Stratton struggles in loss to Rockies
Lowrie's three-run double rallies A's past Padres
DENVER (TNS) – What goes up must come down, and the Giants’ trips to Coors Field are a testament to that law of motion.
No major league ballpark in the country is situated at a higher elevation than the Rockies’ home stadium, and there’s no city the Giants have fared worse in over the past two seasons.
After dropping Tuesday’s blowout 8-1, the Giants have now lost 13 of their past 15 games at the mile-high destination that’s become a house of horrors for San Francisco’s hitters and pitchers alike.
“It’s been a tough place for us,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “Probably as much as anything, we don’t seem to score a lot here.”
The Giants entered Coors Field fresh off a three-game sweep of the first-place Arizona Diamondbacks, a series that pulled the club within 2½ games of the division lead in the National League West. But every time the Giants rise up the standings, they seem to fall back to sea level.
With a defeat Tuesday, the Giants have lost consecutive games for the first time since June 15-16 against the Dodgers, which was also the last time the Giants have been held to two runs or fewer in back-to-back contests.
Right-hander Chris
Bay Area News Group/tns San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Chris Stratton bites his glove after giving up a three-run home run to the Colorado Rockies’ Nolan Arenado in the fifth inning of Tuesday’s 8-1 loss at Coors Field in Denver.
Stratton took the mound Tuesday after the Giants announced several changes to their rotation to accommodate the upcoming returns of veterans Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija.
Though Bochy has praised Stratton for helping hold together the pitching staff during their absences, the Giants did not commit to announcing Stratton as the starter for next Monday’s game against the Cubs, which is when his turn in the rotation comes up again.
Stratton has been up at the major league level since August 2017, but the second-year right-hander could be on his way down to the minor leagues or back to the bullpen after rookies Andrew Suárez and Dereck Rodríguez flashed impressive potential during an 18win
month of June.
Back-to-back losses have brought the Giants down to earth at 45-42, but Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado remains on cloud nine whenever he faces San Francisco.
Arenado appeared in his 100th career game against the Giants Tuesday and in the fifth inning, he launched his 24th career home run against the club to dead center field. His three-run shot extended the Rockies advantage to 6-0 in the fifth inning and brought his career total to 90 RBIS against Giants pitchers.
After the Giants managed just two runs in a 5-2 defeat Monday, Bochy’s squad did not score against Rockies starter Antonio Sentazela Tuesday. Senzatela made his first major league start of the year against the Giants after facing their Triplea squad, the Sacramento River Cats, last week.
The burly righty tossed seven frames of three-hit ball against San Francisco Tuesday. Though the Giants had won 15 of their last 18 games against right-handed starters, they couldn’t maintain their success against Senzatela who now holds a 142/3-inning scoreless streak against the organization.
The Giants did scratch across a run on an Alen Hanson single in the eighth, but that was all they mustered against the Rockies.
A’s 6, Padres 2 OAKLAND – Jed Lowrie hit a bases-loaded, basesclearing double in the decisive sixth, Mark Cahna added a solo homer that inning, and Oakland rallied to beat San Diego.
Chad Pinder added a solo homer in the seventh.
The A’s finally got to San Diego starter Clayton Richard (7-8) in the sixth.
Pinder walked to start the sixth as the first five hitters reached base. Khris Davis followed Lowrie’s double with a run-scoring single before Cahna’s 11th home run, after a double play.
Emilio Pagan (2-0) pitched 11/3 innings for the win in relief of A’s starter Chris Bassitt.
A’s third baseman Matt Chapman returned from the disabled list after missing 16 games with a recurring right hand injury. He had played in 149 straight games before the DL stint.