If there were ever a place for Jason Hammel’s run to end, Colorado made sense. But this was an ugly way to go. The Rockies scored seven runs off Hammel in the first inning, taking advantage of two Cubs errors and some meaty pitches in an 11-4 win to take the three-game series.
Describe this game in three words: Rear view mirror.
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Hammel Time: I’m not saying the Cubs were out of this one early, but in about the same amount of time it took Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder to finish a pre-song digression Saturday night at Wrigley Field, the Cubs were down 7-0 on Sunday.
Hammel, a big-time Pearl Jam fan, might’ve wished he skipped the game to catch the show, because the Rockies really hit the Corduroy off his Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town fastball.
OK, no more Pearl Jam jokes.
Hammel was on quite a roll since the All-Star break and had pitched three straight scoreless outings. He had a 22-inning scoreless streak going into the first when the Rockies scored seven runs.
Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado hit a pair of three-run homers off Hammel in the first and fourth innings. His first one made it 3-0 and his second 10-0.
After falling behind on the first Arenado homer, Hammel was undone by his usually sure-handed defense. Anthony Rizzo made a fielding error on a Gerardo Parra grounder to first base and after a walk to Daniel Descalso, third baseman Kris Bryant made a throwing error trying to get Descalso at second.
Tony Wolters took two curveballs for balls and roped a 91 mph fastball for a two-run double to make it 5-0. Jorge De La Rosa scored two more with an easy single off another 91 mph fastball.
Catcher Willson Contreras then made a fielding error on a pop-up, but it didn’t cost Hammel.
There wasn’t any scoring until the fourth, when Hammel walked ex-Cub D.J. LeMahieu and gave up a double to Carlos Gonzalez and Arenado’s 32nd homer of the season. Hammel got one out and was replaced by newly called-up rookie Rob Zastryzny. His line: 3 1/3 innings, 10 hits, 10 runs, six earned, two walks and two strikeouts.
Shortest 2016 outings by Cubs starters:
5/21 Lester 2 2/3 IP v. SFG
5/30 Hammel 2 IP v. LAD
7/3 Lester 1 1/3 IP v. NYM
8/21 Hammel 3 1/3 IP— The Athletic Chicago (@TheAthleticChi) August 21, 2016
Hammel’s second-half surge has reversed his well-known trend of fading late. It wasn’t an accident. He worked on his diet and conditioning in the offseason to give himself a better shot of pitching late into the fall.
Cubs starters since All Star Break:
Hammel: 0.95 ERA
Hendricks: 1.31
Arrieta: 2.14
Lackey: 2.59
Lester: 2.64— The Athletic Chicago (@TheAthleticChi) August 17, 2016
Hammel will likely have shaken off this loss by the time he landed in San Diego. One would think he will enjoy his next outing in Los Angeles, which plays like a pitcher’s park, a little more.
Welcome to Colorado: While Hammel left Denver in a puff of smoke, Cubs shortstop Addison Russell enjoyed his first visit to Coors Field. He hit two solo homers Sunday to give him 17 for the season. In fact, three of his four hits in this series were home runs. Coming into Sunday’s game, Russell was slashing .215/.320/.318 on the road, compared to .275/.349/.502 at Wrigley Field. So yeah, this was a nice start to the three-city road trip.
Maddon: “If Addison played here (Col.) he’d have at least 25 home runs.”
— Jesse Rogers (@ESPNChiCubs) August 22, 2016
Old friend: LeMahieu picked up five hits, including a late homer Sunday, in the three-game series, driving in three runs. He scored three of his four runs in the series Sunday. LeMahieu is hitting .345 for the season, with a predictable Rockies home-road split. He came into Sunday’s game hitting .394 at Coors and .288 on the road. Still, all the hits count the same and LeMahieu is tied for first in the National League batting race.
Dumping LeMahieu for Ian Stewart before the 2012 season remains one of the few transparent scouting mistakes in the Theo Epstein-Jed Hoyer regime. Obviously the Cubs aren’t missing much without him, but it’s fair to observe LeMahieu has turned himself into an All-Star, while Stewart got tossed off the Cubs for not being able to hit with the ferocity of his late-night tweets.
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While he should be thrilled to have been traded to Colorado, in 26 games against the Cubs, LeMahieu is slashing .324/.384/.500.
On deck: The Cubs head to San Diego for a three-game series. Jon Lester faces old Cub Edwin Jackson for a 9:10 p.m. CT start. Jake Arrieta matches up against Loyola Academy grad, and Evanston native, Christian Friederich on Tuesday night and Cyle, er, Kyle Hendricks goes Wednesday.