In the fifth inning Sunday, before an energetic crowd of almost 47,000, Rockies’ outfielder Carlos Gonzalez hit a moonshot that may have just now landed somewhere beyond the right field fence of Coors Field. The three-run blast was the second of the afternoon for Gonzalez, who also contributed six RBIs in a 17-7 shellacking of the Cincinnati Reds.
The Rockies scored 10 runs in the third inning, transforming a 4-2 deficit into an eight-run lead. The scoring outburst saw the Rockies smash six extra-base hits in the inning, beginning with a two-run shot from Nolan Arenado, his 25th home run of the season and first since June 28, and ending with a two-run blast from Gonzalez.
The red-hot Gonzalez has now hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games, with seven home runs over that timeframe.
“CarGo is officially hot,” Rockies manager Walt Weiss said via the Denver Post.
First basemen Ben Paulsen, who also homered in the third, recorded his first career multi-homer game, and set career highs with four hits and four RBIs. The Rockies’ first basemen finished a double short of the cycle, striking out in his final at-bat in the seventh, with the game well in-hand.
“I let that at-bat get away from me,” Paulsen said via the Denver Post “If I had it to do over again, I’d take that walk at a 3-1 count.”
The Rockies, who have won just three times in eight tries since the all-star break, scored their most runs since beating the New York Mets 18-9 on April 27, 2012. Starting pitcher Kyle Kendrick picked up his fourth win of the season, but raised his ERA to 6.33.
The Rockies begin a three-game tilt against the Chicago Cubs at 6:05 PM tonight at Wrigley Field, the start of a seven-game road trip. Jorge De La Rosa will get the start on the mound.
Bryce Rudnick, a Mile High Sports intern and CU-Boulder student, contributed to this report
