NL: COLORADO at HOUSTON <div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ COLORADO (8) AT HOUSTON (9) - EVENT LOG ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Colorado Starting Lineups -- W Taveras CF, K Matsui 2B, M Holliday LF, T Helton 1B, G Atkins 3B, B Hawpe RF, T Tulowitzki SS, C Iannetta C, J Fogg RHP. Houston Starting Lineups -- C Biggio 2B, H Pence CF, L Berkman 1B, C Lee LF, M Loretta SS, M Lamb 3B, L Scott RF, E Munson C, C Sampson RHP. Umpires -- Bruce Dreckman (HP), Gary Darling (1B), Jerry Meals (2B), Larry Poncino (3B). Gametime Weather: INDOORS. COLORADO 1ST: W Taveras safe at first on throwing error by shortstop M Loretta. W Taveras picked off first. K Matsui safe at first on error by second baseman C Biggio. K Matsui caught stealing second, catcher to second. M Holliday struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 2 Errors) COLORADO 0, HOUSTON 0. HOUSTON 1ST: C Biggio popped out to shortstop. H Pence grounded out to first. L Berkman struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 0, HOUSTON 0. COLORADO 2ND: T Helton singled to right. G Atkins homered to center, T Helton scored. B Hawpe flied out to left. T Tulowitzki reached on infield single to shortstop. C Iannetta walked, T Tulowitzki to second. J Fogg flied into double play, center to right to shortstop, T Tulowitzki doubled off second.(2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 2, HOUSTON 0. HOUSTON 2ND: C Lee walked. M Loretta hit by pitch, C Lee to second. M Lamb grounded out to first, C Lee to third, M Loretta to second. L Scott intentionally walked. E Munson doubled to deep right center, C Lee and M Loretta scored, L Scott to third. C Sampson struck out swinging. C Biggio struck out looking. (2 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) COLORADO 2, HOUSTON 2. COLORADO 3RD: W Taveras walked. K Matsui struck out looking, W Taveras stole second. M Holliday flied out to center, W Taveras to third. T Helton grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 2, HOUSTON 2. HOUSTON 3RD: H Pence fouled out to first. L Berkman homered to right. C Lee singled to left. C Lee caught stealing second, catcher to second to first. M Loretta grounded out to second. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 2, HOUSTON 3. COLORADO 4TH: G Atkins homered to center. B Hawpe popped out to shortstop. T Tulowitzki walked. C Iannetta singled to center, T Tulowitzki to third. J Fogg sacrificed to pitcher, C Iannetta to second. W Taveras singled to left, T Tulowitzki and C Iannetta scored. K Matsui grounded out to first. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 5, HOUSTON 3. HOUSTON 4TH: M Lamb grounded out to second. L Scott flied out to right. E Munson lined out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 5, HOUSTON 3. COLORADO 5TH: M Holliday flied out to right. T Helton homered to right center. G Atkins popped out to second. B Hawpe singled to center. T Tulowitzki struck out looking. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 6, HOUSTON 3. HOUSTON 5TH: C Sampson grounded out to pitcher. C Biggio hit by pitch. H Pence singled to center, C Biggio to second. L Berkman tripled to deep right, C Biggio and H Pence scored. C Lee hit sacrifice fly to center, L Berkman scored. M Loretta singled to right. M Lamb doubled to deep right, M Loretta scored. T Buchholz relieved J Fogg. L Scott grounded out to shortstop. (4 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 6, HOUSTON 7. COLORADO 6TH: C Iannetta flied out to center. T Buchholz struck out swinging. W Taveras hit by pitch. W Taveras stole second, W Taveras safe at third on throwing error by catcher E Munson. K Matsui walked. L Berkman in right field. M Loretta at first base. M McLemore relieved C Sampson. E Bruntlett at shortstop. M Holliday reached on infield single to first, W Taveras scored, K Matsui to second. T Helton walked, K Matsui to third, M Holliday to second. G Atkins flied out to center. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 1 Error) COLORADO 7, HOUSTON 7. HOUSTON 6TH: E Munson grounded out to second. E Bruntlett grounded out to second. C Biggio walked. H Pence grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 7, HOUSTON 7. COLORADO 7TH: B Hawpe singled to right. T Tulowitzki singled to center, B Hawpe to second. C Iannetta bunt popped out foul to catcher. R Spilborghs hit for T Buchholz. R Spilborghs singled to center, B Hawpe scored, T Tulowitzki to second. W Taveras fouled out to first. K Matsui struck out swinging. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 8, HOUSTON 7. HOUSTON 7TH: J Julio relieved T Buchholz. L Berkman flied out to center. C Lee fouled out to shortstop. M Loretta walked. M Lamb grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 8, HOUSTON 7. COLORADO 8TH: M Holliday fouled out to first. T Helton grounded out to first. G Atkins popped out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) COLORADO 8, HOUSTON 7. HOUSTON 8TH: M Corpas relieved J Julio. O Palmeiro hit for M McLemore. O Palmeiro grounded out to second. E Munson singled to left. E Bruntlett grounded out to shortstop, E Munson to second. B Ausmus ran for E Munson. C Biggio grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) COLORADO 8, HOUSTON 7. COLORADO 9TH: D Borkowski relieved M McLemore. L Berkman at first base. M Loretta at second base. O Palmeiro in right field. B Ausmus catching. B Hawpe singled to right. T Tulowitzki bunted into fielder's choice to pitcher, B Hawpe out at second. C Iannetta walked, T Tulowitzki to second. C Sullivan hit for M Corpas. C Sullivan fouled out to third. W Taveras grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) COLORADO 8, HOUSTON 7. HOUSTON 9TH: B Fuentes relieved M Corpas. H Pence grounded out to second. L Berkman struck out swinging. C Lee walked. C Burke ran for C Lee. M Loretta homered to left, C Burke scored. (2 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) COLORADO 8, HOUSTON 9.</div>
Loretta's homer propels Astros past struggling Rockies <h3>HOUSTON 9, COLORADO 8</h3>HOUSTON (Ticker) -- Mark Loretta and the Houston Astroscontinue to make life miserable for closer Brian Fuentes and thecolorado Rockies. Loretta hit a two-run homer off Fuentes as the Astros defeatedthe Rockies, 8-7, on Friday, sending them to their eighthstraight loss. It was the fourth consecutive blown save for Fuentes (0-4), whohas seven so far in 2007. After Colorado had taken an 8-7 lead in the seventh inning on anRBI single from pinch hitter Ryan Spilborghs, Loretta andHouston dealt another blow to Colorado in the ninth. Carlos Lee, who hit a walk-off grand slam Thursday againstFuentes, drew a leadoff walk. Loretta then sent a 1-1 offeringinto the left field seats to send the Rockies to another loss. Reliever Dave Borkowski (2-3) pitched the ninth for Houston toearn the victory. After sweeping the Yankees at home, Colorado lost the firstseven on this road trip, including three at Toronto, three atthe Chicago Cubs and Thursday's opener of a four-games serieshere. The Rockies' bullpen, which had blown five save opportunities inthe previous seven losses, pitched superbly Friday untilFuentes lost it. Reliever Taylor Buchholz, a former Astro,threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings before Jorge Julio and MannyCorpas each pitched the seventh and eighth innings, effectively. Lance Berkman drove in three runs for Houston with a homer andtwo-run triple. Trailing, 6-3, in the fifth, the Astros scored four in theinning to knock out Rockies starter Josh Fogg. Fogg, who gave up six runs and 11 hits in five innings in hislast start against Houston June 6, gave up seven runs on sevenhits this time in 4 2/3 innings. Down a run, the Rockies tied it in the sixth. Willy Taveras washit by a pitch, stole second and moved to third on catcher EricMunson's throwing error, before scoring on Matt Holliday's RBIsingle to make it 7-7. Starter Chris Sampson wasn't any better for the Astros, givingup seven runs on eight hits, in 5 2/3 innings. Garrett Atkins hit two homers and Todd Helton also homered forColorado, giving the Rockies back-to-back three-homer games.
Loretta's homer propels Astros past struggling Rockies <h3>HOUSTON 9, COLORADO 8</h3>HOUSTON (Ticker) -- Mark Loretta and the Houston Astroscontinue to make life miserable for closer Brian Fuentes and theColorado Rockies. Loretta hit a two-run homer off Fuentes as the Astros defeatedthe Rockies, 8-7, on Friday, sending them to their eighthstraight loss. It was the fourth consecutive blown save for Fuentes (0-4), whohas seven so far in 2007. After Colorado had taken an 8-7 lead in the seventh inning on anRBI single from pinch hitter Ryan Spilborghs, Loretta andHouston dealt another blow to Colorado in the ninth. Carlos Lee, who hit a walk-off grand slam Thursday againstFuentes, drew a leadoff walk. Loretta then sent a 1-1 offeringinto the left field seats to send the Rockies to another loss. Reliever Dave Borkowski (2-3) pitched the ninth for Houston toearn the victory. After sweeping the Yankees at home, Colorado lost the firstseven on this road trip, including three at Toronto, three atthe Chicago Cubs and Thursday's opener of a four-games serieshere. The Rockies' bullpen, which had blown five save opportunities inthe previous seven losses, pitched superbly Friday untilFuentes lost it. Reliever Taylor Buchholz, a former Astro,threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings before Jorge Julio and MannyCorpas each pitched the seventh and eighth innings, effectively. Lance Berkman drove in three runs for Houston with a homer andtwo-run triple. Trailing, 6-3, in the fifth, the Astros scored four in theinning to knock out Rockies starter Josh Fogg. Fogg, who gave up six runs and 11 hits in five innings in hislast start against Houston June 6, gave up seven runs on sevenhits this time in 4 2/3 innings. Down a run, the Rockies tied it in the sixth. Willy Taveras washit by a pitch, stole second and moved to third on catcher EricMunson's throwing error, before scoring on Matt Holliday's RBIsingle to make it 7-7. Starter Chris Sampson wasn't any better for the Astros, givingup seven runs on eight hits, in 5 2/3 innings. Garrett Atkins hit two homers and Todd Helton also homered forColorado, giving the Rockies back-to-back three-homer games.
Loretta's homer propels Astros past struggling Rockies <h3>HOUSTON 9, COLORADO 8</h3>HOUSTON (Ticker) -- Mark Loretta and the Houston Astroscontinue to make life miserable for closer Brian Fuentes and theColorado Rockies. Loretta hit a two-run homer off Fuentes as the Astros defeatedthe Rockies, 8-7, on Friday, sending them to their eighthstraight loss. It was the fourth consecutive blown save for Fuentes (0-4), whohas seven so far in 2007. "This is the craziest situation I've ever been in in anything,"said Colorado first baseman Todd Helton, who once playedquarterback for the Tennessee Volunteers. After Colorado had taken an 8-7 lead in the seventh inning on anRBI single from pinch hitter Ryan Spilborghs, Loretta andHouston dealt another blow to Colorado in the ninth. Carlos Lee, who hit a walk-off grand slam Thursday againstFuentes, drew a two-out walk walk. Loretta then sent a 1-1offering into the left field seats for only his second homer ofthe season to send the Rockies to another loss. "I was just trying to make good contact," Loretta said. "Ididn't go up there trying to win the game. I'm not a home runhitter. It was an inside fastball I was able to pull.(Fuentes) throws hard. You don't want to be late on thefastball." Lee predicted that Loretta would deliver. "Carlos said before the inning, 'I have a feeling you're goingto do it tonight,'" said Loretta, whose only other walk-offhomer happened last year for Boston against Seattle. Fuentes did not talk with the media after the game. "Tito's as tough a guy as I've ever known," said Rockiesoutfielder Brad Hawpe of Fuentes, whose nicknamed after formerSan Francisco infielder Tito Fuentes. "He's our closer, andwe're really glad he is." "The guy is going to be fine," added Helton. "Basically he'sjust run into some bad luck." Houston manager Phil Garner defended Fuentes. "He probably did a smart thing by walking Lee," Garner said."You think a walk is not going to hurt you that much. There'dbe a lot of people who would like to have him, even though he'sstruggled on the road trip." When asked if he might remove Fuentes from the closer's roletemporarily, Colorado manager Clint Hurdle said it was anoption. "The ball (Thursday night) against Lee just got away from him,"Hurdle said. "He couldn't get a ball where we wanted to againstLoretta." Reliever Dave Borkowski (2-3) pitched the ninth for Houston toearn the victory. Mark McLemore kept the Astros in the game byallowing only one run in 2 1/3 innings. "I was just trying to chew up some innings, keep the game asclose as I can," said McLemore, recalled Thursday from Class AAARound Rock (Texas) for the second time this season. "I'm notmaking any long term plans, but you get more comfortable everytime (you get to the majors) and that's huge in baseball." After sweeping the Yankees at home, Colorado lost the firstseven on this road trip, including three at Toronto, three atthe Chicago Cubs and Thursday's opener of a four-games serieshere. The Rockies' bullpen, which had blown five save opportunities inthe previous seven losses, pitched superbly Friday untilFuentes lost it. Reliever Taylor Buchholz, a former Astro,threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings before Jorge Julio and MannyCorpas each pitched the seventh and eighth innings, effectively. Lance Berkman drove in three runs for Houston with a homer andtwo-run triple. "He struck the ball well tonight," Garner said of Berkman."Particularly from the left side, it looks like he's getting hisgroove back." "I feel pretty good right now," said Berkman, who raised hisaverage to .262. "For a while I was not feeling good. I'mstill trying to climb out of a hole. There's a long way to go.It's all timing and feel." Trailing, 6-3, in the fifth, the Astros scored four in theinning to knock out Rockies starter Josh Fogg. Fogg, who gave up six runs and 11 hits in five innings in hislast start against Houston June 6, surrendered seven runs onseven hits this time in 4 2/3 innings. Down a run, the Rockies tied it in the sixth. Willy Taveras washit by a pitch, stole second and moved to third on catcher EricMunson's throwing error, before scoring on Matt Holliday's RBIsingle to make it 7-7. Starter Chris Sampson wasn't any better for the Astros, givingup seven runs on eight hits, in 5 2/3 innings. Garrett Atkins hit two homers and Todd Helton also homered forColorado, giving the Rockies back-to-back three-homer games.
