DENVER -- Rockies left fielder Raimel Tapia, all knees and high socks and dreadlocks, dove and darn near did a faceplant with the game on the line in the seventh inning. But he came up with the ball, and he popped up wearing a smile brighter than the LED lights on an overcast Saturday afternoon at Coors Field.
The catch on Andrew Young’s blooper ended the top of the seventh with the bases loaded, and the Rockies held on for an enthralling, if inelegant, second straight victory, 7-6 over the D-backs. Closer Daniel Bard had to overcome David Peralta’s ninth-inning leadoff double to make the lead -- and Tapia’s catch -- stand.
“There was really not much thought process -- straight reaction,” Tapia said in Spanish, with bullpen catcher Aaron Muñoz translating. “I was aggressive. I didn’t think twice. I knew I had a chance at it, and I was just lucky enough to catch it.”
The play culminated an eventful day for Tapia, who went 2-for-4 and drove in a run on a third-inning single off D-backs starter Madison Bumgarner before running the team out of the inning on a well-intentioned steal attempt of third with Trevor Story batting.
During their previous homestand, the Rockies dropped two games to the Reds when the bullpen blew late leads. Saturday, they entered the seventh up by four, but Yency Almonte allowed a three-run homer to Eduardo Escobar, and Mychal Givens’ struggles left the bases loaded for Carlos Estévez’s first appearance since going on the injured list with a left middle finger strain on May 3.
With two down and Young’s ball destined for two runs and more Rockies heartache had it landed, Tapia knew how much was riding on making the play.
“It gives us motivation and keeps us confident when we win games like this,” Tapia said. “We understand when the offense is there, we rely on our defense -- defense wins ballgames.”
Estévez followed with a scoreless eighth to extend his streak to six games and seven innings without an earned run. But Tapia’s catch allowed him to enjoy his return.
“When I turned around to see Tapia was playing deep, I said, ‘Oh, gosh, blooper,’” Estévez said. “I was saying, ‘Get it, get it.’ That was an amazing play, right at the spot when we needed it.”
The Statcast sensors weren’t impressed. The play was computed at a 65 percent catch probability, and Tapia’s jump rated a minus-0.5. But from the dugout, manager Bud Black saw a tricky read. And the sensors don’t have to worry about seeing Charlie Blackmon’s two-run homer and rookie Brendan Rodgers’ two-run single in the bottom of the sixth erased by Young’s floater.
At times during his growth in the Majors, reads and routes have vexed Tapia. But Black has seen improvement, and he has seen enough tough catches to know Tapia always has a chance.
“From my perspective, I thought it was going to fall -- we see a lot of those fall in this park,” Black said. “Big outfield. But Tap got a great jump. One of the better plays I’ve seen from him, considering the circumstances, a do-or-die play, bases loaded. He gained ground a ton at the end.”