Donovan Solano had four hits, including a tie-breaking home run leading off the sixth inning, and the San Francisco Giants beat the Rockies 11-8 on Wednesday to complete a four-game series sweep, their first at Colorado in nearly eight years.

Pablo Sandoval sparked a three-run first inning with a two-run double and Stephen Vogt also homered for the surging Giants, who have won five straight and 12 of their last 14. Brandon Belt had an RBI single among his three hits.

Trevor Story and Ryan McMahon homered for the Rockies, losers of four straight and 11 of their last 13.

San Francisco broke through for five runs in the seventh and eighth innings. Two of the three runs the Giants scored in the eighth were unearned after center fielder Garrett Hampson, who came on in the top of the third for injured David Dahl, failed to handle Joe Panik’s fly ball for an error. Dahl fouled a pitch off his left foot in the first inning and was removed in the second.

The Rockies got three runs in their final at-bat, including a two-out, two-run homer by Story. Mark Melancon relieved Andrew Suraez and got Nolan Arenado to fly out to center for the game’s final out and his first save of the season.

It was the first-four game sweep by the Giants in Colorado since Sept. 15-18, 2011.

Solano, who got the start in a day game after a night game to give regular shortstop Brandon Crawford a break, broke a 5-5 tie when he homered off Jon Gray (9-7) to start the Giants’ sixth.

The Giants jumped on Gray for three first-inning runs, two of them scoring on a double by Sandoval. Colorado went in front 4-3 on McMahon’s two-run homer off Shaun Anderson in the Rockies’ fourth, a short-lived lead that was erased by Vogt’s two-run drive off Gray in the fifth.

Story tripled to start the Rockies’ fifth and scored one out later on by a single by Nolan Arenado.

San Francisco starter Shaun Anderson, in his first career start at Coors Field, went 4 1/3 innings and allowed five runs on eight hits.

Gray went 5 1/3 innings and allowed 11 hits and six runs. He walked three and struck out three.

Derek Holland (2-4) picked up the win with 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rockies: OF David Dahl left the game in third inning after fouling a pitch off the top of his left foot during his first-inning at bat. He is listed as day to day with a bruised left foot. Garrett Hampson replaced him in center field.

UP NEXT

Rockies: Following an off day, the Rockies open a season-long 10-game road with an interleague series against the New York Yankees that opens Friday night with LHP Kyle Freeland (2-6) slated to start the opener.

2019 Nebraska Legion Baseball – SENIORS – B7 District Tournament
Ogallala, NE – Double Elimination

July 19 – First Round

• 4:00 – #4 Chadron vs #5 Sidney
• 7:00 – #2 Ogallala vs #3 Gering

July 20 – Second Round

• 4:00 – #1 Alliance vs. Chadron/Sidney winner
• 7:00 – Elimination Game

Tournament Link: B7 Senior District Bracket

 

2019 Nebraska Legion Baseball – SENIORS – C7 District Tournament
Valentine, NE – Double Elimination

July 19 – First Round

• #1 Albion vs #4 Bridgeport – 5:00 (CT)
• #2 Valentine vs #3 Plainview – 8:00 (CT)

July 20

• 5:00 – Elimination Game
• 8:00-  Semifinals

Tournament Link: C7 Senior District Bracket

 

2019 Nebraska Legion Baseball – SENIORS – A7 District Tournament
North Platte, NE – Double Elimination

July 19 – First Round

• #2 Kearney Post 52 vs #3 Scottsbluff (Westco) – 5:00 (CT)
• #4 North Platte vs #5 Lexington – 8:00 (CT)

July 20

• 1:00 – Elimination Game
• 4:00 – #1 Hastings vs NP/Lexington winner – Quarterfinals

Tournament Link: A7 Senior District Bracket

 

2019 Nebraska Legion Baseball – JUNIORS – A7 District Tournament
Hastings, NE – Double Elimination

July 19 – First Round

• #3 Scottsbluff (Westco) Express vs #2 Hastings Post 11 – 5:00 (CT)
• #4 Lexington vs #5 Hastings Post 52 – 7:30 (CT)

July 20

• 2:00 – Elimination Game
• 4:30 –  #1 North Platte Post 163 vs. Lexington/Hastings winner – Quarterfinals

Tournament Link: A7 Junior District Bracket

2019 Nebraska Legion Baseball – Class B Juniors State Tournament
Host: McCook, NE

July 20 – First Round (McCook is CT, start times shown are Mountain)

• 9:00 – Alliance vs Beatrice – (Radio: KCOW 92.5 FM & AM 1400)
• 12:00 – Hickman vs Roncalli
• 3:00 – Broken Bow vs Waverly
• 6:00 – McCook vs Central City

July 21

• 9:00 – Elimination Game
• 12:00 – Elimination Game
• 3:00 –  Second Round
• 6:00 – Second Round

Class B Legion Baseball complete STATE Bracket

The Alliance First National Spartan Juniors clinched their 4th straight Class B, Area 7 Championship Tuesday night in Sidney. The top seed Spartans needed to play 2 games to take the title vs #2  Ogallala.   In the opening game Ogallala used strong pitching to win 4-2 and force a second, winner take all game.  Kellen Muhr pitched well and added 2 hits, despite the loss.

Game 2, saw the teams tied 1-1 early and then after waiting out 2 weather delays, Alliance scratched out 2 runs in the 5th and added 2 insurance runs in the 6th, to take a 5-2 win. Victor Hinojosa went 6 1/3 innings on the mound, giving up 2 runs on 4 hits and struck out 4. Brantz Halouska got the final 2 outs to preserve the win and send Alliance on to the Class B State Tournament for a 4th straight season. Alliance is now 30-11 on the season.

Besides Alliance, Hickman has qualified for state as the B-1 Champion. Waverly from B-2, Roncalli from B-3, Beatrice from B-4, Central City from B-5, Broken Bow from B-6 and McCook will be the host team.  The Class B Junior State Tournament will be July 20-24 in McCook.  We will update when the pairings have been set.

 

Newcomers Alex Dickerson and Mike Yastrzemski are making their presence felt during the San Francisco Giants’ surprising mid-season surge.

Dickerson had a career-high four hits, including the go-ahead RBI single in San Francisco’s four-run 10th inning as the Giants recovered from giving up a three-run lead in the ninth to beat the Colorado Rockies 8-4 on Tuesday night.

Yastrzemski homered and doubled among his three hits and had three RBIs to help the Giants win their fourth straight and seventh in the last eight.

“You could put (Austin) Slater in there,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. “They have all really been a lift for this club offensively and they’re really doing a good job on defense, too. I’m proud of them. This is a tough road trip.”

Yastrzemski was brought up in late May and Dickerson has been with the Giants since mid-June after being acquired from San Diego. Slater joined the team July 1 and already has a pinch-hit grand slam.

“It’s been a lot of fun,” said Dickerson, who is batting .400 (24 for 60) in his 19 games with the Giants. “I’ve actually never really hit well here, this is a first for me. I’m seeing good pitches to hit, I mean, (Brandon) Crawford is hitting behind me and he annihilated them (Monday), so I knew I was going to see some good pitches to hit.”

Trevor Story and Ian Desmond homered for the Rockies, who have lost 10 of 12.

Trailing 4-1 going into the bottom of the ninth, Colorado rallied against Giants closer Will Smith (3-0). Story connected for his 21st home run to start the inning. One out later, Daniel Murphy singled and Desmond followed with a drive that reached the center-field seats to tie it. It was the second blown save for Smith in his last three chances after converting 23 straight to start the season.

But the Giants answered against Rockies closer Wade Davis (1-4) in the top of the 10th. He issued two one-out walks before Dickerson singled to right as the Giants regained the lead. Brandon Crawford followed with an RBI single and Bryan Shaw relieved Davis. Yastrzemski singled to drive in another run before the Giants scored an unearned run on third baseman Nolan Arenado’s fielding error.

Mark Melancon pitched a scoreless 10th for the Giants.

Desmond said he and Murphy were motivated going into their at bats after seeing Story connect and even though the rally went for naught he’s hopeful it will return dividends in the long run.

“We both looked at each other and I said, ‘Hey man, you think a couple of old guys can fight a little bit harder.’ And he goes, ‘Yeah, let’s go out and fight’ em,’ and we were able to tie it up there. Unfortunately, we came up short but that grit is going to pay off in the end.”

The Giants took a 2-0 lead in the second inning when Dickerson led off with a single and scored one out later on Yastrzemski’s double. Yastrzemski came home on Joe Panik’s single.

The Rockies cut the deficit in half when Garrett Hampson walked, advance to third on Charlie Blackmon’s single and scored on Stry’s fielder’s choice grounder.

Dickerson’s RBI single in the eighth made it 3-1 and Yastrzemski’s homer off Chad Bettis in the ninth put the Giants up by three runs.

UP NEXT

Giants: Rookie RHP Shaun Anderson (3-2, 4.48 ERA) will start in Coors Field for the first time while making his 12th career start.

Rockies: RHP Jon Gray (9-6, 3.83 ERA) has gone 4-1 with a 3.26 ERA in eight starts at home this season.

 

AROUND THE MAJORS TUESDAY

—A big eighth-inning rally allowed the New York Yankees to increase their lead in the American League East. The Yanks trailed 3-2 before homering twice erupting for six runs in their final at-bat to whip the second-place Rays, 8-3. Aaron Judge put New York ahead with a two-run blast before Didi Gregorius followed with a grand slam. David Hale pitched two scoreless innings for the Yankees, beginning with an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the seventh against Travis d’Arnaud. The outcome puts the Yankees six games ahead of Tampa Bay.

_ The Angels are 5-0 since the All-Star break after Albert Pujols hit a bases-clearing double during a six-run first that sparked a 7-2 win over the Astros. Jake Marisnick was drilled between the shoulder blades by Angels reliever Noe Ramirez in the sixth inning, nine days after Marisnick bowled over Los Angeles catcher Jonathan Lucroy to cause a concussion and a broken nose. The Astros’ lead in the AL West is down to 4 ½ games over Oakland.

_ The Athletics won their fifth in a row as All-Star Matt Chapman homered and had five RBIs in a 9-2 thrashing of the Mariners. Matt Olson followed Chapman’s fifth-inning drive with a solo homer that extended his hitting streak to 11 games. Daniel Mengden allowed one run and four hits over seven innings.

_ The Mets picked up their third straight win by getting five scoreless innings out of their beleaguered bullpen in a 3-2 victory at Minnesota. Michael Conforto was 4-for-4 with a tiebreaking, RBI single in the fifth and a run scored as New York cut the Twins’ lead in the AL Central to six games over Cleveland. Edwin Diaz loaded the bases in the ninth before getting Nelson Cruz to pop up for the final out.

_ Oscar Mercado homered for the third time in two games and Zach Plesac combined with three relievers on a one-hitter as the Indians dumped the Tigers, 8-0. The no-hitter ended when Nicholas Castellanos singled leading off the fifth inning. Mercado hit a two-run shot and Francisco Lindor added a two-run double in a five-run second inning.

_ Andrew Cashner was roughed up in his Red Sox debut as Toronto coasted to a 10-4 win at Fenway Park. Teoscar Hernández hit a three-run homer off Cashner, who was chased in the sixth and was reached for six runs on eight hits. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. had three hits for the Blue Jays, who dropped the Red Sox 10 games off the AL East lead.

_ The Royals clobbered the White Sox, 11-0 as Glenn Sparkman pitched a five-hitter for his first career complete game. Whit Merrifield and Hunter Dozier both had three hits including a home run in Kansas City’s fourth win in five games since the All-Star break. Merrifield raced to an inside-the-park homer down the right-field line in the fourth inning after Cam Gallagher doubled.

_ Rookie Alex Young allowed one run and three hits over 5 1/3 innings to help the Diamondbacks thump the Rangers, 9-2. Ketel Marte’s two-run single in the fifth inning broke a 1-1 tie, and Ildemaro Vargas added a two-run home run in the sixth on his 28th birthday. Losing pitcher Lance Lynn entered the game 12-4 overall and 8-0 at home before surrendering five runs on eight hits over six innings.

_ Kyle Schwarber’s homer in the bottom of the 10th gave the Cubs a 4-3 triumph over the Reds. Robel Garcia and Kris Bryant also connected as Chicago took a 2 ½-game lead over Milwaukee in the NL Central. Eugenio Suárez homered for Cincinnati, which fell to 7-4 against Chicago this season.

_ Christian Yelich blasted his second career grand slam and Keston Hiura and Lorenzo Cain each added solo home runs to highlight the Brewers’ 13-1 pounding of the Braves. Brandon Woodruff allowed one earned run and struck out seven in 6 2/3 innings to move to 11-3 and pitch Milwaukee to just its third win in 11 games. Bryse Wilson surrendered four earned runs on six hits in four innings as Atlanta ended a five-game winning streak and saw its lead in the NL East shrink to 6 ½ games over Washington.

_ Matt Adams and Juan Soto homered to support rookie Austin Voth as the Nationals ripped the Orioles, 8-1. Voth (1-0) allowed one run and four hits over six innings following his recall from Double-A Harrisburg before the game. Washington has won 13 of its last 16 and owns the NL’s third-best record after hammering their geographical rivals.

_ Colin Moran’s infield single in the ninth drove in the go-ahead run as the Pirates beat the Cardinals, 3-1 to end a four-game skid. Starling Marte was hit in the back by a pitch leading off Pittsburgh’s two-run ninth and came around to score on Moran’s hit. Pittsburgh starter Dario Agrazal held St. Louis to a run and five hits while pitching into the seventh.

_ The Phillies blew a 6-5 lead in the ninth before Bryce Harper supplied a two-run, walk-off double to give them a wild 9-8 victory over the Dodgers. Matt Beaty hit a three-run homer off Philadelphia closer Hector Neris in the top half, but pinch-hitter Andrew Knapp doubled and scored on Scott Kingery’s single before Harper capped his five-RBI night with the game-winning hit. Harper also belted a three-run homer as the Phils ended the Dodgers’ three-game winning streak.

_ Brian Anderson hit a three-run homer in the first inning and Starlin Castro had a bases-loaded triple in the sixth to give the Marlins an 11-3 lead in a 12-7 drubbing of the Padres. Harold Ramirez had two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored, while Garrett Cooper hit his 11th homer and a two-run single to help Miami deal San Diego its fourth straight loss. Jordan Yamamoto is 4-0 after allowing two earned runs and throwing 99 pitches to get through five innings.

2019 American Legion Baseball Juniors District Tournament
Sidney, NE

Friday, July 12

(2) Ogallala 9, (5) Chadron 2
(1) Alliance 11, (6) Sidney Two  0
(3) Sidney One 9, (4) Gering 8

Saturday, July 13

Chadron 16, Sidney Two 1 – Sidney Two eliminated
Alliance 2, Gering 0
Ogallala 11, Sidney One 1

Sunday, July 14

Alliance 13, Ogallala 9
Chadron 7, Sidney One 6

Monday, July 15
Ogallala 6,  Chadron 0 – Winner to Championship

Tuesday, July 16 – Championship
Ogallala 4, Alliance 2 – Forces Game Two
Game 2 – Rain Delay -Winner is District Champion

Official Tournament Bracket