Will Smith’s homer lifts Dodgers over road-challenged Rockies

The Rockies followed a acquainted publication successful La La Land Sunday afternoon.

They mislaid 3-2 to the Dodgers, the bitter extremity coming connected a solo location tally by catcher Will Smith disconnected Carlos Estevez successful the eighth inning, 1 of 3 solo shots by Los Angeles.

The Rockies, who won a melodramatic crippled Friday night, were hoping for a uncommon bid triumph astatine Dodger Stadium. Nothing doing.

So Colorado fell to 6-17 vs. the Dodgers implicit the past 2 seasons, 10-32 since 2019, and 17-45 since 2018.

With Friday’s commercialized deadline accelerated approaching, determination were respective scouts astatine Dodger Stadium. A batch of them had their eyes — and their radar guns — glued to Rockies right-hander Jon Gray.

The right-hander gave them a serviceable audition for 5 innings. He gave up 2 runs connected 4 hits, but 2 of the hits were solo location runs by leadoff hitter Chris Taylor, 1 successful the archetypal and different successful the fifth.

Gray’s biggest contented was his deficiency of fastball command. That’s wherefore helium was gone aft conscionable 5 innings, having throwing 106 pitches (64 strikes). Gray, who didn’t fig successful the decision, is 6-6 with a 3.67 ERA.

The Rockies scored early, but not often, and finished 1-for-9 with runners successful scoring position.

Raimel Tapia drew a locomotion to pb disconnected the game, stole second, and scored connected Trevor Story’s single. Catcher Elias Diaz lifted a solo homer to near disconnected of Dodgers right-hander Josiah Gray to springiness Colorado a 2-1 pb successful the second. Diaz, who’s deed 5 of his 9 location runs successful July, is turning into the productive hitter the Rockies hoped helium would become.

The Rockies, 10-36 distant from Coors Field, proceed their 10-game West Coast roadworthy travel connected Monday erstwhile they unfastened a three-game bid against the Angels successful Anaheim.