The Colorado Rockies fell for the fifth time in their last six games Friday afternoon, this time to the Los Angeles Dodgers in their home opener, 10-6.
The game was the first of six the Rockies will play on their current homestand that includes the Atlanta Braves to round out the stint.
Ahead are the takeaways from the Rockies’ inaugural bout at Coors Field.
Anderson’s struggles continue
Tyler Anderson was no better Friday than he was in his first start of the season.
Anderson was sharp through the first two innings of the game, but collapsed once the third rolled around. The southpaw struggled to stay ahead in counts and was unable to keep the ball away from the middle of the plate.
While the Rockies offense provided Anderson with minimal run support during his outing, he enabled Los Angeles to re-take the lead in the fourth inning, surrendering a solo home run to Max Muncy to break a 1-1 tie.
From there, Anderson was unable to sharpen up on the mound and failed to record an out in the fifth inning before being pulled from the game.
The fifth inning started with a walk to Enrique Hernandez followed by a single from Corey Seager. Justin Turner then proceeded to hit an RBI double on the first pitch of his at-bat.
With Anderson dazed and confused on the mound, the Rockies opted for a mound visit, but to no avail, as Cody Bellinger followed with a three-run home run, extending the Dodgers’ lead to 6-1.
Anderson departed with a line of four innings pitched, allowing six runs off nine hits and three walks.
Through two starts, the Rockies left-hander appears to have failed to overcome his woes of 2018.
Missed opportunities at the dish
The Rockies’ offensive woes carried over to Coors Field. Unlike previous games this season, the Rockies had legitimate opportunities to score and build a sizeable lead that they failed to capitalize on.
The first opportunity came in the bottom of the third inning when the Rockies loaded the bases with no outs. A sacrifice fly from Nolan Arenado was the lone run Colorado scored. Trevor Story followed by lining into a double play, ending the inning and any momentum the Rockies were hoping to establish in front of a sold-out crowd.
The second chance came two innings later when the Rockies had runners on first and third, once again, no outs. With the top of the lineup due up, the fifth inning was a prime opportunity for Colorado to crawl back into the game.
Nevertheless, Charlie Blackmon flew out on the first pitch of his at-bat, David Dahl struck out and Story struck out looking after Arenado worked a walk to load the bases.
Colorado did claw back late in the game, scoring three runs in the seventh and two in the ninth, but it was too little, too late.
In all, the Rockies left eight runners on base and were 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
Ian Desmond is shaky in center
Ian Desmond has been the starting center-fielder for the Rockies in each of their games this season. Despite having played the position before, Desmond has looked noticeably uncomfortable in the outfield so far this season.
There was an instance in the fifth inning where Desmond misplayed a ball off the wall in right-center field. While the play did not significantly affect the outcome of the game, it’s a blemish nonetheless.
Additionally, Desmond committed an error in Colorado’s 1-0 victory versus the Tampa Bay Rays Wednesday when he dropped a fly-ball in centerfield.
It is still very early in the season, but Desmond has not been sharp in the outfield and has a sub-.200 batting average.
There is certainly hope within the organization that the veteran outfielder can get back on track, but with youngster Raimel Tapia knocking on the door for playing time, Desmond needs to sharpen up briskly.