DENVER -- It’s been a tough run for the Rockies this last time through the rotation, and Austin Gomber has been in the thick of it, as the left-hander bookended a dismal week for the club’s starters in a 13-6 loss to the Braves on Thursday night at Coors Field.

With the exception of Chad Kuhl, who beat the Nationals in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, the regular members of Colorado’s rotation have given up 27 runs (26 earned) in 21 innings for a collective ERA of 11.14.

“We just haven't had it,” manager Bud Black said. “The last couple of starts here have been rough. Collectively as a group, those guys -- there are six of them now -- they have to perform.”

Ryan Feltner has been the other exception, earning the win on Monday against the Marlins, although he’s the sixth man in rotation, filling in most recently for Antonio Senzatela.

The other four regulars? Opening Day starter Kyle Freeland allowed five earned runs in 5 2/3 innings on Sunday, Senzatela allowed six earned runs in 5 1/3 innings in the first game of Wednesday’s doubleheader, Germán Márquez allowed six earned runs in five innings in the nightcap, and Gomber rounded out the quartet with nine runs in five innings against the Braves.

“In a situation like this, where you don't have five or six guys doing well, to put together a winning streak, it's awful hard to do it offensively every night, to outscore the opponent, if you're not pitching well,” Black said.

“So starting pitching has to do their thing. And the bullpens have been a little bit too variable. So the pitching the last three weeks has not been where it needs to be.”

The Rockies have lost 17 of their last 24 games, after starting the season 16-11. The pitching staff entered the opener of a four-game set against the Braves with a 6.08 ERA in that span, the worst in the Majors since May 8, making a match for the team’s lowest winning percentage in MLB over the same time period.

“I'm throwing strikes, I'm just not throwing the ball where I want to throw the ball right now,” Gomber said. “I just felt like every time I made a mistake tonight, they didn't miss it. It's frustrating. The last two times out, I haven't pitched how I know I'm capable of pitching. Not really giving us a chance to win, and that's the most frustrating part.”

Gomber at least made improvement over his previous time out, when he was knocked out in the second inning after allowing eight runs in 1 1/3 innings against the Nationals. He’s the first Rockies pitcher since 1998 to allow eight or more runs in consecutive games, and just the third in franchise history.

“I mean, yeah, I was in the game longer,” Gomber said. “I just felt like I never really had any rhythm going. Sometimes when you're throwing the ball well, you have an absolute missile that gets hit right at somebody, and that kind of keeps you in that groove. Today, that just didn't happen for me.”

Coors Field had been Gomber’s happy place since coming over from St. Louis in the Nolan Arenado trade before the 2021 season. The southpaw was 6-3 with a 2.78 ERA in 13 starts spanning 71 1/3 innings leading into Thursday’s loss. He’d never allowed more than eight hits in any of those starts until yielding 10 to the Braves.

“I'm trying to look at it as a bad week,” Gomber said. “I was really bad twice in the past six days, we'll leave it at that. I felt like I was in a good spot before that. I had four or five good outings in a row and then the last two times out, it hasn't gone my way. I need to make an adjustment on something. It really just comes down to making better pitches. It doesn't really matter how you get there.”

In better news, the Rockies offered an offensive quartet to counter their pitching woes.

Connor Joe extended his on-base streak to 29 games, going 2-for-3 with two doubles and two walks. Brendan Rodgers has now hit safely in 20 straight games, the club’s longest streak since Carlos Gonzalez (21 straight from Sept. 23, 2015 through April 16, 2016). José Iglesias pushed his hit streak to 13 games, and Charlie Blackmon logged his 25th career four-hit game.