After strong road trip, Rox open crucial homestand

NEW YORK — The Rockies hope they return to Coors Field on Tuesday with a winning formula that they concocted on the road.

After winning five of seven games on the road trip — it might’ve been six wins, but Boone Logan gave up a rare home run and the Rockies lost to the Mets on Sunday, 6-4 — the Rockies will face the Dodgers, Marlins and Rangers in an important eight-game homestand.

The trip has the Rockies 52-53 and five games back in the race for the second National League Wild Card. To climb — especially against the Dodgers and the Marlins, who hold the two Wild Cards — the Rockies will have to improve upon a 25-24 home record. They had to sweep the Braves in a four-game set to peek above the break-even point at Coors.

“We just need to keep doing what we’re doing, no matter where we play,” Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu said. “We need to keep executing. If we keep up that, we can be a dangerous team down the stretch.”

Sunday’s game followed the formula until the Mets’ Neil Walker hit a three-run, seventh-inning shot off Logan, who had a 45 2/3-inning homerless streak since last June 9.

Starting pitching was solid again. Righty Chad Bettis gave up three runs in the first three innings, but retired the last 10 and finished with the Rockies’ 20th quality start (six or more innings, three or fewer earned runs) in July, a club record for one month. …

continue reading in source mlb.mlb.com