Rockies Swept In San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Colorado manager Jim Tracy has run out of ways to explain his team's current slump.
Not even shaking up the lineup helped, and what was a 4 1/2-game lead in the NL West just a week ago has been reduced to one.
Maybe a trip back to Coors Field will help turn things around.
The Rockies managed just three hits off San Francisco's Ryan Vogelsong and two relievers and lost 3-0 on Sunday, completing a three-game sweep for the Giants.
"Over the course of a 162-game schedule you're going to step into a pothole and that's what we did," Tracy said. "We'll find out the mettle of our club, it's that simple. There's not a whole lot to speak of when you get three hits. We virtually had no opportunities."
The loss ended a frustrating road trip in which Colorado went 1-5. It also marked the fifth time in six games against San Francisco this season that the Rockies have come up short.
Not even having Jorge De La Rosa on the mound could help out Colorado, which is 7-12 since a seven-game winning streak in mid-April.
De La Rosa (4-1) was unusually erratic and never got settled in after walking four of the first six batters he faced. The lefty, who has been the Rockies' most effective starter this season, allowed Cody Ross' first home run of the season and finished with a season-high five walks.
"My command wasn't there," De La Rosa said. "I have some things to work on. (Ross' homer) was a mistake. He's a good hitter and he took a good at-bat."
Ross drove in all three runs for San Francisco, which managed only five hits but still completed the sweep.
Vogelsong (2-0) was perfect through five innings and didn't allow a hit until Chris Iannetta's leadoff single in the sixth. The 33-year-old right-hander struck out four and walked one in 6 1-3 innings.
Javier Lopez pitched 1 2-3 innings and Brian Wilson worked the ninth for his 11th save in 12 chances.
"It's early but it's good to get a sweep," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "There's so much baseball left. This is going to be a battle but we certainly helped our cause by coming in here and winning some games."
Iannetta had two hits for Colorado, shut out for the second time in nine games. The Rockies had lost their previous three in walk-off fashion.
This time it didn't get that far.
Vogelsong, tagged for five runs in four innings by the Mets in his previous start, wasn't overpowering and relied heavily on San Francisco's defense, which repeatedly bailed him out.
Jason Giambi and Ian Stewart both hit deep fly balls that were caught at the warning track. Giants third baseman Miguel Tejada also made a tough play when he snared Jonathan Herrera's line drive just in front of his face in the fourth.
Beyond that, the Rockies' offense stayed silent while Vogelsong and the Giants' bullpen remained in control.
"This is going to come together," Giambi said. "We have too many good players not to be better. We've had our chances to win these games."
Tracy juggled his lineup, moving a slumping Stewart to eighth in the batting order. Stewart, called up from the minors last Tuesday, went hitless in three at-bats and is in a 1-for-15 funk, though he's far from the only Rockies player struggling.
That's why it was no surprise when Tracy's frustrations boiled over during a subtle yet pointed 10-minute pregame session with reporters.
"I didn't sign up here to manage this ballclub and come in second," Tracy said. "If we're not producing, we will evaluate this club every day because we have other alternatives to explore if things aren't working out. And we will do that, I guarantee you. That for me is where this organization is at."
It didn't seem to help.
Colorado got just two runners to second base, and Wilson wrapped up the Giants' third shutout of the season. It was his 11th straight save after he blew his first opportunity against St. Louis on April 8.
Ross, a key contributor during San Francisco's championship run a year ago, had an RBI single off De La Rosa in the fourth, then added a two-run homer in the sixth to make it 3-0.
Ross also made a big play defensively when ran into foul territory and over the bullpen pitching mound to catch Herrera's flyball.
NOTES: Colorado INF Ty Wigginton (right oblique strain) played soft toss before the game but the Rockies are unsure when he'll progress further.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
