One of the wackiest MLB finishes in a while.
Friday night’s matchup between the Rockies and Pirates looked over before it ever really began. Colorado gave up nine runs in the first inning and trailed 10-1 after two. Most fans at Coors Field probably figured it would be another long night. Then the bats came alive.
Brenton Doyle capped a wild night by launching a two-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Rockies an outrageous 17-16 win over Pittsburgh in one of the most ridiculous games of the season.
The meltdown that wasn’t
Pittsburgh came out swinging. Oneil Cruz smashed a grand slam in the first, and Andrew McCutchen added a three-run shot to build a 9-0 lead before Colorado even recorded an out. The Pirates added more in the second and fifth innings, but couldn’t put the Rockies away.
Colorado slowly chipped away, scoring in five different innings. After being down 15-6 midway through the game, they kept the pressure on. By the ninth, the deficit had shrunk to three.
That’s when things unraveled for the Pirates.
Ninth-inning collapse
Reliever Dennis Santana opened the bottom of the ninth with a strikeout. But the next five Rockies came through.
Hunter Goodman crushed a solo shot to deep center. Jordan Beck drew a walk. Warming Bernabel followed with an RBI triple. Thairo Estrada’s single tied it.
Then Doyle sent a no-doubt rocket 406 feet over the wall, completing the comeback.
History made
The last time a team came back from a nine-run deficit in the first inning? That was Cleveland in 2006. The last time a team allowed 15+ runs and still won? Boston in 2008.
Category: Baseball
