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Rockies show no fatigue, pound Astros

Apr 19, 2008 - 4:51 AM By Gene Duffey PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

HOUSTON (Ticker) - After playing 22 innings Thursday night at San Diego, the Colorado Rockies were supposed to be the tired team entering Friday night's game at the Houston Astros.

But the Rockies, who landed in Houston at 8:30 a.m. Friday, jumped on Astros starter Chris Sampson for six hits and six runs in the first inning to ignite an 11-5 victory at Minute Maid Park.

Troy Tulowitzki, Jeff Baker and Chris Iannetta drove in two runs apiece in that first inning off Sampson (0-2), who lasted only two-thirds of an inning.

"We're all pretty tired and trying to get our legs under us," Tulowitzki said. "I felt all right. I probably got an hour (sleep on the plane). I went right to sleep when I got the hotel. I didn't know what to expect (tonight)."

Houston, which played an afternoon game Thursday at Philadelphia, struck back for four runs in the bottom of the first, but Colorado lefthander Franklin Morales survived the inning.

Morales (1-1) pitched five innings and gave up only one hit after the first.

"He battled with his fastball command throughout the game," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said of Morales. "But you saw a more dynamic arm than you've seen in the past. That's a tough lineup (Houston has), righthanded heavy."

"In the first inning I try to throw hard," Morales said. "The delay (while sitting out the long top of the first) was no good. Between the second and fifth I made my pitches. I had more concentration."

Clint Barmes led the Rockies, who won their third in a row, with two doubles and a single in five at-bats and Tulowitzki added two doubles and drove in three runs.

"It was pretty tough to get comfortable on the plane," Barmes said. "When I hit the hotel I was out. We got a pretty deep bench and everybody can play. We had some guys fresher than others."

Barmes raised his average to .433.

"I'm seeing the ball well and feel confident and relaxed at the plate," he said.

Although Hurdle rested first baseman Todd Helton, outfielder Matt Holliday and catcher Yorbit Torrealba, Colorado still scored 11 runs.

"The guys who were tired didn't play," Hurdle said. "We've got guys on our bench who would be playing every day somewhere else. Everybody threw something out there on offense. I was encouraged the way we were able to finish the game from the mound after the first inning."

Colorado's Garrett Atkins hit his second homer of the season, a two-run shot in the eighth, to give him two hits and three RBI for the night.

Sampson's start lasted only 34 pitches.

"When you make bad pitches, they're a major league team and they're going to jump on them," Sampson said. "My arm felt fine. I was just not throwing quality pitches. It was just a bad night."

"He just couldn't get the ball down," Houston manager Cecil Cooper said of Sampson.

Hunter Pence, trying to get going after a terrible start, collected three hits for Houston, driving in a run and scoring two.

"You've got to give a little credit to Morales," Pence said. "He settled in and shut us down. It was good for me to finally feel comfortable in the box. That should help me getting going."

Kaz Matsui, the former Rockie playing his first game for Houston after recovering from anal fissure surgery, went 0-for-3 with two walks.

The Astros managed only hit from the second through the seventh innings before Pence reached on an infield single in the eighth.

"We got those four runs, but we went pretty quiet after the first inning," Cooper said.