Instant Analysis: Rockies 8, Nats 7

CJ Abrams' two early homers weren't enough for the Nationals, who lost a back-and-forth game on Hunter Goodman's eighth-inning blast

Photo by Grace Navarro / ALL-PRO REELS

DENVER – Monday night’s series opener was an atypical game in this ballpark, defined by stellar bullpen work late. Tonight’s follow-up game was an all-too-typical Coors Field special, defined by late offense and lots of lead changes.

And when it was over, the Rockies benefited from the final lead change of the night, riding Hunter Goodman’s solo homer off Clayton Beeter in the bottom of the eighth to an 8-7 victory over a Nationals club that had opportunities to win its second straight but came up just short.

As they did in the series opener – and as they’ve done countless times this season on the road – the Nats jumped out to an early lead thanks to a first-inning homer. CJ Abrams had the honors this time, and he kept it going with another homer in the third to continue his recent power surge. The Nationals also saw James Wood look more like his pre-All-Star break self with a couple of doubles, including a fourth-inning two-bagger that drove in two runs.

Seven runs was more than enough to win the first game of the series, but tonight’s required more offense, with the Nats pitching staff laboring throughout to hold the Rockies down. Opener Carson Palmquist made it through a clean first inning but surrendered four runs in the second. Bulk arm Miles Mikolas scattered six hits across 3 2/3 innings, but he still was charged with three runs himself … and easily could’ve been charged with more if not for Orlando Ribalta’s latest escape act in the bottom of the sixth.

The Nationals bullpen was given no margin for error tonight, though. And eventually that caught up with the group when Beeter surrendered the go-ahead homer to Goodman on a 3-2 slider below the zone.

HITTING HIGHLIGHT: Is Abrams red-hot right now or what? He entered this one having already homered in each of his last two games. Then he opened tonight’s game with a two-run blast to right-center in the top of the first. Then he followed that with another two-run blast to right in the top of the third. If you’ve lost track, that’s now 24 home runs this season, four in three days, for Abrams. He’s also got 76 RBI, which puts him on pace for 121 by season’s end.

PITCHING HIGHLIGHT: It’s hard to pinpoint one critical sequence in any game played at Coors Field, but it’s worth highlighting what Ribalta did in the bottom of the sixth tonight. When the Rockies loaded the bases with one out via a couple of not-so-clean defensive plays, Blake Butera pulled Mikolas and summoned the tall right-hander from the bullpen for a situation he had already encountered plenty of times this season. And Ribalta did exactly what he has done every previous time: Escape the jam unscathed. After back-to-back strikeouts of Hunter Goodman and Willi Castro, opponents are now 0-for-10 with five strikeouts against him with the bases loaded this season. Whether it’s a fluke or whether there’s an actual skill to it, you can’t argue with those flawless results.

BASERUNNING LOWLIGHT: The Nationals twice ran into outs at the plate via the contact play. And one of those plays actually turned into a double play. With one out in the third, Luis García Jr. broke from third on José Tena’s comebacker to the mound and was easily thrown out trying to score. Three innings later, Daylen Lile broke from third on Nasim Nuñez’s grounder to a drawn-in second baseman and wound up in a rundown. Making matters worse, Nuñez briefly thought he could reach second as the rundown was taking place, only to get into his own rundown and get tagged out himself.

NOTABLE: Max Scherzer is scheduled to make a rehab start for Triple-A Buffalo against Rochester on Thursday afternoon. If that goes well and the Blue Jays determine he’s ready to come off the IL, Scherzer would be lined up to pitch at Nationals Park next Monday or Tuesday.

UP NEXT: The series concludes Wednesday at 3:05 p.m. EDT when Cade Cavalli makes his second start of the second half and right-hander Gabriel Hughes takes the mound for Colorado. TV: Nationals TV RADIO: 106.7 FM