Elias Díaz gets key hit as the Rockies rally for a wild 10-9 victory over the Padres

DENVER (AP) — Elias Díaz capped Colorado's six-run eighth inning with a tiebreaking RBI double, and the Rockies beat the San Diego Padres 10-9 on Thursday.

Elehuris Montero and Hunter Goodman homered for Colorado, which earned a split of the four-game series. Brenton Doyle and Brendan Rodgers each had three of the Rockies' 14 hits.

“Everybody put everything together, took a good (at-bat), and the results came,” Díaz said.

Rodgers started Colorado's big rally with a one-out double. Sean Bouchard then walked before Goodman greeted Wandy Peralta (1-1) with a 448-foot drive to left-center for his first homer of the season.

The 24-year-old Goodman was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque on Wednesday.

“(Peralta) works mostly away, so I was looking for something up in the zone,” Goodman said. “He hung a changeup and I put a good swing on it.”

Jacob Stallings singled, Ezequiel Tovar walked and Brenton Doyle singled to produce another run for Colorado. After Tovar scored on a passed ball, Díaz lifted the Rockies to a 10-9 lead when he doubled into the left-field corner against Stephen Kolek.

Peralta faced five batters in the eighth and gave up three hits and a walk.

“The second a guy gives up a home run, I can’t just go take out a guy who has a microscopic ERA and has gotten righties out all year,” San Diego manager Mike Shildt said. “I’ve got a veteran guy out there who knows now to get a ground ball and is one pitch away from getting a ground ball. It didn’t work out.”

Tyler Kinley (1-0) got three outs for the win. Justin Lawrence pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his second save.

Ha-Seong Kim and Jurickson Profar homered for Padres, who had won three of four. Xander Bogaerts had two hits and drove in a run.

Kim hit a three-run drive in the third against Dakota Hudson, and Profar added a two-run shot in the seventh against Nick Mears. Eguy Rosario’s RBI single in the top of the eighth gave the Padres a 9-4 lead.

Hitting second in the order for the second time this season, Doyle scored three times and swiped two bases while raising his batting average to .330. Díaz finished with three RBIs as the Rockies improved to 5-8 at home and 7-19 overall.

“You never know a game is going to play out,” Colorado manager Bud Black said. “No doubt we are off to a tough start, so every win we get we feel good about. It gives us the direction. We know some numbers are going to turn around. We just have to hang in there.”

Colorado's eight series without a series win to start the season is the longest such stretch to begin a season in franchise history.

The Padres had won seven of eight against the Rockies, who have trailed at some point in each of their first 26 games. The 1910 St. Louis Browns trailed in their first 28 games for the major league record.

SOUTH OF THE BORDER

Next up for Colorado is a two-game series against Houston this weekend at Mexico City’s Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium, which has an elevation of 7,349 feet. The games will be played at the highest altitude in major league history.

“It still comes down to baseball,” Black said. “Us against them.”

“Mexico loves baseball,” Black continued when asked about potential expansion. “I’m sure it is in deep conversations about where to go.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Padres: CF Jackson Merrill (right groin tightness) was scratched.

Rockies: OF Nolan Jones (stiff back) missed his second straight game after leaving in the seventh inning Tuesday.

UP NEXT

Padres: RHP Joe Musgrove (3-2, 5.74 ERA) brings a two-game win streak into the opener of a three-game home series against Philadelphia. RHP Aaron Nola (3-1, 3.16 ERA) starts for the Philles on Friday night.

Rockies: RHP Cal Quantrill (0-2, 4.33 ERA) faces Astros RHP Ronel Blanco (2-0, 1.33 ERA) on Saturday.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Colorado Rockies' Ezequiel Tovar scores the tying run on a wild pitch thrown by San Diego Padres' Wandy Peralta during the eighth inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

San Diego Padres' Jurickson Profar gestures as he circles the bases after hitting a two-run home run off Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Nick Mears in the seventh inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

San Diego Padres' Jurickson Profar, left, is guided toward home plate by third base coach Tim Leiper as Profar circles the bases after hitting a two-run home run off Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Nick Mears in the seventh inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

San Diego Padres' Ha-Seong Kim is called out on strikes while facing Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Nick Mears in the seventh inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

San Diego Padres relief pitcher Yuki Matsui works against the Colorado Rockies in the seventh inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies' Hunter Goodman gestures as he crosses home plate after hitting a three-run home run off San Diego Padres relief pitcher Wandy Peralta in the eighth inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies' Jacob Stallings, left, congratulates Hunter Goodman, who returns to the dugout after hitting a three-run home run off San Diego Padres relief pitcher Wandy Peralta during the eighth inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies' Elias Díaz follows the flight of his sacrifice fly to drive in a run off San Diego Padres starting pitcher Randy Vásquez in the first inning of a baseball game Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

DENVER (AP) — It wasn't so much another slow start or Anthony Edwards' 43 points that bothered Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone after the Minnesota Timberwolves thumped the reigning NBA champions 106-99 in the opener of the second-round series Saturday night.

It was more how the Nuggets allowed Edwards' hot hand to ignite his supporting cast as the Wolves improved to 5-0 in the playoffs and sent the Nuggets to a series deficit, something they never had last year while winning it all.

“Yeah, I wasn't worried about the start. It was 18-4. Jamal Murray didn't practice all week, couldn't make a shot. I'm more worried about our second-half defense,” said Malone, whose team will try to even the series Monday night in Game 2.

“I think at one point they were shooting 90%" after halftime.

The Timberwolves finished with a 73.7% clip in the third quarter, and those 14 baskets in 19 shots helped them erase a 44-40 halftime deficit and take a 73-68 lead into the fourth quarter, where Minnesota stayed hot, hitting 13 of 19 shots.

That's 27 of 38 in the second half for a 71% shooting clip.

“Naz Reid got going. Karl-Anthony Towns got going. Mike Conley got going — where Anthony Edwards carried the day in that first half," Malone said. “But second half I just felt not nearly enough discipline and physicality and they were able to get whatever they wanted.

“Seventy-one percent in the second half of a playoff game is unacceptable.”

Especially when Jamal Murray, the hero of Denver's first round against the Lakers, had zero points at halftime — his first scoreless half in his 59th career playoff game — and finished with 17 points. Nikola Jokic had 32 and Michael Porter Jr. 20.

Edwards scored 25 of his 43 points in the first half, but he had very little help from his teammates until they came out of the locker room and couldn't miss.

“So, it was the Anthony Edwards show, but we're up,” Malone said. "Then what you worry about in that third quarter, I don't know how many points he got in that third quarter (it was six), but I know Karl got going and the other guys got going, and that's when they become really dangerous because now you have three scorers, four scorers.

“And that can't be the case. I mean, ANT had 43, Karl had 20, Naz had 16 off the bench. Conley had 14,” Malone said. “It'll be a quick exit if we allow four guys to get off like that. So, ANT's going to get his. We can do a much better job” on everyone else.

Here’s how hot the Wolves were after halftime: Edwards was the only Minnesota player to miss more than one shot — and he was 7 for 12.

It's always difficult to double Edwards and get the ball out of his hands. because the Wolves had a high-powered offense in which all five starters averaged double figures in points in their first-round sweep of Phoenix.

“I mean, any good team has multiple weapons,” Porter said. “One thing that makes us successful is when teams double Joker, we've got capable guys that can make shots” and make them pay.

“Similar with them. If you double ANT, he may be swinging the ball to KAT or Mike Conley or Jaden McDaniels, all capable guys. So, it's definitely a balance and something we've got to look at on film.”

The Nuggets went 10-1 at home on their way to winning the franchise's first NBA championship last summer and 3-0 at Ball Arena against the Lakers in Round 1 this year.

“Yeah, we definitely want to bounce back, especially in our home arena,” said Porter. “We've got to lock in from the jump. We know this team is very good, and we know it's going to be a long series. And it's going to be a good series. We've just got to get the next one.”

Timberwolves assistant coach Micah Nori, who filled in on the sideline for Chris Finch, who's recovering from knee surgery that forced him to sit in the second row, said the emphasis in Round 1 was on slowing the Sun's fast starts but against Denver, they had to focus on curbing Denver's prowess of closing out opponents in the fourth quarter.

“What we talked about coming into the Denver series if we have outscored them all four (regular season) games through the first three quarters and they had done a very good job of outscoring us in the fourth,” Nori said. “So, we went from starting games to closing games and just talking about taking care of the basketball, making sure we get good shots.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch, right, walks with crutches as guard Anthony Edwards, left, looks on in the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) drives past Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) as forward Aaron Gordon (50) blocks the lane in the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, left, fights for control of the ball with Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns, front right, in the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns gestures to the bench as a timeout is called in the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch uses crutches to head to the bench in the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, right, shoots over Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, left, in the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards reacts after hitting a basket in the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, right, looks to pass the ball as Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. defends in the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) walks away from Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coach Micah Nori after a brief exchange in the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)