The Rockies bombed in the Bronx. Wait, check that. They got bombed in the Bronx.
Juan Soto, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton — the Yankees’ 2024 version of Murderers’ Row — hit back-to-back-to-back solo home runs off rookie reliever Jeff Criswell in the seventh inning. All told, New York launched five home runs to humble the Rockies, 10-3.
Judge, who’s hit 51 homers, also launched a two-run homer in the first off of lefty Austin Gomber. Gomber opened his start by walking Gleyber Torres, and yes, the walk came back to haunt him.
Judge’s two homers put him on pace to hit 63, which would break his American League record of 62 set in 2022. Judge first reached the 50-homer milestone in his rookie year in 2017, when hit 52.
Judge also became just the fifth player to hit 50 home runs in three different seasons, joining Alex Rodriguez, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire and Babe Ruth.
Rockies manager Bud Black said that the Yankees’ three straight homers were the product not just of their sluggers’ talents but also of Criswell’s poor pitch location.
“The first pitch to Soto was a high slider, right in the middle of the plate. Soto’s got power, he doesn’t miss that pitch,” Black told reporters in New York. “The ball was up to Judge, as well, and the slider to Stanton was up.
“I talked to Jeff and told him that the ball up in the big leagues is going to come back to haunt you, especially the high breaking ball. Jeff’s got good stuff, but it’s the school of hard knocks in the big leagues, especially against those three guys.”
Until New York’s pyrotechnics in the seventh, the Rockies had a chance to win the game and capture just their third road series of the season.
In the fifth, Ryan McMahon broke out of his funk, driving a two-out double to right field to score Brenton Doyle from first base. That cut the Yankees’ lead to 4-3. McMahon entered the game slashing .138/.274/.234 in 28 games since the All-Star Break with three doubles, two home runs and only 11 RBIs.
McMahon’s slump-buster put the Rockies back in the game.But then came New York’s trio of homers in the seventh, followed by a three-run homer by Torres in the eighth off of lefty Lucas Gilbreath.
On pace to lose 103 games, the Rockies finished their six-game road trip 2-4. Their run differential is minus-208, by far the worst in the National League.
Gomber struggled early, giving up two runs in the first and two more in the second. But he righted the ship and pitched four scoreless innings after that.
The Yankees threatened to blow Gomber off the mound in the fifth, loading the bases on walks by Soto and Judge and a bloop single by Stanton. But Gomber got tough, striking out Jazz Chisholm and getting Anthony Volpe to ground out to short.
Over six innings, Gomber gave up four runs on six hits, walked three and struck out one. After 25 starts, he’s 4-9 with a 4.70 ERA.
“He hung in there, he did his part,” Black said. “I’m sure he would like some pitches back. And the leadoff walk to start the game before the Judge homer hurt. That walk came back to bite him.
“But he threw the ball fine. As the game went on I thought he was able to spot the fastball better.”
Rookie catcher Drew Romo, who’s receiving extensive playing time, hit an RBI single in the fourth to score Jake Cave. It was the first RBI of Romo’s career.
Monday’s pitching matchup
Marlins RHP Edward Cabrera (2-5, 5.65 ERA) at Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner (1-10, 5.00)
6:40 p.m. Monday, Coors Field
TV: Rockies.TV (streaming); Comcast/Xfinity (channel 1262); DirecTV (683); Spectrum (130, 445, 305, 435 or 445, depending on region).
Radio: 850 AM/94.1 FM
Feltner is coming off a stint on the 15-day injured list, where he dealt with a strained right shoulder. Feltner, placed on the IL on Aug. 8, pitched 2 2/3 innings for Triple-A Albuquerque last Wednesday in a rehab start. He allowed five runs (three earned) on four hits with two walks and three strikeouts. He’s made three career starts vs. the Marlins, going 1-0 with a 3.86 ERA. Feltner has struggled at Coors Field, where he owns a 6.75 ERA in 24 games (23 starts).
Cabrera is making his fourth career start vs. Colorado. He’s 1-1 in three previous starts with a 3.94 ERA, 24 strikeouts and nine walks. He faced the Rockies in Miami on May 2, allowing four runs on three hits with four walks and nine strikeouts over four innings. Cabrera, who still averages 96.1 mph with his fastball, has pitched much better at home (4.17 ERA) than on the road (8.14). In his last start, he took the loss against the Diamondbacks, allowing three runs on four hits with three walks and three strikeouts over six innings.
Pitching probables
Tuesday: Marlins RHP Roddery Munoz (2-7, 5.98) at Rockies RHP Cal Quantrill (8-9, 4.56), 6:40 p.m.
Wednesday: Marlins RHP Max Meyer (3-3, 5.44) at Rockies LHP Kyle Freeland (3-6, 5.70), 6:40 p.m.
Thursday: Marlins RHP Valente Bellozo (2-2, 3.35) at Rockies RHP Bradley Blalock (1-0, 3.06), 1:10 p.m.
— Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post
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Originally Published: August 25, 2024 at 2:57 p.m.
