Petey Halpin and Patrick Bailey homered, rookie Travis Bazzana tied his career high with four hits, and the Cleveland Guardians beat the Colorado Rockies 9-1 in Denver on Friday.
Bailey also doubled while Jo Adell and Nathaniel Lowe had two hits each for Cleveland, which remained a game behind the Texas Rangers for the final American League wild-card position.
Four Guardians relievers, led by Tim Herrin (4-2), delivered 4 1/3 scoreless innings. Herrin got four outs after starter Joey Cantillo pitched 4 2/3 innings. Cantillo permitted one run on four hits and four walks while striking out five as Cleveland earned its third win in four games.
Tanner Gordon (0-4) allowed five runs on nine hits in 5 1/3 innings for the Rockies, who have dropped the first four games of their six-game homestand.
Colorado managed just five hits but walked seven times. Kyle Karros singled and walked in his return from a concussion. Catcher Brett Sullivan recorded the final two outs in the ninth in his seventh mound appearance of the season.
The Rockies jumped ahead in the first inning when Jake McCarthy drew a leadoff walk, went to second on a groundout and scored on Willi Castro’s two-out single.
Halpin hit a solo homer in the third, his third of the season, to tie it, and the Guardians went ahead in the fourth. Lowe reached on a one-out single, Angel Genao doubled and both scored on a single to left by Bazzana to make it 3-1.
Cleveland added a run in the fifth on a miscue by Colorado center fielder Cole Carrigg. Following Steven Kwan’s leadoff walk, Chase DeLauter hit a fly ball that Carrigg appeared to lose in the lights, and it fell for a single.
One out later, Adell drove in Kwan with a single to left.
The Rockies threatened in the bottom of the inning, loading the bases on two hits and a walk, which ended Cantillo’s night. Herrin retired Castro to end the inning.
Kwan hit an RBI groundout in the sixth before the Guardians broke it open in the seventh against reliever Zach Agnos. Lowe drew a one-out walk, Bazzana singled with two outs, and Bailey homered to right-center, his seventh of the season.
–Field Level Media
