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Rockies explode for 12 runs, cruise by Devil Rays

Jun 16, 2007 - 5:35 AM DENVER (Ticker) -- A big first inning by his Colorado Rockies teammates was all Rodrigo Lopez needed.

Lopez pitched six effective innings and Garrett Atkins and Brad Hawpe hit back-to-back homers as the Rockies posted a 12-2 interleague victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Friday.

Matt Holliday had three hits and drove in four and Todd Helton added two hits and drove in three for Colorado (34-33), which is above the .500 mark for the first time since April 9. The Rockies, who have scored 31 runs in three straight wins, also evened their home record to 17-17.

"It's a pretty good accomplishment to get back over .500, we were pretty far back," Holliday said. "We have to keep playing well, the West is a great division and we're going to have to keep playing well to get to where we want to go."

Colorado scored four runs in its initial frame to give Lopez a nice cushion to work with.

After Willy Taveras led off with a double and moved to third on a sacrifice, one out later Helton singled to right field to give the Rockies a 1-0 lead. Atkins then belted a 3-2 offering from James Shields over the center field wall to make it 3-0.

"The first inning was terrible, absolutely terrible," Shields said. "If I get Helton out it's a totally different ballgame. After the first inning I made a big adjustment by going inside but it was too late."

Hawpe then followed by blasting a 1-1 pitch into the center field waterfall to increase the lead to four.

"They just hit a couple pitches," Devil Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "We were one pitch away from getting out of the first inning but Helton just hit a ground ball in the hole. "That was a decisive run and then the home runs and all of a sudden it turned into a four-run inning."

That was enough for Lopez (3-0), who yielded two runs, eight hits and a walk for his second victory since coming off the disabled list on May 29 due to right elbow inflammation. The 31-year-old, who signed in the offseason with Colorado after spending five seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, is now 11-6 lifetime vs. the Devil Rays.

"The credit for tonight goes to the lineup," Lopez said. "We got some pretty good rallies and we're starting to play better. With that kind of support, it gives you more confidence to go out there and attack the strike zone."

After Tampa Bay cut its deficit in half with a run-scoring double by Carlos Pena in the fourth and a solo homer by Delmon Young in the sixth, the Rockies broke the game open in the next two frames.

Helton had an RBI single in the sixth to make it 5-2 before a run-scoring single by rookie Troy Tulowitzki and a two-run single by Holliday in the seventh opened an 8-2 advantage. Helton later added a sacrifice fly in the frame to increase the lead.

"You're going to go through streaks," Helton said. "When you're swinging the bat well you don't think about it and just go out and do what you've been doing. Hitting is contagious."

Colorado added three runs in the eighth inning on an RBI single by Taveras and a two-run double by Holliday to produce its fourth double-digit scoring game in 2007.

"A lot of us are swinging the bats pretty well," Holliday said. "Guys are getting on base and in those situations - we're keeping innings going before somebody gets the big one."

Shields (6-1) surrendered five runs, six hits and a walk to suffer his first loss. It was the first time in 11 appearances the righthander has failed to reach seven or more innings pitched.

Jonny Gomes had three hits for Tampa Bay, which has dropped three straight and is 0-4 all-time in Coors Field.