LOS ANGELES – If nothing else, the Colorado Rockies still are showing some fight at the end of a lost season.
The Rockies rallied from a three-run deficit to force extra innings but fell 6-5 to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night when Scott Van Slyke scored the winning run on Franklin Morales’ wild pitch in the 12th inning.
Colorado’s bullpen retired 18 in a row, a stretch that spanned from the sixth inning until the 12th.
Van Slyke started that inning with a one-out single. He advanced to second when Tim Federowicz was hit by a pitch, stole third, and came home on Morales’ wild pitch.
“Scott Van Slyke single-handedly won the game for us right there,” catcher A.J. Ellis said. “That was a big base hit. We hadn’t had a baserunner in quite some time. Then, for him to show off not just his speed but his baseball savvy.
“Give him a lot of credit for baseball IQ and knowing what was needed for us to get off that field.”
The Rockies trailed 5-2 after five innings but chipped away against the Dodgers’ bullpen.
Charlie Culberson singled home Michael McKenry in the sixth, and McKenry cut the deficit to 5-4 with a solo homer in the eighth.
Ben Paulsen tied it in the ninth, sending Paco Rodriguez’s first pitch down the right-field line, just inside the foul pole and into the seats.
“Paulsen’s made quite an impression,” Rockies’ manager Walt Weiss said. “Good hitter. Really pretty swing. He’s done a nice job.”
Morales (6-9) took the loss for the Rockies (66-95), who have dropped three in a row.
Colorado took a 2-1 lead into the fifth inning, but the Dodgers erased it with a four-run spurt that knocked starter Eddie Butler from the game.
“(Butler) looked pretty sharp early, but it got away from him in the fifth,” Weiss said. “I felt like he threw some good sinkers, but I think he started to catch a lot of the plate in the fifth inning, and he got nicked up there.”
L.A. rapped out four hits in the inning, including Van Slyke’s tying RBI single and Matt Kemp’s go-ahead RBI double.
Butler, making his third career start, was charged with five runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings.
“I think he’s shown some promise here and something to look forward,” Weiss said. “Got some things to build on. Overall, I think he threw the ball pretty well.”
The Dodgers (93-68) have won four in a row, including an NL West-clinching victory over San Francisco on Wednesday. They are locked into the league’s No. 2 playoff seed.
Rookie Carlos Frias (1-1) pitched three scoreless innings for L.A. for his first major league win.
Rockies rumpus
Dodgers 2B Dee Gordon was removed in the second inning because of right hip irritation. His removal was characterized as a precaution by team staff, and he is day to day. ... Dodgers LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu (left shoulder inflammation) didn’t report any pain after throwing off a mound Friday. He will throw a full bullpen session Sunday. ... Rockies 2B DJ LeMahieu (sprained left knee) will have an MRI on Monday. He was injured while diving for a ball in the series opener. ... Dodgers RHP Zack Greinke (16-8, 2.74) looks to remain unbeaten since Aug. 9 when he starts Sunday’s regular-season finale. He is 4-0 with a 2.40 earned-run average in his last seven starts. ... Rockies RHP Christian Bergman (3-4, 5.29) will oppose Greinke and wrap up his rookie season. Bergman, 26, has won three of his last four decisions.
