Rockies, Last Ones Up, Are Last Ones Standing

Dodger first baseman Eric Karros dove to his left Sunday afternoon, watched the ball bounce over his head and into right field, and listened to 48,103 fans screaming while he was face down on the ground.

The Colorado Rockies poured out of the dugout celebrating this incomprehensible, nonsensical 16-15 victory, ultimately won with Quinton McCracken’s two-out, run-scoring double.

Karros finally got to his knees, slowly trudged to the dugout, and felt like a heavyweight boxer who just went 12 rounds with Mike Tyson.

“As much as I’d like to hit here,” Karros said, “I don’t know I’d want to play 81 games here. I’d probably have a nervous breakdown. I’d have an ulcer. I couldn’t take it.”

The Dodgers staggered out of Coors Field still trying to gather their senses.

Certainly, no one would fault the Dodger pitching staff for kissing the ground tonight when they play at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium, knowing they are free of Coors Field for three months.

The Dodger staff suffered its worst battering in Los Angeles franchise history during this four-game series. It yielded 52 runs, 69 hits and 12 home runs while the Rockies hit a blistering .416.

The Rockies produced at least 10 runs and 16 hits in each game. Never before in their franchise history had the Dodgers given up at least 10 runs in more than two games in a row.

“This isn’t baseball,” Dodger pitching coach Dave Wallace said, “not by my definition.”

This is a staff that came into the series yielding a major league-leading 3.09 earned-run average, and left town with a 3.47 ERA.

“Obviously, teams don’t like it here,” said Rocky outfielder Dante Bichette, who had a career-high five hits, “but we don’t want them to like it here. You hear those guys complaining. Hey, their numbers are no more inflated than their pitching numbers are in Dodger Stadium.”

The Dodgers batted .338 in the series, with 33 runs, 53 hits and 13 homers, but still lost three of the four games. In all, there were 122 hits, 85 runs, 25 homers and a combined .378 batting average.

“People can say what they want about the American League,” said Dodger third baseman Mike Blowers, who never had seen Coors Field, “but I’ve never seen anything like this. This place has got an identity of its own.

“Everyone was telling me about it, but you have to see it to believe it.”

This game had seven lead changes, with someone scoring in 14 of the 18 half-innings.

This game lasted four hours 20 minutes, setting a National League record for a nine-inning game.

This game had 10 stolen bases by the Rockies, nine off Dodger starter Hideo Nomo, who gave up nine hits and nine runs (five earned) in only five innings.

This game had six stolen bases by Eric Young, tying the modern-day record of Atlanta’s Otis Nixon and the Philadelphia A’s Eddie Collins. Young had three of his stolen bases in the fourth inning, including a steal of home when the Dodgers botched a rundown play.

This game had back-to-back-to-back homers by Mike Piazza, Karros and Raul Mondesi in the third.

When it was all over, the Dodgers had fallen out of first place for the first time since June 16.

“I’m probably more exhausted than I’ve ever been,” said Piazza, who caught all but two innings of the four games. “It just drains you.”

The Dodgers led, 5-1, in the third inning; trailed, 8-6, in the fourth; led, 10-8, in the fifth; were tied, 12-12, in the top of the eighth; and trailed, 14-12, after eight. Then came the ninth.

The Dodgers had scored one run to make it 14-13, and Delino DeShields was on third with no outs. Piazza grounded out and Karros struck out, but Mondesi homered, giving the Dodgers a 15-14 lead with Todd Worrell pitching the bottom of the ninth.

“All I knew is we had the last at-bat,” Colorado Manager Don Baylor said. “I knew those guys out of their bullpen couldn’t contain us, and vice-versa.”

With one out, Bichette singled, but Andres Galarraga popped out to DeShields. Worrell gave up a single to Vinny Castilla and then a run-scoring single to pinch-hitter Jeff Reed. It all came to a screeching end when McCracken doubled, scoring Castilla.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been involved in a series like this,” Worrell said. “In this ballpark, anything can happen. I don’t think the game is enjoyable when it’s played here.”

Said Dodger interim Manager Bill Russell: “Well, at least now we’ll be getting back to reality.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Hit Parade

Dodgers: 0 0 5 1 4 1 0 1 3--15 18 4

Colorado: 0 1 3 4 1 1 2 2 2--16 20 1

*

* Total Home Runs: 10

Mondesi 2

Karros 2

*

* RBIs: Mondesi 6

Bichette 4

Hollandsworth 3

Burks 3

*

* Total Stolen Bases: 12

Young 6*

*

* Runs:

Karros 3

Mondesi 3

Young 3

Burks 3

Castilla 3

*

Dodger ERA before: 3.42

Dodger ERA after: 3.47

Rocky ERA before: 5.74

Rocky ERA after: 5.86

*--Young ties major league record

No Place Like Homer

The Dodgers and the Rockies combined for 25 homers in the four-game series. A look at them:

THURSDAY

* 1. Andres Galarraga, first inning, two on.

* 2. Andres Galarraga, second inning, two on.

FRIDAY

* 3. Andres Galarraga, third inning, one on.

* 4. Eric Karros, fourth inning, bases empty.

* 5. Dante Bichette, fourth inning, two on.

* 6. Vinny Castilla, eighth inning, two on.

SATURDAY

* 7. Greg Gagne, third inning, bases empty.

* 8. Mike Piazza, fourth inning, bases empty.

* 9. Mike Piazza, fifth inning, three on.

* 10. Eric Karros, fifth inning, bases empty.

* 11. Billy Ashley, eighth inning, one on.

* 12. Mike Piazza, eighth inning, bases empty.

* 13. Ellis Burks, eighth inning, one on.

* 14. Dante Bichette, eighth inning, bases empty.

* 15. Vinny Castilla, ninth inning, one on.

SUNDAY

* 16. Vinny Castilla, second inning, bases empty.

* 17. Mike Piazza, third inning, bases empty.

* 18. Eric Karros, third inning, bases empty.

* 19. Raul Mondesi, third inning, bases empty.

* 20. Dante Bichette, third inning, one on.

* 21. Eric Karros, fourth inning, bases empty.

* 22. Todd Hollandsworth, sixth inning, bases empty.

* 23. Ellis Burks, sixth inning, bases empty.

* 24. John VanderWal, eighth inning, one on.

* 25. Raul Mondesi, ninth inning, one on.