PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Wilin Rosario got some words of encouragement and then broke himself and the Colorado Rockies out of an offensive slump.
Rosario hit a go-ahead, three-run homer and Jorge De La Rosa pitched six strong innings to lift the Rockies to a 6-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night.
Rosario entered the game without a hit in his previous 13 at-bats, but he got a pep talk from De La Rosa before the game.
“I told Rosario in the training room before the game, ’You have to do something to win the game,’” a smiling De La Rosa said afterward. “And he did.”
Drew Stubbs went 2 for 4 with a double and an RBI for the Rockies, who had lost four of five while being outscored 16-0 in their two previous games.
“That was a great win because we battled hard,” Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. “We had a tough night (Monday). This team shows up well every day, and they turn the page. They went out there ready to win a game tonight.”
Ben Revere hit his first career homer in his 1,466th at-bat, and Darin Ruf also went deep for the Phillies.
The start of the game was delayed 1 hour, 22 minutes due to rain.
De La Rosa (6-3) continued his strong stretch, allowing one run and six hits with four strikeouts and two walks. The left-hander is 6-0 with a 1.58 ERA in his last seven starts. He wiggled out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the third when he got Revere to ground out, Jimmy Rollins to pop out and Chase Utley to fly out.
“I just tried to keep the ball on the ground,” De La Rosa said. “That’s how I got out of it.”
Said Weiss, “I feel like the game kind of turned right there. That was critical.”
Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg agreed.
“Came back to haunt us,” Sandberg said. “That’s a big momentum inning for them getting out of it. . There’s just something about getting the job done in that situation.”
Philadelphia starter Cole Hamels (1-3) was cruising along until walking consecutive batters with one out in the seventh. After Justin Morneau flied out for the second out, Rosario broke out of a slump by lifting Hamels’ first pitch just over the wall in right to give Colorado a 4-1 lead. He had been 0 for 15 before the homer, his sixth in 10 career games at Citizens Bank Park.
“That was a big hit for him, a real money hit,” Weiss said.
Said Hamels, “If the pitch is down, it’s a definite different result. It’s just a poorly executed pitch. I have to be able to make that pitch.”
Hamels left after the seventh after giving up four runs and three hits with four strikeouts and those two walks.
Revere’s one-out homer off left-handed reliever Boone Logan in the seventh just cleared the wall in right to pull Philadelphia within 4-2. Revere pointed skyward after crossing the plate, then grinned while receiving congratulations from Rollins before entering a silent dugout. His teammates relented after a minute or so and mobbed the smiling Revere.
“It’s a good feeling,” Revere said. “When I got to second base, I didn’t know what to do. I was trying not to smile but some guys got on me. It was fun. I’ll try to hit 400 more.”
Ruf’s fourth-inning homer to left tied the game at 1 and halted De La Rosa’s scoreless streak at 15 1-3 innings. Ruf was starting at first base in place of left-handed slugger Ryan Howard, who sat against the lefty starter despite going 3 for 4 with a homer and five RBIs in Philadelphia’s 9-0 win over Colorado on Monday and knocking in 14 runs in his last nine games against the Rockies.
It was the first homer of the season for Ruf, who was activated from the disabled list last Wednesday after recovering from a left oblique strain.
Howard pinch hit with one out and two on in the eighth against righty Adam Ottavino and grounded into an inning-ending double play. It was the 58th double play of the season for the Rockies, who led the majors in that category entering Tuesday.
Colorado got on the board first with a run in the fourth on Troy Tulowitzki’s hard-hit sacrifice fly. Tulowitzki, the NL batting leader who entered hitting .447 off lefties, went 0 for 2 against Hamels.
NOTES: Rockies LF Carlos Gonzalez was lifted after the fourth inning due to a right calf contusion. He is day-to-day. . Philadelphia’s Marlon Byrd went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts, dropping him to 1 for his last 17. … LPGA golfer Gerina Piller was on hand to promote the tour’s stop this week at the ShopRite LPGA Classic in Galloway, New Jersey. … The three-game series concludes Wednesday night when Rockies RHP Jordan Lyles (5-1, 3.45) opposes Phillies RHP Roberto Hernandez (2-2, 3.83).
Please read our comment policy before commenting.