Eli Whitney | July 18, 2026
The Rockies didn’t need the long ball to bury the Reds on Saturday afternoon — they needed it only for punctuation.
Colorado strung together five straight two-out singles in a four-run second inning, piled up 14 hits, and rolled to a 10-3 win at Coors Field that snapped a seven-game home losing streak to Cincinnati and evened the series behind Tomoyuki Sugano‘s sharp return from the injured list.
Sugano, activated before the game after a stint with back spasms, looked like he’d never left. The right-hander worked 6.1 innings of three-run ball without a walk, earning his team-leading ninth win (tied with Antonio Senzatela) and his fifth quality start. He’s now won a decision in five of his last six starts, the first Rockies starter to do that since Austin Gomber in 2021.
“I felt like I was able to utilize my time off to come back, and I felt pretty good,” Sugano said through his interpreter, Yuto Sakurai.
He leaned heavily on his secondary stuff.
“Not a lot of four-seams today, but I was able to go two-seam in on a lot of the right-handed hitters. Cutter was good, splitter was good, and the slider was also good.”
The splitter in particular has come a long way at altitude: “I feel different from when I first started using my splitter here at Coors compared to now. I figured out how to have more depth with it.”
Manager Warren Schaeffer saw exactly what he’d predicted pregame.
“Excellent fastball command, strong velo, the splitter was really good,” Schaeffer said. “Typical Tomo Sugano stuff. He was great today.”
The only blemishes were a pair of solo homers by Jose Trevino, which Sugano shrugged off.
“We were ahead by a lot of runs. Even the team tells me solo homers are fine.”
The offense made sure of that early, and TJ Rumfield made sure of it emphatically.
The rookied first baseman went 4-for-5 — his first career four-hit game — with a career-high four RBI, capping the day with a 456, two-run homer off lefty Caleb Ferguson, the longest blast of his career. Characteristically, he steered the credit elsewhere.
“That’s on the back burner as long as we get the win,” Rumfield said. “Collectively, I feel like this is one of our best baseball games we’ve played as a whole.”
On taking a lefty deep: “To hit it good is one thing, but to hit it far is another. It’s a good confidence builder for the rest of the season.”
The second inning was the signature frame: after a strikeout with a runner on third, Jake McCarthy dropped a bunt single to score Brett Sullivan, and Mickey Moniak, Cole Carrigg, Rumfield, and Willi Castro followed with singles — five straight two-out knocks.
“That second inning, five hits in a row, all with two outs, picking each other up,” Schaeffer said. “We don’t have to hit homers. Just put the ball in play, and good things will happen in this ballpark.”
Seven of Colorado’s 10 runs were scored with two outs.
McCarthy set the tone from the leadoff spot with a double, the bunt hit, a steal, and two RBI, extending his hitting streak to five games.
“I know Sully’s a good runner at third, and saw the third baseman playing deeper than normal, so I just tried to get a pitch over the plate and execute,” McCarthy said of the bunt.
He framed the whole approach as a pressure release.
“It takes pressure off us as individuals. You put the ball in play, we have a lot of plus runners on this team, and it’s just an easy way to score runs. It’s been a fun offense to be a part of.”
Rumfield spoke with admiration.
“I can’t say enough about Jake McCarthy — just a constant pro,” he said. “He doesn’t care if it’s a bunt, if it’s moving a guy over, whatever the situation dictates. He’s going to get it done, and you believe he’s going to get it done.”
Brennan Bernardino added a dominant eighth with three strikeouts, extending his run to 17 consecutive outings without an earned run.
“Bernie’s been absolutely fantastic for us this year, taking the ball every time you ask him to,” Schaeffer said.
Rhett Lowder absorbed the damage for Cincinnati, tagged for eight runs on 11 hits in 2.1 innings.
The win lifted Colorado to 40-60 and evened the July ledger at 7-7 — and with Rumfied stacking a four-hit day onto a two-time Rookie of the Month first half, the manager was asked once more about his award case.
“TJ is making a very, very strong case,” Schaeffer said. “But he’s got another 60 games to go, so no letup.”
One roster note: Cole Carrigg exited late with what Schaeffer described as minor back tightness after a swing, with Braxton Fulford taking left field in the ninth as a precaution.
Leave a Reply