Cave, man: Rox role player rips clutch homer

ANAHEIM -- Jake Cave’s graying hair and beard edges go against type for a Rockies team that’s young and likely to become younger as prospects are granted their chances.

Yet he fit just fine Thursday night with his ninth-inning, two-out, two-run home run that forced extra innings and led to a 5-4 victory over the Angels. The Rockies earned a road series win in the three-game set at Angel Stadium.

The scoreboard doesn’t care about a player’s age. Cave, not exactly old at 31, showed that experience helps.

“If I'm on a team that's got a bunch of good, young players that can help keep me young, and I can help teach him something here and there, it's a win-win situation,” said Cave, part of contending Twins and Phillies teams before arriving in Colorado in a trade just before Opening Day.

Quietly, the Rockies (40-70) have won three of their four series since the All-Star break, although a four-game road sweep at the hands of the Giants pushed them to 6-7 over that span.

Here are some of the signs from Thursday that the club is trying to convert hard lessons over the previous four months into competitive baseball:

Toglia’s all-around game
Michael Toglia launched his team-leading 19th homer of the season -- for two runs in the second inning off otherwise effective Angels righty Carson Fulmer. Though Toglia entered the game batting .207, his single to open the top of the seventh with the Rockies down a run was a mature at-bat.

Toglia also made a deft glove save on Willie Calhoun’s hard grounder with one out and a runner at third with one out in the 10th.

“We practice with the little dimple ball machine from five feet away,” Toglia said. “I didn’t see it, but it was in my glove.”

Feltner holds up his end
Ryan Feltner yielded a two-run homer by Logan O’Hoppe in the fourth inning and a solo drive by Mickey Moniak in the sixth. But he went six innings with no further scoring for his fifth quality start in his last seven outings. He has a 2.88 ERA in that span.

“Those secondary pitches were whacked,” Rockies manager Bud Black said, “but beside that, he threw the ball well. He deserves better in a lot of ways. The record doesn’t indicate it, but, hopefully, as we get into the next two months, some of those wins will come through.”

After the no-decision, Feltner stayed 1-10, but his 4.97 ERA (with home games at Coors Field) speaks better of his contribution to a team he feels is improving.

“There are a lot of guys in the clubhouse playing really well,” Feltner said. “It seemed for a little bit we couldn't pull it all together but now seem to be firing on all cylinders. So it’s certainly a positive thing.”

Bullpen success
Rookie Angel Chivilli, who is up from the Minors for the fourth time, struck out one in a smooth eighth inning while pitching with a two-run deficit. Chivilli, who turned 22 on Sunday, made his five previous appearances in less contested games.

Fellow rookie Victor Vodnik, who earned a save Wednesday, overcame a two-out walk in the ninth.

Righty Tyler Kinley, who wild-pitched the potential tying run to third but struck out one and handled the 10th, is like Cave -- older (33) but trying to establish his future. Kinley had Tommy John surgery in 2022, pitched at the end of ’23 and has spent this year seeking consistency. He pitched scoreless innings the past two nights for a hold and a save.

“This series, I felt our starting pitching did excellent,” Kinley said, “and we got early runs in two of these games. Guys did a great job of getting their outs as quickly as they could, then moving on to the next guy.”

Finding a way
In the first game of the series, starter Cal Quantrill lost an early 6-2 lead and the Rockies fell, 10-7. The Rockies must win when they hit on the road. But going back and forth between Coors Field’s distortive atmosphere and other climates means the Rockies must win low-scoring games.

That means they need plays like shortstop Ezequiel Tovar’s sliding pickup and throw in the first inning.

Tovar, a rising star, celebrated his 23rd birthday on Thursday. Even though his hitting streak ended at 17 games, he provided a lesson for his squad: Offense or defense, every play is important.

“All these guys are going to get an opportunity,” Black said. “And potentially some guys from the Minors will come up and get an opportunity, as well.”