Moniak's two-homer game not enough to stifle Padres' late comeback

DENVER – Maybe someday, Mickey Moniak and the Rockies can celebrate his multi-homer game against the Padres.

Moniak parked solo homers in the first and sixth innings while going 4-for-5 on Thursday afternoon. However, Gavin Sheets flipped the score with a three-run, ninth-inning homer off Victor Vodnik to give the Padres a 10-8 victory at Coors Field.

Not only was it the third multi-homer game of the season for Moniak, who leads the Rockies with eight homers this year, but it was the third time since last season that Moniak has gone deep twice in Rockies losses to the Padres.

“At the end of the day, the goal is to win,” Moniak said after rubbing his face in bemusement and disappointment. “So it wasn’t enough.

“It’s one of those things where you get on this flight, get to New York [to meet the Mets] and get ready for more.”

On April 11, Moniak’s two homers came during a 9-5 loss at Petco Park. Last Sept. 14, Moniak homered twice and drove in five runs in a 9-6 loss at Petco Park.

Moniak’s first homer on Thursday came on a knuckleball from Padres right-handed starter Matt Waldron. His second came on Adrian Morejon’s left-on-left slider.

Those double-homer games at Petco were homecomings for Moniak, 27, who was selected by the Phillies with the first overall pick in the 2016 Draft out of LaCosta High School in Carlsbad, Calif.

This time, Moniak’s duo of blasts occurred at Coors Field, which Moniak has made a cozy home since signing with the Rockies just before Opening Day last season, after being released by the Angels.

Through 12 games at Coors this season, Moniak is slashing .370/.388/.848 with six home runs, four doubles and 11 RBIs. Last year, he slashed .303/.348/.598 with 15 homers, 14 doubles and 46 RBIs while reaching base in 58 of his 71 home games.

Moniak was at the center of an effort that, except for the final result, mirrored Wednesday night’s 8-3 victory. The Rockies scored four runs in the second inning, and added on with a combination of controlled at-bats and Moniak’s power.

The Rockies fully expect Moniak, who was signed for one year and $4 million to avoid arbitration over the winter, to be a leader as the Rockies try to learn from heartbreaking results like Thursday.

“Behind closed doors, what he does – he's part of what keeps everything around here loose and keeps everybody ready to play,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said. “What he provides off the field is just as big as what he's providing on the field, but he's in a really good place offensively, too.”

The Padres have a way of leaving the Rockies disappointed. Xander Bogaerts walked off the Rockies with a 12th-inning grand slam off Valente Bellozo earlier this month, and Sheets’ three-run homer walked the Rockies off the next night. The Padres swept that series.

“It’s been a year of a lot of highs, some lows,” said Moniak, whose eight-game hit streak has his batting average at .419, with a 1.326 OPS. “Now it’s just going to be about finding that consistent high of figuring out ways to win baseball games.”

Had the Rockies held the lead, they would have won their first series over San Diego since taking 2-of-3 at Coors Field from Aug. 16-18, 2024. It was also the difference between coming out ahead in a seven-game homestand that started with a four-game split with the Dodgers.

“Vic [Vodnik] has been huge for us this year,” Moniak said. “He just had a tough day. That’s just how it goes sometimes. I’ve got all the confidence in the world in that guy.

“As much as this one hurts, we’ve got to move forward.”