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 But what Barnes did Friday night was very visible, very tangible
and very timely. He tripled home two runs in the eighth inning,
enabling the Rockies to complete a comeback against the Los Angeles
Dodgers in a 7-5 victory.
"We got a long way to go, but I like what we're made of," Rockies
manager Walt Weiss said. "I've seen it several times already this
year."
Barnes, who entered the game as a pinch runner in the seventh, drove
a 96 mph fastball from Chris Hatcher (2-2) off the fence in
right-center field with two outs.
Nolan Arenado walked with one out and Mark Reynolds lined a
broken-bat single to center. Both runners moved up on a groundout,
setting the stage for Barnes. He stepped to the plate 4-for-19 with
one double and no RBIs and dug out of an 0-2 hole against Hatcher.
 "I've scuffled of late, but it doesn't hurt my confidence because I
know I'm going to hit the ball," Barnes said. "I know I'm going to
do good things. When my name's called, I'm going to go out there and
do what needs to be done for my team."
Rockies starter Jon Gray, who began the season on the disabled list
with an abdominal strain, made his 2016 debut and survived a shaky
first inning.
Gray gave up a triple to Chase Utley to open the game followed by
Corey Seager's home run. With one out, Adrian Gonzalez homered to
give the Dodgers ahead 3-0.
But Gray then reeled off three scoreless innings before Gonzalez
singled home two runs with two outs in the fifth, which was Gray's
final inning. He allowed seven hits and two walks with a career-high
10 strikeouts.
"It just came down to a choice," said Gray, who finished with 95
pitches, including 55 strikes. "Stay out there and get rocked or
buckle down and keep the team in the game. So I did my best to keep
them in the game."
The Rockies scored their first run on a fielder's choice in the
second and took a 4-3 lead with a three-run fourth.
Nolan Arenado led off the fourth with his seventh homer of the
season. And Ryan Rayburn hit a two-run shot off starter Scott
Kazmir, who gave up four runs in five innings.
"It was about executing pitches," Kazmir said. "I can't make any
excuses. I didn't make pitches when I needed to, especially on those
two home runs."
After Gonzalez's two-run single in the fifth, the Rockies seemed
poised to tie the score in their half of the inning.
With one out, Trevor Story hit a ball high off the fence in right
center. Right fielder Yasiel Puig jumped for the ball, picked it up
near the fence and made a jaw-dropping throw on the fly to nail
Story at third.
"I didn't think he had a shot because Story runs really well," Weiss
said, adding that Puig unleased "a Superman throw."
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The Rockies did tie the score at 5 in the seventh on DJ LeMahieu's
sacrifice fly. Ryan Raburn opened the inning with a single and Tony
Wolters walked. After pinch-hitter Cristhian Adames' sacrifice,
LeMahieu fouled out to Puig.
With Rayburn still nursing a strained quadriceps from running over a
bullpen mound in pursuit of a foul ball last weekend at Wrigley
Field, Barnes pinch ran for him. Puig wasn't that deep, but Barnes
took off and scored as Puig's throw home was offline.
Four Rockies relievers combined to work four scoreless innings and
hold the Dodgers to one hit. Chad Qualls (1-0) pitched the eighth
and ended up with his first decision with the Rockies. Jake McGee
pitched the ninth for his fourth save, thanks to Barnes' triple.
"I'm really happy for him," Weiss said. "The guy shows up every day
thinking about what he can do for the team. He's got a great
attitude. He's inspiring to his teammates. It's good to see those
guys get rewarded."
NOTES: Dodgers RHP Yimi Garcia left the game in the seventh with
right biceps soreness. ... Rockies RHP Miguel Castro (right shoulder
inflammation) was placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to
April 18. ... Rockies LHP Jason Gurka was optioned to Triple-A
Albuquerque after going 0-0 with a 9.31 ERA in six games. ...
Rockies RHP David Hale was designated for assignment. He went 0-0
with a 13.50 ERA in two games. ... Rockies RHP Carlos Estevez and
RHP Gonzalez Germen were recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque. Germen
pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings. ... 1B Adrian Gonzalez, who has
played in all 17 of the Dodgers' games, will get a day off Monday or
Tuesday at home, manager Dave Roberts said. ... Dodgers OF Carl
Crawford (lower back tightness) played seven innings in his second
rehab game for Triple-A Oklahoma City went went 3-for-4 with two
doubles and two RBIs. He is scheduled to play a final rehab game on
Sunday for high-Class A Rancho Cucamonga and join the Dodgers on
Monday when they begin a homestand.
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