hale. | 3 | 11 |
| Ynoa at shortstop. | 3 | 11 |
| Wong grounded out to shortstop. | 3 | 11 |
| Cruz singled to right. | 3 | 11 |
| Jay lined out to left. | 3 | 11 |
| Harris struck out swinging. | 3 | 11 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Mitch Harris pitching for St. Louis | STL | COL |
| Arenado grounded out to third. | 3 | 11 |
| Paulsen lined out to right. | 3 | 11 |
| Hundley struck out swinging. | 3 | 11 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| St. Louis - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Brooks Brown pitching for Colorado | STL | COL |
| Brown relieved Friedrich. | 3 | 11 |
| Reynolds reached on infield single to second. | 3 | 11 |
| Grichuk flied out to right. | 3 | 11 |
| Kozma flied out to center. | 3 | 11 |
| Heyward grounded out to second. | 3 | 11 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| St. Louis Cardinals | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Wong 2B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 16 | .307 | .357 | .474 |
| Carpenter 3B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .300 | .391 | .520 |
Cruz 3B
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .237 | .275 | .289 |
| Holliday LF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .303 | .417 | .421 |
Jay CF
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .232 | .312 | .272 |
| Peralta SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 13 | .316 | .377 | .516 |
Harris P
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Reynolds 1B | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | .261 | .320 | .377 |
| Grichuk CF-LF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 20 | .262 | .287 | .488 |
| Molina C | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .280 | .330 | .333 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | |
b-Kozma PH-SS
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .104 | .157 | .104 |
| Heyward RF | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 19 | .253 | .297 | .381 |
| Lackey P | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .056 | .150 | .111 |
a-Easley PH-C
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Totals | 33 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 118 | |||
| a-hit sacrifice fly to right for J Lackey in the 5th b-flied out to right for C Villanueva in the 7th | ||||||||||
| BATTING 2B: Molina (10, Hale) HR: Wong (7, 4th inning off Hale 0 on, 0 Out); Jay (1, 6th inning off Hale 0 on, 1 Out) RBI: Wong (27), Easley (1), Jay (7) SF: Easley GIDP: Easley Cardinals RISP: 1-4 (Reynolds 0-1, Heyward 1-1, Grichuk 0-1, Peralta 0-1) Team LOB: 5 | ||||||||||
| FIELDING E: Wong (7, ground ball); Carpenter (5, ground ball) | ||||||||||
Game Notes
| LF HOLLIDAY (RIGHT QUAD STRAIN) LEFT GAME BOT 2ND. |
Game Information
| Stadium | Coors Field, Denver, CO |
| Attendance | 32,043 (63.6% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 2:39 |
| Weather | 78 degrees, clear |
| Wind | 8 mph |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Mike Everitt, First Base - Tim Timmons, Second Base - Todd Tichenor, Third Base - Tim Welke |
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