MILWAUKEE -- The Rockies began one of their toughest stretches of the season after the All-Star break. Entering Friday, Colorado was set to play 15 straight games against teams at or above the .500 mark, a stretch of games that could shape the team and their playoff aspirations.

With most of those games happening before the Aug. 2 Trade Deadline -- against the Brewers, White Sox, Dodgers and Padres -- the Rockies will likely know where they stand upon that date.

Their 6-5 13th-inning loss against the Brewers on Friday night at American Family Field was a tough defeat for a team looking to start this set of games on the right note.

“It’s part of what we do as a coaching staff,” manager Bud Black said about the difficulty of playing a long game. “You just stay as present as possible and try to put the guys in the best possible position to do their job and perform.”

And it looked like Colorado was in position to win.

After Charlie Blackmon and Brendan Rodgers drove in a run each in the 10th inning and reliever Robert Stephenson got two quick outs in the bottom half of that inning, a Rockies’ victory was in sight.

But on a 2-2 count, Brewers outfielder Hunter Renfroe launched a game-tying home run. Milwaukee walked it off in the 13th.

It’s a loss that surely had the feeling of a Colorado victory. The Rockies got a solid outing from Antonio Senzatela, the bullpen held its own for most of the game and the offense came up in big situations -- except for the last three innings.

“It was great to be able to pick up Senza,” said Lucas Gilbreath, who pitched two scoreless innings out of the bullpen. “You want to keep it where it is and you want to be able to pick your guy up.”

But even despite the loss, the Rockies remain on course, right there in the mix of things.

General manager Bill Schmidt is giving the team every chance to play its way back into the Wild Card conversation, trailing the Phillies by 6 1/2 games with three other contenders in between. But these next games are important for Colorado with the Trade Deadline looming and the team looking to make a push toward .500.

Black, though, is just taking it day by day with his team.

“Well, every game is important,” Black said. “You know, we all talk about that, they all count. This one tonight counts. That’s the most important. And then when we get to tomorrow, that one’s important, too. But I don’t know whether you can narrow it down to nine or 10 games.”

The way that the Rockies ended the first half of the season -- winning five of six and going 13-10 -- was an encouraging sign, especially with Kris Bryant fully healthy. Colorado is 18-16 with Bryant in the lineup and just 25-35 without the 2016 NL MVP.

Of course, Bryant is a key piece to the team when playing. So is C.J. Cron -- the team’s lone All-Star -- and Blackmon -- who homered in the third inning off Corbin Burnes. All three players are hitting above .278 with an OPS of at least .808.

But Black narrowed it down to pitching as the key for the team to get back to .500, especially from the starters.

“It starts with the pitching,” Black said. “You got to pitch well because if you pitch well, you get a chance every night to win. The starting pitcher does their turn. Then, the starter turns it over to the bullpen, and those guys have to pitch well, too. You got to pitch. If you pitch, you got a chance.”

Entering Friday, the Rockies’ starting rotation had the third-highest ERA in the Majors at 5.01. Friday’s close loss showed a glimpse of what happens when their starter can give the team a solid outing -- they have a chance to win.

Senzatela went five-plus innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and one walk with four strikeouts. His start won’t turn heads, nor did it register as a quality start. But it could have helped the team win.

“I thought Senza’s fastball was lively,” Black said. “He kept us in the game and he matched [Corbin Burnes]. Pitch count got up on Senza, but he hung in there.”

That’s the production that the team will need from their rotation as they entered the last half of the season with the hardest remaining schedule (opponent combined winning percentage of .523) in the Majors.