Lawrence, Rockies 'pen continuing to shine 

MIAMI -- Closer Justin Lawrence believes the goal of the Rockies’ bullpen is to make the final inning the least action-packed and most predictable part of the game.

“Let it be monotonous,” Lawrence said. “We just want to put up zeros. Keep it boring. Let the offense be exciting.”

Offensive excitement in Saturday’s 4-3 victory over the Marlins at loanDepot park -- which gave the Rockeis their first series win in Miami since Aug. 23-25, 2013 -- came late. After managing just two hits in six-plus innings against Johnny Cueto, Nolan Jones tied the game with a three-run, 445-foot homer off JT Chargois, and Randal Grichuk won it with an RBI single in the ninth off A.J. Puk.

As for the monotony Lawrence referred to from Rockies relievers, it was the best kind. After six solid innings from starter Chase Anderson (three runs, seven hits, six strikeouts), the game finished with scoreless relief work by Jake Bird, Daniel Bard and Lawrence, who took home his seventh save.

In 12 games since July 4, during which the 39-59 Rockies have gone .500, the bullpen has posted a 1.68 ERA and .188 batting average against, with 41 strikeouts against 17 walks in 48 1/3 innings.

“I know I sound like a broken record, but we have a lot of confidence in our bullpen,” said Rockies manager Bud Black, who is planning a bullpen day for the starter-depleted Rockies as they go for a series sweep on Sunday. “There are some different weapons with different styles, and collectively they’ve done a good job.

“There have been times when it’s been really good over stretches of a week, two weeks and multiple appearances by a number of guys. You need all those guys.”

Saturday wasn’t total dullsville. The Marlins had two on against Bird before he induced a double play from Garrett Cooper. Lawrence had to call upon his cool when he walked Jacob Stallings with one out in the ninth. He faced Jon Berti with former Rockie Garrett Hampson as a pinch-runner, meaning possibly the two best runners in the park were in play.

But Lawrence forced a double play on a ground ball, made by an alert charge from rookie shortstop Ezequiel Tovar and a nice turn from second baseman Alan Trejo.

“It could be a mixture of the situation that I'm pitching in, the role I’m pitching in -- one-run games, two-run games in the ninth inning,” Lawrence said. “Hitters might be pressing a little bit more. For me, I try to do the opposite.

“I just try to relax even more the type of situation it is and I think that kind of balances out well for me to execute my pitches. When you have those hitters maybe pressing a little bit, they might swing at some pitches that are out of the zone.”

It’s the type of strategy that can make an exciting one-run victory as dull as can be. Just the way Lawrence likes it.