Chase Dollander looked like the Rockies’ pitcher of the future. The Rockies’ offense? Same as it ever was.
Colorado managed just four hits in a 2-0 loss to the Padres on Saturday night.
Kyle Farmer hit a bloop double in the fourth and a single in the ninth. Nick Martini hit a leadoff, pinch-hit single in the eighth. Rookie outfielder Zac Veen flashed his speed to beat out an infield single in the ninth.
The Veen-Farmer combo gave the Rockies a fighting chance in the ninth, but Padres super closer Robert Suarez struck out Ryan McMahon for the second out. The game ended with San Diego right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. making a terrific catch to rob Kris Bryant of extra base.
So, for the second game in a row, the Rockies failed to score a run at San Diego’s Petco Park. They lost 8-0 Friday night, managing only three hits, all by Farmer.
“The big hit has eluded us in more games than not,” Rockies manager Bud Black told reporters in San Diego. ” ‘K.B.’ stung that ball, but Tatis is an All-Star and a really good fielder. He went back and got that ball. That’s baseball. But there is no doubt our offense has to get going.”
Colorado center fielder Brenton Doyle missed his second consecutive game because of a left quadriceps strain. He’s been one of Colorado’s few offensive forces early on.
The Rockies (3-11) have scored 40 runs to start the 2025 season, the fewest in the majors. They have scored two or fewer runs in nine of their first 14 games. That won’t get it done.
San Diego right-hander Kyle Hart pitched six scoreless innings, striking out four and walking none.
Dollander, 23, making his second big-league start, illustrated what all of the hoopla is about.
The right-hander pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on just three hits. He struck out seven and walked two.
“When you talk about pitching, the first thing people say is, ‘Tell me about his stuff,’ ” Black said. “Chase has got good stuff. I really liked his fastball (tonight). The cutter was sharp. He mixed in some curveballs and threw a couple of changeups to the lefties. I thought he threw well.”
Unfortunately for Dollander, two of the hits were home runs. Tatis led off the Padres’ first wth a blast to deep center, punishing Dollander’s 3-2 fastball. Jayson Heyward hit a one-out, solo homer to right in the fifth. Heyward ripped Dollander’s 1-0, 97.3 mph fastball 410 feet.
Asked by Rockies.TV what he needed to improve going forward, Dollander replied, “Just focus on execution. Just being locked in on every pitch. There were a couple of times (tonight) where I kind of got lazy and threw up a heater, and they took advantage of it. I didn’t execute when I needed to execute.”
The Padres will hunt for the three-game sweep on Sunday afternoon.
Sunday’s pitching matchup
Rockies LHP Kyle Freeland (0-2, 3.79 ERA) at Padres RHP Michael King (2-0, 4.05)
2:10 p.m. Sunday, Petco Park
TV: Rockies.TV (streaming); Comcast/Xfinity (channel 1262); DirecTV (683); Spectrum (130, 445, 305, 435 or 445, depending on region).
Radio: 850 AM, 94.1 FM
Trending: Second baseman Kyle Farmer has been the Rockies’ most consistent hitter. He had all three of Colorado’s hits in an 8-0 loss to the Padres Friday night. He entered Saturday night’s game riding an 11-game on-base streak.
Pitching probables
Monday: Rockies RHP Antonio Senzatela (0-2, 5.14) at Dodgers RHP Dustin May (0-1, 0.82), 8:10 p.m.
Tuesday: Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner (0-0, 2.81) at Dodgers TBA, 8:10 p.m.
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