Ryan McMahon’s eighth-inning homer lifts the Rockies past Padres – Greeley Tribune

Ahead of Saturday night’s game, Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon opened up about his slump and how he was trying to extricate himself from it.

“It usually doesn’t matter (around the slump) and just relax and go out and play the game,” he said. “It’s hard to do, but at the end of the day, this isn’t a try-hard league, this is a get (thing) done league.”

McMahon certainly did something against the Padres.

His solo homer to right field in the eighth inning by Luis Garcia propelled the Rockies to a 5-4 win over San Diego, their ninth straight win over the Padres at Coors Field. McMahon went 3-for-3 with a walk.

It was McMahon’s fifth home run but his first since May 16, a stretch of 106 at-bats. He went into Saturday’s game 1-for-12 with five strikeouts at the current homestand. In his last 27 games he had cut .161/.262/.226.

The Rockies received excellent work from assists Jhoulys Chacin, Alex Colome and closer Daniel Bard, who combined for four innings scoreless.

San Diego threatened in the ninth and put on two against Bard, but he beat out National League MVP contender Manny Machado and got Luke Voit to go for second to finish the game. Bard made his 14th save of the season.

All of Colorado’s runs came from home runs. Hitters CJ Cron and Charlie Blackmon both hit long two-run homers to explain Colorado’s early runs.

Blackmon led the first with a two-out double and trotted it home on Cron’s 429-foot homer to knock out San Diego starter Nick Martinez. It was Cron’s 17th long ball of the season and his third in the last two games.

Blackmon, who suffered a tear in June, hit the ball 438 feet and into second deck over right field in Martinez’s fifth. Blackmon’s 11th homer of the season was from Yonathan Daza, who had taken a singles lead, to level the game 4-4.

At times, Saturday night starter German Marquez looked like the All-Star from a year ago, using his ankle curve to hit big strikeouts at key moments. He gave up four runs on eight hits over five innings, hit out seven and walked two.

In the first inning, with two on base, he fanned Eric Hosmer with the field. In the second, after giving up a one-out double to Jorge Alfaro, he beat Trent Grisham, who’s swinging in a corner, and Ha-Seong, who’s looking at a corner.

San Diego shook him in the third and scored a run on Voit’s RBI double, but Marquez unleashed his curveball again, beating Eric Hosmer and Nomar Mazar with two Padres on base.

But Marquez’s command failed him in San Diego’s fifth heat and he started leaving meatballs on the plate. Jake Cronenworth led with a double and Machado followed up left center with a two-run blaster. Then Voit hit a linedrive to the left that Connor Joe misplayed to a double over his head, and Hosmer’s follow-up double gave San Diego a 4-2 lead.

On board

Father LHP Blake Snell (0-3, 5.04) on Rockie’s RHP Antonio Senzatela (2-3, 4:79)Sunday, 1:10 p.m., Coors Field

TV: ATTR

Radio: KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM

Senzatela got off to a good start against Cleveland on Tuesday at Coors Field when he was charged with three earned runs in eight hits and one walk while hitting four in a 4-3 extra-inning loss. He didn’t take the decision into account. The right-hander, who relies on groundball outs, is averaging just 4.6 strikeouts per nine innings this season, is last in the majors among starts and well below his career average of 6.0 strikeouts per nine. Senzatela has made 17 career appearances against the Padres (11 starts), winning 7-3 with a 3.30 ERA. He’s 5-1 with a 3.06 ERA in 10 games (seven starts) against San Diego at Coors Field.

Snell is struggling to be the pitcher the Padres thought he would be, as evidenced by his 5.04 ERA. But he did well in his start against the Rockies at Petco Park last Sunday, notching seven strikeouts while walking just two in a 4-2 loss. Earlier in the day, Snell was allowing season-high hits (seven) and runs earned (four) in a 5-11 loss to the Mets. That outing included a 43-pitch first inning. Snell is 2-0 with a 3.34 ERA in six starts against the Rockies. He is 1-0 with a 6.08 ERA in three starts at Coors Field.

Trend: Friday night, left-hander Kyle Freeland became the first Rockies starter not to record a strikeout in seven or more innings since Jorge De La Rosa vs. Arizona on June 3, 2014.

In question: Second baseman Brendan Rodgers started Saturday with a 1:15 run with three strikeouts and four walks and had three double plays in the first four games of the current homestand.

Pitching Probabilities

Monday: Off

Tuesday: Rockies LHP Austin Gomber (3-7, 6.43) at Marlins LHP Daniel Castano (0-1, 0.0), 4:40 p.m., ATTRM

Wednesday: Rockies RHP Chad Kuhl (4-4, 3.69) at Marlins RHP Pablo Lopez (4-3, 2.85), 4:40 p.m., ATTRM