The Rockies’ last postseason win, a dramatic 2-1 triumph in 13 innings on October 2, 2018, at Wrigley Field, seems like an eon ago.
Colorado, now the worst team in baseball, remains on the fast track to becoming the most infamously bad team in modern history. And the friendly confines remain extremely unfriendly to the Rockies, who were swept by the Cubs on Wednesday in Chicago in a 2-1 defeat.
The loss dropped the Rockies to 9-47 on the season, and 3-25 on the road, amid their ninth straight defeat at Wrigley Field in their ninth sweep of a dismal 2025. The Rockies lost the three games in the series by a total of four runs.
“This was a competitive series,” interim manager Warren Schaeffer told reporters. “It’s just a matter of stringing some hits together, putting some runs on the board.”
Once again on Wednesday, the offense stalled out, providing little run support to back up a solid performance by starter Tanner Gordon as well as the bullpen. It marked the 28th time this season that the Rockies were held to two runs or less, the most in the majors.
Orlando Arcia — making his Rockies debut after being released by Atlanta, and then officially signed by Colorado on Wednesday — recorded the club’s first hit of the evening in the third with a single to right off southpaw Matthew Boyd.
In the fifth, Ryan McMahon and Arcia both singled to get some traffic going, but again, the Rockies couldn’t do anything with it against Boyd after Michael Toglia grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Gordon held the Cubs at bay, but Chicago’s two big bats hurt him. National League RBI leader Seiya Suzuki roped an RBI double in the first, and fellow slugging outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong added to the damage with a 379-foot leadoff homer to right in the fourth to extend the home lead to 2-0.
“(Gordon) was attacking the zone,” Schaeffer said. “He left a slider over the middle of the plate to Suzuki and got hurt, and then PCA went down and got that ball (on the homer off a curve). Overall, (Gordon) put the ball where he wanted to, used all of his pitches, and competed well.”
Colorado finally broke through against Boyd in the sixth, when Mickey Moniak led off with a single. Moniak advanced to third on a throwing error by Boyd on a pickoff attempt, then Tyler Freeman’s sacrifice fly brought Moniak home to make it 2-1.
But that anemic offensive effort was all Colorado had in the tank as the Rockies struck out 11 times.
“I’m seeing more compete just overall, but we’ve got some work to do, no doubt about it,” Schaeffer said. “Especially with getting to the heater, battling with two strikes. You’re seeing more of it, but we’re looking for more progress.”
The lack of runs wasted a decent start by Gordon, and then 3 1/3 combined scoreless innings by the bullpen trio of Ryan Rolison, Jimmy Herget and the recently reinstated Victor Vodnik, who hadn’t pitched in the majors since April 16 due to right shoulder inflammation.
Down to their last outs in the ninth, right-hander Daniel Palencia made quick work of Colorado to earn the save and send the Rockies limping to Queens for a three-game series against the Mets starting on Friday. Palencia struck out Freeman, got Ezequiel Tovar to ground out and then K’d Hunter Goodman with 100-mph heat to end the game.
The Rockies are now 4-14 at Wrigley Field since winning the 2018 Wild Card game, with eight of those losses by two or fewer runs, and five by one run. It’s the first time in franchise history they’ve been swept three straight times at Wrigley Field. And with Wednesday’s sweep, Colorado is the seventh team since 1961 to be swept nine or more times in the first 18 series of a season.
Friday’s pitching matchup
The Rockies are off on Thursday before starting a three-game series at the New York Mets on Friday.
Rockies LHP Kyle Freeland (0-7, 5.86 ERA) at Mets LHP David Peterson (3-2, 2.79)
5:10 p.m. Friday, Citi Field
TV: Rockies.TV (streaming); Comcast/Xfinity (channel 1262); DirecTV (683); Spectrum (130, 445, 305, 435 or 445, depending on region); KUSA-9; KTVD-20.
Radio: 850 AM, 94.1 FM
Trending: Let’s forget about the Rockies historically bad pace for a moment, and focus on the showdown of Colorado southpaws on Friday — pitchers who are turning in drastically different seasons. Thomas Jefferson product Kyle Freeland is struggling, as he’s lost eight straight decisions dating back to ’24 and has allowed six or more hits in each of his last six starts. Meanwhile, Regis Jesuit product David Peterson is one reason for the Mets’ early success. He’s turned in four straight quality starts and has allowed just one homer in six starts at home.
Pitching probables
Saturday: Rockies RHP Antonio Senzatela (1-9, 6.50) at Mets RHP Kodai Senga (5-3, 1.46), 2:10 p.m.
Sunday: Rockies LHP Carson Palmquist (0-3, 8.78) at Mets RHP Clay Holmes (5-3, 2.98), 11:40 a.m.
— Kyle Newman, The Denver Post
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