DENVER — Kyle Freeland efficiently pitched into the seventh inning before running into trouble, Trevor Story lined a long solo homer and the Colorado Rockies snapped a five-game Coors Field skid with a 3-1 win over the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.
Freeland (7-8) was cruising along until the seventh, when he loaded the bases and walked in a run with two outs to make it 2-1. He turned the ball over to reliever Tyler Kinley, who got Alcides Escobar to fly out and end the threat.
The left-handed Freeland kept slugger Juan Soto and the Nationals from the timely hit over 6 2/3 innings, allowing one run while striking out three and walking four. Freeland has given up three earned runs or less in 15 of his last 18 starts.
Carlos Estévez pitched the ninth to earn his 10th save in 16 chances.
Soto went 0 for 4 and dropped to .318. He trails the Dodgers’ Trea Turner in the NL batting race.
Patrick Corbin (9-16) tied a season-high with nine strikeouts as he threw six innings. He allowed two runs - an RBI double by Ryan McMahon in the fourth and Story’s 24th homer of the season in the fifth.
Brendan Rodgers added an insurance run with an RBI double in the seventh.
Story connected on a slider from Corbin that went 475 feet, according to Statcast. It was the second-longest homer of the season by the Rockies, behind McMahon’s 478-foot blast on May 15 against Cincinnati.
As he circled the bases, Story received a round of applause. His days in a Rockies uniform could be numbered. The shortstop who was a first-round pick by Colorado in 2011 is set to become a free agent.
He hasn’t completely closed the door on a return to the Mile High City.
“The most fair way to say it is no teams are out of it,” Story said. “That’s as simple as I can put it.”
Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman celebrated his 37th birthday with a double and an infield hit in which he was called out before a successful challenge.
A first-round pick by Washington in 2005, Zimmerman has remained “very quiet” about his future, manager Dave Martinez said.
“He just wants to go home and reassess everything and see where he stands,” Martinez explained. “I still think he has a lot left in the tank.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rockies: Rodgers was back in the lineup a day after being hit in the helmet by Josiah Gray’s 92 mph fastball. Rodgers had a foul ball hit the dirt Tuesday, pop up and knock his helmet off in the third inning against Corbin. Rodgers then flew out to right.
UP NEXT
The Rockies will throw righty Peter Lambert (0-0, 4.91 ERA) in their last home game of the season Wednesday. The Nationals will go with righty Paolo Espino (5-5, 4.01), who’s making his first start at Coors Field.
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