The Kid Rox were more than all right Saturday night in a 7-5 victory over the Orioles at Coors Field.
Rookie right fielder Jordan Beck delivered a clutch RBI single in the eighth to drive in Nolan Jones, who had reached on a one-out double to left-center. Beck then swiped third base and scored on rookie catcher Drew Romo’s infield groundout.
Beck delivered the first game-winning RBI of his career and Romo drove in a career-high three runs.
Colorado’s two-run, game-clinching rally came against veteran right-hander Craig Kimbrell, who’s become a weak link for a Baltimore team that is now 20-21 since the All-Star break but remains just 1 1/2 games behind the Yankees in the American League East.
The Rockies, with a 51-86 record, are on pace to lose 102 games, and they face a tough schedule in September. But manager Bud Black likes the idea of throwing his young players into the fire.
“This is good for our guys to go against these types of teams in September,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “We talked about it last year. We don’t want to be in this position, but we are. The reality is we are. But is good for our guys to be in these games against teams that are vying for a playoff spot.”
Colorado’s unheralded heroes Saturday night were rookie relievers Luis Peralta, Seth Halvorsen and Jeff Criswell, who combined to pitch 3 1/3 scoreless innings. Criswell picked up his first career victory.
Rockies veteran right-hander Tyler Kinley scored his eighth save of the season, but it wasn’t easy. He gave up a leadoff walk to Cedrick Mullins, threw a wild pitch, and plunked Gunner Henderson to paint himself in a corner. But Kinley struck out three, including Adley Rutschmnan, to end the game.
Romo was pumped that Colorado’s young players delivered with the game on the line.
“This feels awesome,” said Romo, who extended his hitting streak to five games and his RBI streak to four games “Beck hit the ball well tonight and did a great job stealing third in the eighth.
“And it’s crazy how many rookie relievers we have right now. I feel like there is a good connection with them. I’ve worked with them before, and they’re comfortable with me, and I’m comfortable out there with them.”
Colorado had a chance to take control in the seventh but couldn’t cash in. Ezequiel Tovar and Ryan McMahon drew back-to-back one-out walks, but reliever Yennier Cano struck out Brenton Doyle and got Brendan Rodgers to ground out to third.
The Rockies keep waiting for starter Ryan Feltner to turn the corner, but the hard-throwing right-hander keeps spinning out.
Feltner pounded the strike zone for the first three innings and kept the Orioles on the defensive. That changed in the fourth, and then the wheels came off in the fifth.
An infield hit by Rutschman, followed by a 437-foot, two-run homer by Anthony Santander got the Orioles on the board in the fourth.
The O’s tied the game, 5-5, in Feltner’s erratic fifth inning. Eloy Jimenez led off with a 441-foot homer to center. The Feltner hit Ramon Urias, gave up a single to Jackson Holliday, and jammed the bases by issuing a two-out walk to Rutschman.
Feltner needed one big pitch to escape the jam. He didn’t get it. Ryan O’Hearn ripped a two-run single to center. Feltner’s night was over, meaning he hasn’t notched a victory since April 10 at Toronto.
The next step for Feltner, Black said, is “finishing off an inning and finishing off an outing.”
“He knows, and you learn through these battles,” Black continued. “He’s got the aptitude and the smarts to learn when you really have to get and out and when you really have to make a pitch. There’s an art to that.”
Feltner, however, didn’t think he pitched much differently in his first three innings vs. his last two.
“It was nothing about how I felt or any of the pitches I was throwing,” he said. “It was just kind of results. Things went sideways, but I thought I stayed pretty consistent with the game plan.”
Feltner said he’s improved this season when it comes to keeping games in control.
“I definitely feel like I’ve done that throughout this year, and I feel like I’ve gotten better at that,” he said. “I don’t feel like it’s the next step for me. I think tonight just wasn’t my night.”
Colorado took a 3-0 lead in the second off Dean Kremer with a leadoff double by Doyle and an RBI single by Rodgers. Then rookie catcher Drew Romo blooped a two-run double into left field.
Baltimore lost Kremer to injury in the fourth inning, when Beck hit a 103.1 mph comebacker off the right-hander’s forearm. Kremer was later diagnosed with a right forearm contusion and X-rays came back negative for a fracture.
Charlie Blackmon’s two-run triple to the gap in left-center off reliever Keegan Akin gave Colorado a 5-2 lead after four innings.
Quantrill scratched. Right-hander Cal Quantrill, who was scheduled to start Sunday afternoon’s game against Baltimore, was scratched because of right triceps inflammation, the club announced after Saturday night’s game.
They will start left-hander Ty Blach, whose contract will have to be selected from Triple-A Albuquerque. So a move will be necessary to create room for Blach on the club’s 40-man roster.
