Tonight we have more altitude, players weekend jerseys and nicknames. Facing former teammates is always fun. Let’s play ball at Coors Field.

Recap and game summary

In the second inning, Kolten Wong came up limping after running out a ground ball. He was removed from the game with a left hamstring strain, the team announced. Greg Garcia took over at second base, while Yairo Munoz played shortstop.

Both starters were very sharp early on, as the Rockies did not record a hit until the fourth inning. Friday night featured tons of offense and on-the-edge-of-your-seat drama, as the Rockies nearly came back from a 7-0 deficit. Tonight, however, featured no runs until Matt Holliday punished his former team with a 448-foot dinger to left.

John Gant went 7 innings, allowed 1 run on 3 hits, walked 5 and struck out 6.

From @hochman on Twitter:

“A rare night in Colorado”

In the top of the eighth, Matt Carpenter faced a full count and the pitch was in the dirt. Bader, noticing that the catcher couldn’t find the ball, stole home to tie the game at 1. The momentum appeared to be shifting in the Cardinals’ favor until a Yadi pop out and a Martinez “K” ending the inning. When you have a chance to take the lead with a runner on third and less than two outs, you must score. The Cardinals failed to do that this evening and it cost them.

The Rockies got hit after hit in the bottom of the eighth. The inning seemed to drag on forever and no Cardinals reliever could get a big out before it got way out of hand.

Final: Rockies 9, Cardinals 1 

Notes

Entering Saturday night, the Cardinals had won 9 road games in a row and featured the best bullpen ERA (1.86) in the majors this month. Unfortunately that number will greatly increase. The eighth inning was a total mess, as the Rockies tallied 8 runs. Dakota Hudson gave up 3 ER, as did Brett Cecil. Mike Mayers allowed 2 ER and also exited the game with the trainer.

Meanwhile, at the plate, the Cardinals struck out 13 times and drew only two walks. They had just 5 hits and committed two errors.

It’s one bad night across the board. But as Craig Edwards reminded us, it’s important to keep some perspective.

Craig Edwards @craigjedwards “Last time they lost a game by more than one run, the Cardinals were 54-53, 7.5 games behind the Brewers and 4.5 out of the Wild Card. Even if they lose tonight, they’ll be 72-58, ahead of the Brewers and in the first Wild Card spot.”

 

In other news, Senator John McCain died at age 81 after battling brain cancer.

I will spend the remainder of the evening evaluating my performance in an annual fantasy football snake draft.