Rockies bat around in ninth for comeback win over Guardians in series opener

Tyler Freeman wants Cleveland to know that Colorado won the arrangement Freeman dealt from the Guardians to the Rockies for Nolan Jones in March came up clutch in his return to Progressive Field in Monday s series opener The designated hitter had two hits and three RBIs including the game-winning single in the top of the ninth as the Rockies put up four in the frame for an - comeback win They were the enemy in the current era and it was fun putting it to them Freeman informed Rockies TV The rally punctuated by Freeman s first career go-ahead RBI in the ninth inning or later erased a disastrous seventh inning in which the Rockies turned a - lead into a - deficit in a matter of minutes That was a big-time character win for the boys interim manager Warren Schaeffer described reporters To be down - then go down - and then keep going those last two innings with various really good at-bats with certain small-ball getting the job done that s a huge character win Prior to the Rockies rise from the canvas starter Bradley Blalock put the club in a great position with a career-best outing The right-hander threw six shutout innings with seven strikeouts And beyond Freeman rookie Warming Bernabel and catcher Hunter Goodman each had a homer and a double Those two hitters underscored how the Rockies offense which has consistently wilted in clutch moments this season did the opposite on Monday After a two-and-a-half-hour rain delay pushed the encounter back Blalock took the mound and delivered He scattered six hits and had zero walks while the Rockies offense did its part early to give him various cushion I saw him commanding the ball and I saw his changeup being really good tonight and being a difference-maker against a left-handed dominant lineup Schaeffer explained Freeman who entered the encounter ranked fourth in the majors in average at among players with at least plate appearances continued his consistent season by driving in the Rockies first two runs Freeman hit a sacrifice fly off Slade Cecconi in the third then singled home another run in the fifth for a - Rockies advantage Then in the sixth Bernabel took Cecconi deep feet to left field Bernabel who debuted on Saturday in Baltimore became the fifth Rockies participant ever with two or more homers in his first three MLB games But the Rockies watched that - lead go up in smoke in the seventh Jake Bird one of the best relievers in baseball through June continued his latest fall-off Bird ballooned his July ERA to in nine games by walking two batters then giving up a pinch-hit homer to Josh Naylor and another single before being pulled The Guardians plated two more runs off Vodnik before he in the end got the Rockies out of the jam But just when it appeared that Colorado was headed toward another letdown loss the offense roared back Goodman hit his th homer of the season in the eighth off Hunter Gaddis cutting the deficit to - Then came the fireworks in the final frame as the Rockies batted around to win the match Cleveland was without its closer Emmanuel Clase who was placed on non-disciplinary paid leave earlier in the day as part of an MLB scrutiny into sports gambling The red-hot Bernabel started the frame against Cade Smith with a ground-rule double to left The next pitch Brenton Doyle laid down a sacrifice punt that Smith threw away down the right-field line scoring Bernabel After Smith drilled Kyle Farmer Freeman delivered an RBI single to right that swung the lead back to Colorado - Freeman was pumped up going back into the dugout after the hit doling out aggressive high-fives and hyping up his teammates with specific yelling We didn t quit and we kept picking each other up Freeman explained Related Articles Rockies pitcher Biembenido Brito and free agent outfielder Pablo Abad suspended for drug tests Renck vs Keeler Ryan McMahon is gone Who should Rockies exchange next Rockies lose series in Baltimore after getting outscored - in final two games Rockies suffer - beatdown in Baltimore Ezequiel Tovar s homer propels Rockies past Orioles for th win in games Freeman s knock ended Smith s night but not the damage With Tim Herrin in the Rockies added on with Mikey Moniak s sacrifice fly and then Goodman s RBI double to make it - Seth Halvorsen finished the meeting off with the save yielding an RBI single to Jones before striking out Brayan Rocchio to end it Colorado improved to - with one of its better victories in a historically futile season The Rockies are on pace for losses one short of the modern-day loss record of set by last year s White Sox The Freeman-Jones Pact Comparing how Tyler Freeman and Nolan Jones have performed this season following the one-for-one exchange in March All stats are entering the match on Monday Tyler Freeman average on-base percentage OPS homer - bWAR games Nolan Jones average on-base percentage OPS homers - bWAR games Want more Rockies news Sign up for the Rockies Insider to get all our MLB analysis