|
|
|
|
 |
|
Scores Schedules Standings Statistics Transactions Injuries: AL | NL Players Weekly Lineup Message Board Minor Leagues MLB Stat Search Clubhouses |
| Sport Sections |
|
|
| |
Sunday, May 28 3:05pm ET
Arrojo baffles Pirates at Coors | |||||
|
| ||||||
|
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
|
GAME LOG
DENVER (AP) -- Rolando Arrojo duped the Pittsburgh Pirates and their manager Gene Lamont. Arrojo, who had dropped four straight decisions, pitched seven innings for his first victory in nearly seven weeks as the Colorado Rockies beat the Pirates 11-2 on Sunday. "He wasn't the same guy I saw on tape," Lamont said. "He had an ERA over 8.00 and had quite a bit of trouble with his control. Today he had much better command, inside and outside. The tape I saw, he kept his pitches over the middle of the plate." Arrojo's two-run, six-hit performance lowered his ERA from 8.13 to 7.19 and gave the Rockies what they had been expecting since acquiring him in a trade with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in December. The Cuban right-hander, who walked one and struck out eight, has shown signs of effectiveness but has been unable to string together more than one good start. "I want to have the confidence of my pitching coach and manager," Arrojo (2-4) said through interpreter and teammate Jose Jimenez. "I've never lost confidence in myself. ... I'm happy with the win because they will be happy with it." Although he didn't need it, Colorado's offense gave Arrojo plenty of room for error, scoring five runs in the first inning against Pittsburgh left-hander Jimmy Anderson (1-3). "I can't seem to get out of the first inning without putting my team in a hole," said Anderson, who has allowed at least one first-inning run in six straight starts. "Five runs in the first inning is a lot to give up and a lot to ask your team to come back from and win." Tom Goodwin was 3-for-4 with three runs, and Mike Lansing homered and had three RBIs for the Rockies, who improved to 16-6 at Coors Field. Todd Helton went 3-for-4 to raise his major league-leading average to .415. "It's been up and down the lineup," Lansing said. "It's been our pitching staff. It's not always one guy. Guys are enjoying that and we're all pulling for each other." Lansing, who had an RBI triple in the first, gave the Rockies a 7-1 lead with a two-run homer off Josias Manzanillo in the fourth. Colorado went ahead 9-1 before Brian Giles hit a solo homer, his 14th, for Pittsburgh in the sixth. Arrojo seemed unfazed as he struck out the final two hitters he faced in the seventh to cap his best outing of the season. "That's what we were looking for," Rockies manager Buddy Bell said. "I'm sure he's happy with his performance. He's been struggling with the way he's been pitching. When you know you're better than that, it really has to eat at you, and he was really, really good today." The Pirates ended their road trip 1-5 and have lost seven of eight. Game notesHelton had reached base eight straight times before grounding out in the third. He had five singles, two homers and a walk in that stretch. ... Pirates C Jason Kendall went 3-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. He was 8-for-13 in the series. ... Pittsburgh pinch-hitters have one hit in their last 20 at-bats. Pirates leadoff hitters aren't faring much better, mired in a 2-for-29 slump. ... Colorado OF Jeffrey Hammonds did not play Sunday after straining his left hip flexor Saturday when he slammed into the wall in foul territory along the first-base line. ... The Rockies got encouraging news when OF Larry Walker threw for a second straight day as he recovers from an elbow injury. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Pittsburgh Clubhouse Colorado Clubhouse RECAPS Toronto 12 Detroit 7
Colorado 11
  | |||||