It was in the hands of Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen to throw strikes and keep those pesky San Francisco Giants hitters off their stride on Saturday.
Lorenzen, though, found himself nibbling at the corners a bit too much. His pitching performance wasn't that sharp as he only went 3.2 innings in the Rockies' 7-1 loss to the Giants at Oracle Park on Saturday afternoon.
His season record remains bad and that ERA isn't looking too sexy, either. After the game, Lorenzen tended to agree with what Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said about his outing.
Lorenzen analyzes his outing
“Yeah, it's exactly right,” Lorenzen said, according to MLB.com. “Past few games, putting guys away. Felt like I get into good counts, and then I'm working deep counts, and then a ball in play, and then you start trying to kind of nibble a little bit, or make a better pitch, and then you start falling behind.”
What did Schaeffer say exactly?
“A lot of 0-2 counts,” he said. “First hitter of the game, 0-2 to [Drew] Gilbert, led to a walk. Just had a tough time putting guys away. He was behind on the homer to Gilbert, but I just think the story of the day was he got ahead and just couldn't finish with a lot of foul balls, and they kept the at-bats alive. They battled today.”
While the Giants battled, there wasn't much fight from the Rockies. Colorado came into this weekend three-game series next to San Francisco Bay knowing the goal was a sweep. If they could get that sweep, then the Rockies would be all alone in fourth place in the National League West Division.
Sure, Colorado can still go for a series win on Sunday afternoon. If that happens, though, the Rockies will leave San Francisco just one game behind the Giants.
Colorado already has more wins this season just weeks ahead of the final game than it did in the entire 2025 season. That's progress and it's even getting noticed by some in the MLB media world.
Goodman remains out of lineup
If you were wondering where catcher Hunter Goodman is right now, then he's still out of the lineup and dealing with right shoulder inflammation. Brett Sullivan has been behind the plate for games recently, doing a yeoman's job for the Rockies.
Additionally, it's been a long, long road trip for Colorado. Getting a win on Sunday means that the team can go home to Coors Field with a winning road trip. Looking at what they have accomplished on this trip, getting that key victory on Sunday can go a long way toward making the Rockies feel better about themselves,
Rockies fans want to see a better effort out of their team and that has happened this season. Sure, Colorado is not a postseason team this season. Yet getting more wins than last season already is a solid sign of improvement.
The Rockies also have shown a knack for putting together rallies at the right time. These comeback kids are still seeking more wins before heading off to other places in the offseason. Can they get this started on Sunday afternoon at Oracle Park? Sure. Getting a win over the Giants before coming home could be just what the doctor ordered.