Comeback helps Dodgers avoid altitude sickness

10:24 PM ET

DENVER — Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says that sometimes after a road trip, he can catch a quick snooze on the flight home. On Sunday, he promised he would be asleep on the bus ride to the airport.

It’s always that way, he admitted, when he comes to the base of the Rocky Mountains while on business.

More relieved than excited, exhausted rather than pumped full of adrenaline, Roberts admitted games at Coors Field “take a lot out of you.” After a 12-10 victory over the Colorado Rockies, in which both teams had five-run innings late in the game, it went without saying.

The Dodgers’ bullpen looked to be in full-meltdown mode when the Rockies scored five eighth-inning runs to completely erase what had been a six-run deficit in the third. But the offense picked up the relievers with a five-run ninth inning. Kenley Jansen pitched the bottom of the ninth inning for his ninth save in nine tries.

Trayce Thompson helped the Dodgers rally in the ninth by scoring the tying run on a wild pitch. AP Photo/David Zalubowski

“I’ve been on both sides of those games here, plenty of them,” said veteran Chase Utley, who drove in the go-ahead run for the Dodgers in the ninth with a double. He then scored the insurance run on a Corey Seager double. “The game’s never over, especially at this stadium. It’s tough to pitch here, but it’s a great place to hit.”

Yet all the drama, all the excitement of a comeback, fails to hide the fact that the Dodgers’ bullpen remains a work in progress. Chris Hatcher was at the center of the issues again after facing four batters, with three not only getting on base but scoring. His only out was recorded on a sacrifice.

In four innings, six Dodgers relievers combined to give up five runs on five hits with six walks. Much of that damage was …

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