DENVER -- Jon Gray's power was impressive. His hop out of the batter's box and home run trot, too.
For a pitcher who'd never hit a major league homer before, he sure had the routine down.
Gray launched his drive an estimated 467 feet -- the farthest by any Rockies player this season -- and pitched effectively into the sixth inning as Colorado beat the Cincinnati Reds 5-3 on a sweltering Wednesday night.
"I see Jon in (batting practice) and he has some strength to his swing," Rockies manager Bud Black said. "That ball was crushed."
Too bad Gray won't ever get it back as a souvenir. The ball landed in the stands and bounced into the pond behind center field, joining a bevy of baseballs from batting practice.
"It's gone. Forever," Gray lamented.
At least he has the memories -- and the accolades from teammates, who were awed by his mighty swing.
"They really didn't say much, just, `Man, that was crushed," Gray said . "I told them the same thing: `It felt good.' I tried to put a good swing on it."
Gray's two-run homer in the second was the longest among pitchers since MLB's Statcast began tracking distances in 2015. Gray even did a little skip after contact and rounded the bases at a leisurely pace.
"He may not be a good hitter but he certainly has power," Reds manager Bryan Price said. "We learned that today."
Gray (2-0) also was solid on the mound, going 5 2/3 innings and allowing three runs, two earned, in his second start since a broken bone in his left foot sidelined him for two months. Greg Holland threw a shaky ninth -- by his standards -- for his 28th save to help the slumping Rockies win for the third time in 14 games.
"It wasn't a good day on the hill," Gray said of his performance. "I didn't have a feel for anything, really."
Rockies shortstop Pat Valaika would debate that.
"It's good to have high standards. But I think if a pitcher keeps us in the game, he had a good game," said Valaika, who had a career-high three hits, including a two-run homer and a run-scoring single with two outs in the eighth.
It was a scorching day in Denver and the game-time temperature read 97 degrees, which tied for the second-hottest home contest in Rockies history.
Scott Feldman (7-6) gave up four runs in five innings before being lifted for a pinch hitter. He regretted that pitch to Gray.
"I feel like you should get the pitcher out every time," Feldman said. "So, to pretty much lose the game on that, not a good feeling."
Cruising along, Gray ran into trouble in the sixth when he allowed three straight hits, including a run-scoring single by Eugenio Suarez. After Tucker Barnhart lined a two-out single to load the bases, reliever Scott Oberg was summoned.
Pinch-hitter Adam Duvall hit a routine grounder to Gold Glove third baseman Nolan Arenado, who bobbled the ball for his third error of the season. The mistake allowed a run to score and made it 4-3. Billy Hamilton grounded out to end the threat.
Arenado atoned in the seventh, when he stepped on third and threw to first for a double play that bailed the Rockies out of a jam.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Reds: Catcher Devin Mesoraco was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a strained left shoulder. ... To take Mesoraco's place, the Reds recalled RHP Ariel Hernandez from Triple-A Louisville. Hernandez pitched 1 2/3 innings and struck out three.
Rockies: 2B DJ LeMahieu (groin) was out of the lineup for a second straight game. ... OF Gerardo Parra (strained right quad) went 0 for 2 at Triple-A Albuquerque on Tuesday during a rehab assignment.
THIS & THAT
The Rockies logged their 50th win in game No. 87. That's the quickest in franchise history. ... The record for hottest home game at first pitch in Rockies history was 100 degrees on June 25, 2012, against Washington. ... All-Star 1B Joey Votto hit his first triple of the season for Cincinnati. ... Reds reliever Tony Cingrani threw an inning and gave up a run on his 28th birthday.
UP NEXT
Cincinnati RHP Sal Romano (0-1, 6.00 ERA) makes his second career appearance Thursday in the fourth and final game of the series. The Rockies will send RHP Tyler Chatwood (6-9, 4.41) to the mound.
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
For a pitcher who'd never hit a major league homer before, he sure had the routine down.
Gray launched his drive an estimated 467 feet -- the farthest by any Rockies player this season -- and pitched effectively into the sixth inning as Colorado beat the Cincinnati Reds 5-3 on a sweltering Wednesday night.
"I see Jon in (batting practice) and he has some strength to his swing," Rockies manager Bud Black said. "That ball was crushed."
Too bad Gray won't ever get it back as a souvenir. The ball landed in the stands and bounced into the pond behind center field, joining a bevy of baseballs from batting practice.
"It's gone. Forever," Gray lamented.
At least he has the memories -- and the accolades from teammates, who were awed by his mighty swing.
"They really didn't say much, just, `Man, that was crushed," Gray said . "I told them the same thing: `It felt good.' I tried to put a good swing on it."
Gray's two-run homer in the second was the longest among pitchers since MLB's Statcast began tracking distances in 2015. Gray even did a little skip after contact and rounded the bases at a leisurely pace.
"He may not be a good hitter but he certainly has power," Reds manager Bryan Price said. "We learned that today."
Gray (2-0) also was solid on the mound, going 5 2/3 innings and allowing three runs, two earned, in his second start since a broken bone in his left foot sidelined him for two months. Greg Holland threw a shaky ninth -- by his standards -- for his 28th save to help the slumping Rockies win for the third time in 14 games.
"It wasn't a good day on the hill," Gray said of his performance. "I didn't have a feel for anything, really."
Rockies shortstop Pat Valaika would debate that.
"It's good to have high standards. But I think if a pitcher keeps us in the game, he had a good game," said Valaika, who had a career-high three hits, including a two-run homer and a run-scoring single with two outs in the eighth.
It was a scorching day in Denver and the game-time temperature read 97 degrees, which tied for the second-hottest home contest in Rockies history.
Scott Feldman (7-6) gave up four runs in five innings before being lifted for a pinch hitter. He regretted that pitch to Gray.
"I feel like you should get the pitcher out every time," Feldman said. "So, to pretty much lose the game on that, not a good feeling."
Cruising along, Gray ran into trouble in the sixth when he allowed three straight hits, including a run-scoring single by Eugenio Suarez. After Tucker Barnhart lined a two-out single to load the bases, reliever Scott Oberg was summoned.
Pinch-hitter Adam Duvall hit a routine grounder to Gold Glove third baseman Nolan Arenado, who bobbled the ball for his third error of the season. The mistake allowed a run to score and made it 4-3. Billy Hamilton grounded out to end the threat.
Arenado atoned in the seventh, when he stepped on third and threw to first for a double play that bailed the Rockies out of a jam.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Reds: Catcher Devin Mesoraco was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a strained left shoulder. ... To take Mesoraco's place, the Reds recalled RHP Ariel Hernandez from Triple-A Louisville. Hernandez pitched 1 2/3 innings and struck out three.
Rockies: 2B DJ LeMahieu (groin) was out of the lineup for a second straight game. ... OF Gerardo Parra (strained right quad) went 0 for 2 at Triple-A Albuquerque on Tuesday during a rehab assignment.
THIS & THAT
The Rockies logged their 50th win in game No. 87. That's the quickest in franchise history. ... The record for hottest home game at first pitch in Rockies history was 100 degrees on June 25, 2012, against Washington. ... All-Star 1B Joey Votto hit his first triple of the season for Cincinnati. ... Reds reliever Tony Cingrani threw an inning and gave up a run on his 28th birthday.
UP NEXT
Cincinnati RHP Sal Romano (0-1, 6.00 ERA) makes his second career appearance Thursday in the fourth and final game of the series. The Rockies will send RHP Tyler Chatwood (6-9, 4.41) to the mound.
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
8:40PM,EDT,July 5,2017
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 |
| Cincinnati - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Jon Gray pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Hamilton lined out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Cozart lined out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Votto flied out to left. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Scott Feldman pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Blackmon singled to right. | 0 | 0 |
| Tapia sacrificed to pitcher, Blackmon to second. | 0 | 0 |
| Arenado struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| González walked. | 0 | 0 |
| Reynolds struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Jon Gray pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Gennett safe at first on error by shortstop Valaika. | 0 | 0 |
| Suárez struck out swinging, Gennett stole second. | 0 | 0 |
| Schebler struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Peraza grounded out to first. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Scott Feldman pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Valaika singled to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Amarista grounded into fielder's choice to second, Valaika out at second. | 0 | 0 |
| Hanigan grounded out to pitcher, Amarista to second. | 0 | 0 |
| Gray homered to center (467 feet), Amarista scored. | 0 | 2 |
| Blackmon grounded out to first. | 0 | 2 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Jon Gray pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Barnhart grounded out to first. | 0 | 2 |
| Feldman singled to left. | 0 | 2 |
| Hamilton grounded into fielder's choice to third, Feldman out at second. | 0 | 2 |
| Hamilton stole second. | 0 | 2 |
| Cozart flied out to center. | 0 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Scott Feldman pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Tapia grounded out to first. | 0 | 2 |
| Arenado grounded out to shortstop. | 0 | 2 |
| González struck out swinging. | 0 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Jon Gray pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Votto tripled to deep left. | 0 | 2 |
| Gennett singled to left, Votto scored. | 1 | 2 |
| Suárez walked, Gennett to second. | 1 | 2 |
| Schebler grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first, Suárez out at second, Gennett to third. | 1 | 2 |
| Peraza fouled out to third. | 1 | 2 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Scott Feldman pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Reynolds singled to left. | 1 | 2 |
| Valaika homered to right (400 feet), Reynolds scored. | 1 | 4 |
| Amarista grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 4 |
| Hanigan struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| Gray struck out looking. | 1 | 4 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Jon Gray pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Barnhart struck out looking. | 1 | 4 |
| Feldman grounded out to third. | 1 | 4 |
| Hamilton singled to center. | 1 | 4 |
| Cozart grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Scott Feldman pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Blackmon struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| Tapia lined out to shortstop. | 1 | 4 |
| Arenado flied out to center. | 1 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Jon Gray pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Votto reached on infield single to first. | 1 | 4 |
| Gennett singled to right, Votto to third. | 1 | 4 |
| Suárez singled to right, Votto scored, Gennett to second. | 2 | 4 |
| Schebler struck out swinging. | 2 | 4 |
| Peraza struck out swinging. | 2 | 4 |
| Barnhart singled to deep right, Gennett to third, Suárez to second. | 2 | 4 |
| Duvall hit for Feldman. | 2 | 4 |
| Oberg relieved Gray. | 2 | 4 |
| Duvall safe at first on error by third baseman Arenado, Gennett scored, Suárez to third, Barnhart to second. | 3 | 4 |
| Hamilton grounded out to second. | 3 | 4 |
| 2 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Ariel Hernandez pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Hernández relieved Feldman. | 3 | 4 |
| González grounded out to shortstop. | 3 | 4 |
| Reynolds struck out swinging. | 3 | 4 |
| Valaika flied out to center. | 3 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Scott Oberg pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Cozart doubled to deep left center. | 3 | 4 |
| Rusin relieved Oberg. | 3 | 4 |
| Votto walked. | 3 | 4 |
| Gennett struck out swinging. | 3 | 4 |
| Suárez grounded into double play, third to first, Cozart out at third. | 3 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Ariel Hernandez pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Amarista struck out swinging. | 3 | 4 |
| Hanigan struck out swinging. | 3 | 4 |
| Tauchman hit for Rusin. | 3 | 4 |
| Tauchman walked. | 3 | 4 |
| Alcántara at third base. | 3 | 4 |
| Cingrani relieved Hernández. | 3 | 4 |
| Blackmon grounded out to first. | 3 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Jake McGee pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| McGee relieved Rusin. | 3 | 4 |
| Schebler struck out swinging. | 3 | 4 |
| Peraza singled to left. | 3 | 4 |
| Barnhart struck out looking. | 3 | 4 |
| Peraza caught stealing second, pitcher to first to shortstop. | 3 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Colorado - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Tony Cingrani pitching for Cincinnati | CIN | COL |
| Tapia struck out swinging. | 3 | 4 |
| Arenado grounded out to second. | 3 | 4 |
| González hit by pitch. | 3 | 4 |
| Reynolds walked, González to second. | 3 | 4 |
| Valaika singled to center, González scored, Reynolds to second. | 3 | 5 |
| Story hit for Amarista. | 3 | 5 |
| Brice relieved Cingrani. | 3 | 5 |
| Story struck out swinging. | 3 | 5 |
| 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Greg Holland pitching for Colorado | CIN | COL |
| Valaika at second base. | 3 | 5 |
| Story at shortstop. | 3 | 5 |
| Holland relieved McGee. | 3 | 5 |
| Alcántara struck out swinging, Alcántara safe at first on wild pitch by Holland. | 3 | 5 |
| Hamilton grounded into double play, shortstop to first, Alcántara out at second. | 3 | 5 |
| Cozart singled to right center. | 3 | 5 |
| Votto walked, Cozart to second. | 3 | 5 |
| Gennett grounded out to pitcher. | 3 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Cincinnati Reds | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Hamilton CF | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | .242 | .295 | .319 |
| Cozart SS | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | .315 | .394 | .542 |
| Votto 1B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | .316 | .426 | .625 |
| Gennett LF | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 22 | .317 | .362 | .603 |
| Suárez 3B | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 18 | .254 | .359 | .440 |
Cingrani P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
Brice P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Schebler RF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 21 | .252 | .329 | .525 |
| Peraza 2B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 18 | .253 | .278 | .338 |
| Barnhart C | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 21 | .278 | .342 | .392 |
| Feldman P | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .032 | .032 | .032 |
a-Duvall PH
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .278 | .323 | .553 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | |
Alcántara 3B
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .207 | .217 | .305 |
| Totals | 37 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 161 | |||
| a-reached on error for S Feldman in the 6th | ||||||||||
| BATTING 2B: Cozart (17, Oberg) 3B: Votto (1, Gray) RBI: Gennett (46), Suárez (43) GIDP: Schebler, Suárez, Hamilton Reds RISP: 3-15 (Barnhart 1-1, Gennett 1-3, Duvall 0-1, Schebler 0-3, Suárez 1-2, Cozart 0-1, Hamilton 0-1, Peraza 0-3) Team LOB: 10 | ||||||||||
| BASERUNNING SB: Gennett (2, 2nd base off Gray/Hanigan); Hamilton (34, 2nd base off Gray/Hanigan) CS: Peraza (5, 2nd base by McGee) | ||||||||||
Game Information
| Stadium | Coors Field, Denver, CO |
| Attendance | 32,188 (63.9% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 3:24 |
| Weather | 97 degrees, partly cloudy |
| Wind | 5 mph |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Kerwin Danley, First Base - Adam Hamari, Second Base - Todd Tichenor, Third Base - Bill Miller |
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