Rockies lose to Dodgers, blow chance for rare series sweep

It had been 1,753 days since the Rockies last swept a series from the Dodgers.

But after winning the first two games at Coors Field, and with a resurgent German Marquez taking the mound Wednesday night, the Rockies seemed poised to end the drought.

Nope. Make it 1,754 days. And counting.

The Dodgers hammered Marquez, who left the game with a cut on his right thumb that interfered with his ability to throw his fastball, and coasted to an 8-4 victory.

“It was bleeding and it was difficult because … I couldn’t control my fastball,” Marquez said, adding that the cut on his thumb first flared up three days ago when he was pitching a bullpen session.

“There was some underlying effect to that, for sure,” manager Bud Black said. “Where he places his thumb on the fastball, it impacted his ability to throw the fastball because of the pain. Sort of a stinging pain.”

Both Marquez and Black said that Marquez should be able to make his next start.

Marquez gave up five runs on five hits and three walks in 3 1/3 innings, his shortest start of the season.

The last time Colorado swept a series from Big Blue was Sept. 7-10, 2017, when it won four games at Dodger Stadium.

Marquez was frustrated by the injury.

“I wanted this game and I wanted the sweep,” he said.

Marquez entered the game with a 2.89 ERA in 12 career starts against Los Angeles, the third-lowest ERA among all active pitchers with at least 12 starts against the Dodgers, trailing only icons Max Scherzer (2.59) and Adam Wainwright (2.66).

Plus, Marquez entered the gave riding a streak of four solid starts in which he had posted a 3.16 ERA.

But Marquez was treated rudely by first baseman Freddie Freeman, who hit a 446-foot homer to dead center with one out in the first inning. He hit a fastball that Marquez left up and over the plate.

Two Marquez walks, a sacrifice fly by Eddy Alvarez, and a two-run double by Trea Turner boosted the Dodgers’ lead to 4-0 in the second.

In the fourth, Marquez was visited by a trainer on the mound and was removed from the game. Moments later, he could be seen flexing his right hand while sitting in the dugout.

Despite some late noise, the Rockies were never in the game. Will Smith’s two-run homer off Jhoulys Chacin made it 7-1 in the fifth.

L.A. lefty Julio Urias, who’s had his issues pitching at Coors Field — 2-2 with a 5.91 ERA coming into the game — kept the Rockies in check for five innings, giving up one run in the fourth on Brendan Rodgers’ RBI double. The Rockies chased him in the sixth with two runs, the big hit an RBI single by C.J. Cron.