Colorado Rockies: Freeland performs despite awful first inning Tuesday

(Source: MLB.com Video; Kyle Freeland, a pitcher for the Colorado Rockies)

I couldn’t reward Carlos Estevez, the featured photo for this story. I couldn’t give it to Seungwhan Oh or Bryan Shaw either.

I had to give it to Kyle Freeland.

I had no real choice.

The Colorado Rockies lost 4-0 to the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night.

Again, the Rockies didn’t do much.

Just two hits from Trevor Story and one only got out of the infield.

Story got picked off and caught stealing after getting on-base for the Rockies’ first hit

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The only other time the ball got out of the infield was on a flyout to center fielder Kevin Kiermaier in the ninth inning by Raimel Tapia.

Other than that, the only offense the Rockies had were bases on balls by Chris Iannetta and Ian Desmond.

That was it.

In fact, the Rockies did less on Tuesday night against the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell than they did against the entire Rays pitching staff on Monday night.

The Rockies could have scored at least three runs on Monday night if their offense was completely efficient.

Against Snell on Tuesday, the Rockies would have scored zero runs anyway with perfect offensive efficiency. They only would have scored one run in that same instance against the Rays entire pitching staff.

They failed.

The Rockies struck out 14 times and grounded out seven times (once was a double play). They also popped out three times.

On the pitching side, the Rockies starter, Kyle Freeland, had to take blame for 75% of the loss in which he gave up three runs in the first inning. He pitched 4 2/3 innings pitched.

Freeland also had to take 58% of the loss for the innings pitched he threw on Tuesday night.

So clearly, if he takes 75% of the blame for the runs scored and 58% of the blame just for the innings pitched, he was the losing pitcher for the Rockies and took more than half the blame.

The encouraging things for Freeland is that he recorded 10 strikeouts, didn’t hit a batter and didn’t give up a home run.

Expect Freeland to be somewhat successful by going awhile without giving up any runs again in his next start, whether that is at the start or the end of his outing.

In the season opener, he pitched the first five innings without giving up any runs and allowed just two baserunners.

On Tuesday night, after the disastrous first inning in which baserunners advanced a total of 15 bases, he only allowed baserunners to advance four bases, gave up zero runs an threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings.

Carlos Estevez had to take credit for the other 25% of the loss, by allowing a run in the sixth inning. He pitched 1 1/3 innings pitched.

Estevez made his season debut and went the first inning of work scoreless, but then Kevin Kiermaier scored for the Rays in the sixth.

He only allowed Rays baserunners to advance five bases, one of the bright spots for the Rockies pitching staff.

Seungwhan Oh has pitched good this season, other than giving up a home run in the bottom of the ninth with two outs on Opening Day in Miami. He threw a scoreless seventh inning on Tuesday night.

Bryan Shaw has delivered in 3 1/3 innings pitched so far this season, not giving up a run yet in four appearances. He threw a scoreless eighth inning on Tuesday night.

Oh and Shaw’s outings on Tuesday night, however, could have been worse. They each allowed the bases to be loaded before they got out of it.

Nobody on the Rockies pitching staff had a pretty good or perfect night. But the worst that could have happened with how well baserunners moved on Tuesday night would have been nine runs scored for the Rays.

So it could have been a lot worse.

Even if the Rockies offense had been completely efficient on Tuesday night, they would have only scored one run.

The Rays scored four. The Rockies wouldn’t have won anyway.

Even if Freeland hadn’t given up any runs in the first inning, they still would have lost (or at least tied, depending on what factors you are going to weigh).

Freeland really should own 100% of the loss on the pitching side for the Rockies on Tuesday’s game.

But really, he still needs to own it.

However, Freeland only allowed a walk to Tommy Pham in the second in innings two through four.

So really, he was the bright spot for Rockies pitching.

The Rockies bullpen needs to get better despite what Freeland did in the first inning on Tuesday night.