Frustrated LA misses chance to gain ground

LOS ANGELES -- With 33 games left in the regular season and three games remaining against the Giants, the Dodgers are going to have opportunities to cut into San Francisco’s lead atop the National League West.

But at some point, if they want to win a ninth consecutive division title, they’re going to have to find ways to pounce at those opportunities. They were unable to capitalize Friday.

With the Giants dropping their series opener against the Braves, the Dodgers could have trimmed the division deficit to 1 1/2 games. But a quiet performance by their offense ultimately cost them, as they lost the series opener against the Rockies, 4-2, at Dodger Stadium.

• Box score

“Ideally we would’ve won that game and gained a [full] game,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “But unfortunately, it wasn’t to be.”

The Dodgers deployed another bullpen game against the Rockies, holding Colorado to four runs. Brusdar Graterol struggled as the opener, allowing a two-run homer to Charlie Blackmon that gave the Rockies an early 2-0 lead.

After Graterol, Andre Jackson was given the responsibility to throw the bulk of the innings. The Dodgers’ No. 7 prospect had a second consecutive solid outing to begin his big league career, allowing one run over 4 2/3 innings.

“I thought he threw really well,” said Dodgers catcher Will Smith of Jackson. “Fastball command was pretty good overall tonight. Changeup was really good. His cutter-slider thing was working. It kept them off balance. He did a really good job tonight.”

Despite seeing a decrease in fastball velocity from his first outing, Jackson continued to show off his plus changeup. He recorded four-swings-and-misses on the pitch and kept the Colorado lineup off balance. One changeup that he wishes he could take back, however, was the one he threw to C.J. Cron in the sixth.

Jackson left the changeup up in the zone and Cron didn’t miss it, launching a solo homer that gave the Rockies a 3-2 lead. It had an exit velocity of 111.4 mph, the hardest-hit ball against Jackson in his short career. In the ninth, Alex Vesia allowed a solo homer to Elias Díaz, giving the Rockies some insurance. It was Vesia’s first earned run allowed since July 30.

“I thought Andre was great. I thought Vesia was good. I thought [Shane] Greene was really good,” Roberts said. “Ultimately we scored two runs. I thought we were prepared, we were rested, and we just didn’t score enough tonight.”

While the Dodgers’ arms gave the team a chance, the lineup was limited by Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland. Will Smith and Trea Turner were able to get to Freeland in the third, each depositing a long and loud homer off the lefty. Outside of that, the Dodgers’ lineup was dominated by Freeland.

In the ninth, the Dodgers got their opportunities with runners in scoring position against right-hander Carlos Estévez. But with one out and Mookie Betts standing at second, Corey Seager was rung up on a third strike that looked to be well off the plate. A few pitches later, AJ Pollock struck out on a checked swing that appeared to be the correct call. Pollock launched his batting gloves and helmet in frustration, fully summarizing what was a disappointing loss for the Dodgers against a team under .500.

“That [ninth] inning certainly didn’t cost us the game,” Roberts said. “I think overall tonight, punching out 12 times, no walks. Not a good performance offensively.”