Colorado had their best chance at a series win against Tampa Bay. But critical mistakes once again cost the home team at Coors Field.

The Rockies dropped two of three against the Rays, and have lost eight of their first 10 games this season after a record 103 losses in 2023.

Here’s the series rewind, and the moments that enabled the continued slide.

The Moment

Ryan McMahon has been the Rockies’ best hitter in 2024, so a walk-off grand slam in Friday’s home opener felt fitting.

He came to the plate with one out and the bases loaded, and took the first pitch he saw several rows deep into the right-field seats. He, broadcaster Marc Stout, and the rest of the Rockies soaked up a Gatorade bath in celebration.

It was a special chance to make an impact for the Rockies’ mainstay in his eighth major league season.

“I was just trying to get a job done,” McMahon said. “If we have to win them like that, that’s fine.”

McMahon’s average is .389 through 10 games, and he put together a 5-for-12 line in the three-game set with Tampa Bay. He became the third Rockies’ hitter in team history to hit a walk-off grand slam, alongside Charlie Blackmon (2020) and Ryan Spilborghs (2009).

The third baseman has a six-game hitting streak and has hit safely in nine of the club’s 10 games.

Takeaways

Colorado is setting benchmarks that stretch back to the franchise’s worst season in 2023.

The Rockies have failed to score first in 16 consecutive games, dating back to last season. And the mark is the longest streak since the 1989 San Francisco Giants. They were previously tied with the 1996 Phillies — a team that lost 87 games and had only two above-league-average hitters.

“We’ve dug ourselves a hole,” manager Bud Black said. “We’re not getting the big hit. We had opportunities yesterday to expand the lead. … Today we had an opportunity to break it open again and couldn’t get the big hit.

“The worm will turn on the big hit, we’ll get the lead here at some point, and hopefully, our pitchers will make it hold up.”

Colorado loaded the bases with one out in Saturday’s loss before Elehuris Montero grounded into a double play. A 4-1 Rockies lead turned into a 6-1 lead later, but was drained quickly in the Rays’ two-run seventh and five-run eighth innings.

Sunday’s loss saw Kris Bryant do the same after McMahon grounded into a force out at home in the previous at-bat. Both would’ve either increased the Rockies’ lead drastically or given them their first of the game in the late innings.

What went right

Ryan Feltner tossed Colorado’s best start of the year, and arguably the pinnacle performance of his career.

He struck out 10 in the Rockies’ 8-6 loss on Saturday by attacking Rays’ hitters with a simplified approach. In spring training, he went without game plans altogether to allow his pitches to do the work, and not always his mind.

The scouting reports have lengthened in the regular season, but are still a shorter version than past years, and it’s allowed Feltner to succeed through two starts. He has thrown 11 innings, allowed four earned runs and struck out 14.

“We’re going to be okay, we’re going to pull together,” Feltner said on Saturday. “I believe in these guys and everybody in here believes in each other.”

Dakota Hudson followed suit Sunday and threw his own quality start. He went six innings and allowed three earned runs with four strikeouts mixed in.

The Rockies lost both and failed to support their starters’ efforts. The quality starts can be an avalanche, just like hitting.

“(Pitching) can be a little contagious too,” Black said. “I like the fact that, for the most part, we threw the ball over the plate to make them beat us.”

What went wrong

The starters were let down most by their relievers.

Colorado sent 11 relief pitchers to the mound in the three-game set, and four allowed multiple runs in their short stints. Closer Justin Lawrence felt the brunt of the struggles and had a bad hop over Michael Toglia’s head Saturday add to the damage. In two appearances, he allowed five runs (four earned), and fell victim to a sweeper that wasn’t dialed in.

“You have to go out there and compete,” Lawrence said. “It’s day-to-day, and obviously here, it’s a little more inconsistent. When you’re scuffling, you’re thinking about it every day. You want to get the job done as a bullpen — keep it boring and monotonous and put up a zero.”

Through the 2-8 start, Rockies’ relievers have posted a 7.50 earned run average in 84 innings. It’s the worst mark in the majors by nearly two runs. Washington is 29th with a 5.54 ERA.

The bullpen struggles wasted a pair of quality weekend starts. Feltner and Hudson each pitched well enough to win, but saw an inconsistent lineup render their outings moot.

What’s up next

Colorado meets Arizona for the second time, and will once again be faced with the strength of the Diamondbacks’ rotation.

Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly and Tommy Henry are scheduled to pitch in the three-game series, and two of the three found success against the Rockies in their opening matchup. Atop the Diamondbacks’ rotation, Gallen and Kelly combined to throw 11⅔ innings with two earned runs allowed in their first chance against the Rockies.

The Game … Rays 3, Rockies 2

What happened: Tampa Bay starter Ryan Pepiot shut the Rockies down for six innings Sunday as part of Colorado’s 15 strikeouts against the Rays’ staff at Coors Field.

On the mound: Dakota Hudson had his best Rockies start and went six innings. He allowed three earned runs and struck out four to lower his season ERA to 2.38 through two starts. Victor Vodnik had a pair of scoreless innings and hasn’t allowed an earned run in 7⅔ innings to start 2024. Tyler Kinley also bounced back with a scoreless inning.

At the plate: Jake Cave started Colorado’s scoring with a pinch-hit triple in the eighth before Elias Díaz drove him in with a pinch-hit single. Nolan Jones and Brenton Doyle each had two hits, and the latter drove in a run with his ninth-inning single.

What’s next: Arizona Diamondbacks (RHP Zac Gallen, 2-0) at Colorado Rockies (LHP Kyle Freeland, 0-2) on Monday at 6:40 p.m. at Coors Field (Rockies.TV).