DENVER -- Four wins. Two losses. Any team would take that result over a six-game road trip. But those losses sting a little more when they come against the same team, causing the Guardians to drop their first series in nearly three weeks.

After Cleveland jumped out to a quick two-run lead, the Rockies jumped on starter Logan Allen and never looked back, as the Guardians fell, 7-4, in the series finale on Wednesday at Coors Field.

“It’s tough to lose a series,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “We don’t want to lose any series but you go forward two on a road trip, you’re gonna do good things over the course of the year. Our guys played their hearts out.”

It’s true. The Guardians have been on a hot streak, having won 13 of 15 games entering the night and outscoring their opponents 94-52 in that span. David Fry has safely reached base in 17 straight games. José Ramírez had enjoyed seven straight games with at least one RBI before the streak was snapped on Wednesday. Josh Naylor started to turn his slump around with two homers on Tuesday and another two-hit night in the finale.

Even when the Guardians’ deficit seemed to be too much to overcome, the offense chipped away in the ninth inning, plating two runs. Maybe the energy was lower than normal in the dugout, as Vogt described. The hole they were in was larger than they’ve been used to. Yet the squad forced some momentum to swing back in its favor in the ninth. It wasn’t enough to get the job done, but it was a reminder -- even though the Guardians probably don’t need it at this point -- that this team will not quit.

“We’ve got some things we need to button up and get tighter with like we always do,” Vogt said. “But when I look back at this road trip, I couldn’t be more proud of the way our guys went out and played.”

Yes, there were some hiccups. There were defensive miscues. There were uncharacteristic moments like Andrés Giménez being out on interference as he ran down the first-base line or getting an automatic strike put on him for not being in the batter’s box with eight seconds left on the pitch timer in the ninth inning. Those things the Guardians can look back and improve on. The bigger issue was losing their starter in the second inning.

It was a rough night for Allen. He allowed seven earned runs on six hits with two walks and one strikeout in 1 2/3 innings. This is when concern about the future can bubble up.

The apprehension isn’t about Allen. He had one bad start in a difficult ballpark for pitchers, but he had been on a roll before this, winning each of his last three starts while allowing three runs over 17 2/3 innings (1.53 ERA) in that span. The Guardians know he can bounce back.

The Guardians currently have just four starters, but with off-days on Thursday and Monday, they don’t necessarily need a fifth for a little longer. Even if they wanted a fifth guy sooner, there wouldn’t be many options. Carlos Carrasco and Xzavion Curry aren’t eligible to rejoin the team just yet. Plus, a bullpen day seems overwhelming after the workload this group has already endured.

Twelve relievers in the Majors have pitched in at least 27 games so far this season. Four of them are Guardians (Emmanuel Clase, Nick Sandlin, Scott Barlow and Hunter Gaddis). Allen knows the bullpen needs to be spared as much as it can, which was a reason he was so hard on himself after the game.

“To not be able to settle in there, give up a six-spot, not even get out of the second, that’s pretty bad,” Allen said. “It’s embarrassing. I got to be better.”

The Guardians have been in this spot before. The bullpen always finds a way to be consistent. The hitters have consistently bounced back. Having that track record makes it much easier for them to look back on this road trip positively and ignore the sour taste that was left in their mouths.

“We’re playing good ball and you drop the series, that’s OK,” Allen said. “We go right back to it and play some more good ball.”