Rockies Beat Cubs, Will Face Brewers in NLDS
Courtesy of Creative Commons
By Tyler Englander 10/03/2018
From third string catcher to playoff hero. That’s what happened to Rockies catcher Tony Wolters when in the 13th inning he singled off Kyle Hendricks to drive in the game-winning run in the NL Wild Card Game. Wolters hit only .170 this year and hadn’t had a hit since September 10th. Wolters knock gave the Rockies a 2-1 lead and ensured the team of heading to their first NLDS since 2009. The Rockies travel north to take on the Brewers in a series that begins on Thursday at Miller Park. The loss left Cubs fan shocked, after blowing a 5 game division lead in September, followed by losses to the Brewers and Rockies eliminating them from the postseason.
The visiting Rockies got off to a good start in this one, plating a run in the first inning thanks to a Nolan Arenado sacrifice fly. The 1-0 scoreline would remain thanks to dominating pitching performances by Jon Lester, a playoff veteran, and Kyle Freeland, a playoff newcomer. Lester gave up the one run in 6 innings while Freeland gave up none is 6.2 innings of work. In the Eighth, the Cubs finally got to the Rockies, when Javier Baez brought home speedster Terrance Gore with an RBI double. The game would remain scoreless until the aforementioned Wolters brought in the game-winning run in the 13th.