DENVER -- Sunday’s struggle in an 8-6 loss to the Diamondbacks skied Michael Lorenzen’s ERA at Coors Field to 10.03.
“I don’t care if it’s Mars, I need to figure it out,” Lorenzen said.
Lorenzen, who yielded nine hits and seven runs (six earned) in 4 2/3 innings on Sunday, referred to Coors Field as “untapped” when he signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the club in January. The agreement made him just the fourth free-agent starter who hadn’t already been with the Rockies to sign with the club since 2015.
But Lorenzen is tapping into mostly frustration.
“Being a professional athlete and performing at the best of your ability, there’s a ton of work that goes into it,” Lorenzen said. “So when you go out and compete and you feel good, and you feel like you throw the ball not terribly, you expect better results for the preparation that you put in.
“I need to figure it out. I’m confident that I will. But I need to do it -- like, now.”
While he was burned mostly by weak contact in his previous home start, a 10-5 loss to the Mets on May 6, Lorenzen’s issues were self-inflicted Sunday. Two-out walks in the third inning to Corbin Carroll and Geraldo Perdomo led to two runs. With two outs in the fourth, he yielded Ildemaro Vargas’ RBI single and a two-run shot by Carroll -- the first of his two homers.
Because of Lorenzen’s poor outing, the Rockies’ comeback of four runs in the eighth to cut the difference to two merely ended up a footnote.
“To be this deep into the season and have these types of results on a consistent basis is unacceptable,” he said. “I have to do a better job of giving our team a better opportunity to win these games. You saw them fight late in the game.
“If I have a bad start and give up four runs, we have a good shot. But I have a terrible start and give up six or whatever it may be, it doesn’t help the team at all.”
The struggles, especially with two outs, negated Lorenzen’s five strikeouts.
A new Rockies front office emphasized building an experienced starting rotation, but that group’s struggles have led to a 4-11 May record.
Lorenzen’s home difficulties are the main reason for his 0-3 record and 9.20 ERA this month. As poor as that has been, it’s been a better month than lefty Kyle Freeland’s at 0-3 and 13.15. Tomoyuki Sugano was effective Saturday while pitching the Rockies to their only victory in the three-game set (five innings, two runs on seven hits), but he is 1-2 with a 6.46 ERA this month. And two other starters are on the 15-day injured list – righties Ryan Feltner (right ulnar nerve inflammation) and Chase Dollander (right elbow sprain).
Lefty Jose Quintana, who will start Monday’s opener of a three-game set against the Rangers, has had the most consistent form of a starter this month, with a 2.87 ERA in May.
Manager Warren Schaeffer was matter-of-fact.
“Throwing strikes is the key, and today it just didn’t happen too often – or not enough for success,” Schaeffer said. “It’s very basic, I know that, but that’s where it starts. I’m not concerned [about the splits] because of who Mike is. He’s a solution-finder. And if that’s the case, he knows about it and he will work to make that not a thing.”