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Nolan Arenado returns to Coors Field Tuesday night, 555 days since he was traded from the Rockies to St. Louis in a trade that shook Colorado baseball fans to their core and sparked World Series dreams for Cardinals nation.
Nolan is being, well, Nolan. On Monday, he was named National League player of the week for the second time this season.
As for the five players the Rockies received in the trade — left-hander Austin Gomber, corner infielder Elehuris Montero, infielder Mateo Gil and right-handers Tony Locey and Jake Sommers — their performance has been decidedly mixed.
The Cardinals (60-48) enter Tuesday’s game having won seven consecutive games to overtake Milwaukee for first place in the National League Central. They’ve been led by Arenado, the nine-time Gold Glove third baseman who continues playing like he’ll be enshrined in Cooperstown some day.
In six games last week, Arenado hit .476 (10-for-21), with three homers, eight RBIs and a 1.560 OPS. He drove in four runs on Sunday to cement the Cardinals’ three-game sweep of the Yankees at Busch Stadium. For the season, Arenado is slashing .301/.370/.551 with 22 home runs, 26 doubles and 68 RBIs.
Though he’s being overshadowed by teammate Paul Goldschmidt, Arenado could finish in the top five in the NL MVP voting for the fourth time in his career. Goldschmidt is having an incredible season, slashing .332/.415/.614 with 25 home runs and 30 doubles.
“Sometimes (Arenado) can just will things to happen, and the look in his eye right now is pretty special,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told MLB.com last week. “We’ve got two guys (in Arenado and Goldschmidt) who are having pretty incredible seasons on all sides of it — defensively and offensively. They’re contributing at an incredibly high level.”
The Rockies (48-63) have struggled mightily since the All-Star break, going 5-13, and are mired in last place in the NL West. A positive slice of good news is that Montero is getting significant playing time and he’s translating his promise into results.
Montero, 23, was called up from Triple-A Albuquerque last Tuesday for his fourth stint in the majors this season. He had a hit in all six games since his call-up, going 9-for-21 (.429).
Montero was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI single Sunday in Colorado’s 6-4 loss at Arizona. He recorded his first two career RBIs on Friday and launched his first big-league home run on Saturday.
“The hope is at 23 that he continues to build on seeing big league pitchers, understanding what it’s going to take to be a professional hitter at this level,” manager Bud Black told reporters in Arizona. “I think he’s capable. He’s got the physical skill set to do it, to impact the ball. The upside is (his) average, power, with an on-base component.”
Gomber started out hot last season before faltering and going on the injured list on Sept. 4 with a stress fracture of the bones of the lower spine (pars defect). Still, he went 9-9 with a 4.53 ERA and a 1.204 WHIP in 24 starts with Colorado.
This season, Gomber, 28, has struggled and has spent time in the bullpen. In 21 games (16 starts) he’s 5-7 with a 5.64 ERA and a 1.408 WHIP.
Gil, 22, has battled injuries this season. He’s currently playing at High-A Spokane. In 18 games (68 plate appearances) he’s slashed .213/.279/.393 with no home runs and two doubles. He started the season at the extended spring training recovering from injury. He was finally assigned to Spokane on May 17 and was in the starting lineup at third base that night. But he injured his hamstring in the first inning while making a play at third base and left the game in the third inning. He didn’t get back into Spokane’s lineup until July 7.
Locey’s season has run hot and cold and he remains a long way from being a major league pitcher. In 12 starts at Spokane, he was 4-1 with a 3.09 ERA, earning a promotion to Double-A Hartford. But he’s 0-3 with a 13.50 ERA, with 14 walks vs. 14 strikeouts for the Yard Goats. Those ugly numbers were inflated by a poor recent start when the right-hander got lit up for 11 runs on 10 hits in 2 2⁄3 innings.
Sommers, 25, has endured a lost season and he’s currently on the 60-day injured list with elbow problems. Last season, he pitched 25 games in relief for Spokane, posting a 5.59 ERA.
On Deck
Cardinals RHP Miles Mikolas (8-8, 2.92 ERA) at Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner ((1-3, 5.75)
6:40 p.m. Tuesday, Coors Field
TV: ATTRM
Radio: 850 AM/94.1 FM
Feltner steps onto the mound in place of the injured Chad Kuhl and this is Feltner’s chance to show the Rockies what he’s got. The right-hander started the first game of last Tuesday’s doubleheader at Petco Park as the 27th man, allowing three runs on eight hits with one walk and three strikeouts over 3 2/3 innings. Four days earlier, in his first professional relief appearance, he pitched 3 1/3 scoreless innings vs. the Dodgers at Coors Field. The Rockies are just 1-7 in his eight starts and have lost five consecutive games with Feltner opening on the mound. Feltner has never faced the Cardinals.
Mikolas came away with a no-decision in the Cardinals’ 4-3 win over the Cubs in Game 1 of a doubleheader on Thursday. He allowed a first-inning homer for the third time in his last five starts but finished with a decent performance, giving up three earned runs on eight hits with six strikeouts and one walk. Mikolas is facing the Rockies for the seventh time in his career (fifth start) and for the first time since Sept. 12, 2019. He got his first career victory against Colorado in that game as the Cardinals romped, 10-3. He’s allowed five home runs in his three career appearances (two starts) at Coors Field, where he has an 8.33 ERA.
Trending: Rookie corner infielder Elehuris Montero is riding a seven-game hitting streak during which he’s hit .400 (10-for-25) with five doubles and the first home run of his career.
At issue: The Rockies have been outscored 106-67 since the All-Star break, the most runs allowed by any team in the majors. Little wonder that the Rockies enter Tuesday night’s game with a 3-15 record since the break.
Pitching probables
Wednesday: Rockies LHP Kyle Freeland (7-7, 4.56) vs. Cardinals LHP Jose Quintana (3-5, 3.39), 6:40 p.m., ATTRM
Thursday: Rockies RHP German Marquez (6-9, 5.18) vs. Cardinals RHP Dakota Hudson (6-6, 4.20), 1:10 p.m., ATTRM
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