The Colorado Rockies finished a 4-2 homestand on Wednesday with nail-biting finishes in nearly every game, and they continued that trend in the opener of a three-game series at the Minnesota Twins on Friday night.
Colorado scored eight runs over the eighth and ninth innings to erase a 7-0 lead, but the Twins won 9-8 in 10 innings.
Minnesota will go for the series win when the teams play Saturday night in Minneapolis.
The Rockies will send Michael Lorenzen (2-9, 7.11 ERA) to the mound against Mike Paredes (0-0, 4.05) in a matchup of right-handers.
Lorenzen was on the hill for one of the two Colorado losses in the recent homestand. He allowed four runs on seven hits in 5 1/3 innings in an 8-6 setback to Pittsburgh on Sunday and is winless in his last 10 starts.
Lorenzen has been successful in seven career appearances (four starts) against Minnesota, going 2-1 with a 2.86 ERA and one save.
He was nearly saved from a loss against the Pirates on Sunday when his team scored five late runs and had the tying runner at the plate in the ninth inning. It was a typical finish of late, and something the Rockies take pride in.
“Our boys just never quit,” Colorado manager Warren Schaeffer said. “When the seventh inning rolls around, we’re down, that something’s bound to happen with us. You just feel it every night. Doesn’t matter how much you’re down, you always feel good about it.”
The Rockies continued their late-game heroics Friday night, scoring three runs in the eighth and five in the ninth, the last two runs on a home run by Hunter Goodman.
For the Twins, Paredes on Saturday will make his sixth appearance since his major league debut on May 31. He worked out of the bullpen in his first two games but has started the last three. In his most recent outing, Sunday at Arizona, he tossed a career-high five innings but didn’t get the decision in Minnesota’s 4-2 win.
Paredes isn’t the only Twins player trying to make his mark at this level. Luke Keaschall, in his second season, played second base or served as the designated hitter for 113 of his first 114 career games. Friday night he was in right field, the first time he has started in the outfield since 2024, when he was in the minor leagues.
Manager Derek Shelton made the move to strengthen the infield defense. Keaschall has committed eight errors in 74 games at second base and was open to making the switch to the outfield.
“Yeah, I’ll be good,” he said of playing in right field. “[I’m a] confident ballplayer, show up to the yard, ready to go, wherever they want me to go.
“I think it’s huge, because every day you show up to the field, it gives Shelty a lot of options on how he wants to manage the game. I think it’s a good thing that a lot of us can play multiple positions.”
–Field Level Media
