Rodgers keyed on 'finishing strong' as solid second half continues

DENVER -- Rockies second baseman Brendan Rodgers managed a strange trifecta of feelings -- happiness, befuddlement and pain (at least in a limited dose) -- by the end of Thursday afternoon’s 12-8 loss to the Marlins at Coors Field.

• Why not be a little happy despite the result? Rodgers parked solo home runs in the third and fourth innings. His only other multihomer game occurred on June 1, 2022, also against the Marlins.

“It really doesn’t matter who we’re playing, it’s always nice to get a homer and add another one on top,” he said.

• Before the homer, his own park -- specifically, the sun in the mile-high sky -- turned against him, when he lost Connor Norby’s leadoff popup. It led to a run behind rookie starting pitcher Bradley Blalock, who had a combination of bad luck and shaky execution while giving up seven runs (six earned) on nine hits in four innings.

“If we have some cloud coverage, it’s always nice,” Rodgers said. “That was one just hit at an awkward height to where I really couldn’t get an angle to get a good visual on it. It was pretty much in the sun the whole way. I stared into the sun for three or four seconds, then had no visual on it.”

• Norby co-starred in another scary play in the fifth with a slow bouncer that shortstop Ezequiel Tovar fielded and threw to Rodgers at second. Rodgers had his foot and ankle briefly caught beneath Ali Sánchez. He evaded injury, but his hip and back didn’t feel too good.

“I got out of there just in time,” Rodgers said. “I was trying to get something on [the throw] before I took the collision. I tried to make it a graceful fall but I landed on my hip."

Rodgers earned a Gold Glove Award in 2022, but saw his late-season offensive numbers dip because of nagging injuries. He missed the first four months of last season because of left shoulder surgery. This year, he has been healthy, except for an 11-game absence in June with a left hamstring strain, and productive for long stretches.

Rodgers is slashing .274/.319/.419 with 12 home runs in 115 games. His work included a .290 average in May and a .333 line in June. Since Aug. 1, he is batting .316 with five home runs and 14 RBIs. Manager Bud Black views Rodgers’ performance favorably.

“You can nitpick,” Black said. “Twelve home runs, there’s more in there and he’d probably be the first to tell you. The RBI totals, maybe you can nitpick that if you want. But he’s doing fine.

“He’s playing the defense, hitting and is having a good, solid second half. He hits well at home [.887 OPS, 8 HR]. Like a lot of our guys, we’ve got to do a little better on the road [.596 OPS, 4 HR].”

The last road trip, against the Nationals and the Yankees, Rodgers went 5-for-25 with 10 strikeouts, a slump that would hurt anyone’s splits. But after splitting the four-game series with the Marlins, Rodgers and the Rockies have three against the contending Orioles to compete where they’re most comfortable.

The split with the Marlins made no one happy, but since July 1 the Rockies are 15-11 at Coors, with much of the schedule against contending clubs, like the Orioles.

Rodgers, 28, is under contract with the Rockies for one more year. As one of the more-experienced players on a club that has turned to younger players, he looks to set an example by producing over a full season.

Off-days help, also. Rodgers rested Wednesday night, watching stand-in Aaron Schunk hit his first career homer in an 8-2 Rockies victory.

“With a little over a month left, I’m just trying to focus on staying healthy, staying on the field and finishing strong,” Rodgers said.