By: Tyler Ward
In Tuesday's game, the Cardinals were celebrating their victory in the 9th when they were leading the Rockies 9-3 in the bottom half of the inning. But, anything can happen in baseball and it did Tuesday.
Colorado's Seth Smith led off the bottom of the 9th and it ended with him running the bases, while his teammates were ecstatic and mobbing their hero for the night. At the end of the game, Smith's heroics were just a blur. "I don't even know what just happened," Smith said. "I'll have a chance to watch it later tonight, catch some highlights and enjoy it. You go from, 'Let's not give any at-bats away,' to 'Good try,' to 'Oh, wait, we can do this.'"
According to Stats LLC, no team in the modern era has ever scored nine runs in the bottom of the ninth to win the game. Their stats go all the way back to 1918. The Cardinals' loss apparently is one of the most epic chokes in MLB history.
Blake Hawksworth pitched 5 solid innings for the Cardinals, surrendering 8 hits and only 2 earned runs. Felipe Lopez hit a two run home run in the 5th, while Matt Holliday hit a three run home run in the 6th to give the Cardinals an advantage. After the sixth inning, the Cardinals were up 9-2 and everyone thought that the Rockies were completely out of it.
Closer Ryan Franklin was brought in for the 9th inning for a save opportunity, but the Cardinals soon relinquished the lead. He walked Clint Barmes on a passed ball, with Miguel Olivo scoring to spark the Rockies on their comeback. Chris Iannetta would then hit a three run home run, scoring Barmes and Melvin Mora. Carlos Gonzalez would then single to score Dexter Fowler. Gonzalez would score on an error after ex-Yankee, Jason Giambi, singled to right field. To cap the game off, Seth Smith hit a three run homer to give the Rockies the improbable win in Colorado. Rockies Manager, Jim Tracy, said that he has never been associated with a better comeback in all his years of baseball.
Franklin, who took his first loss of the year, is now 3-1 this season with a 3.74 ERA. He was visually distraught after the game, saying, "I thought I could get out of it with one pitch. I was confident the whole time. That's my game, make them hit the ball. They just hit it kind of hard."
Colorado's Jeff Francis had a forgettable start, as he pitched just four innings, giving up five earned runs on six hits. Manny Corpas (3-5) would get the win as he pitched two perfect innings in the 8th and 9th.
