Warming Bernabel delivered the decisive hit in the ninth inning as the Colorado Rockies rallied for a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday night, halting a 10-game losing streak against their division rival. The victory extended Colorado’s modest winning streak to four games while also providing a rare highlight in a season where the club remains near the bottom of the standings.
Oddsmakers had opened with Los Angeles as a heavy -220 favorite, while the Rockies entered as +180 underdogs. Colorado rewarded bettors who backed them with late-game resilience, capped by Bernabel’s walk-off single.
The game turned in the bottom of the ninth after Ezequiel Tovar sparked a rally. With one out, Tovar lofted a bloop double into shallow right-center that Teoscar Hernández charged but could not secure. That set the stage for Bernabel, who lined a cutter from Dodgers reliever Justin Wrobleski (4-5) straight up the middle to plate Tovar and secure the victory.
Tovar had already provided a key moment earlier, tying the contest at 3-3 in the seventh inning with a solo home run off Yoshinobu Yamamoto. It was part of a night in which Colorado’s young shortstop showed flashes of promise despite the team’s struggles.
Yamamoto, making his 22nd start of the season, twice surrendered leads in a no-decision. The right-hander struck out six across seven innings while allowing three runs, and his ERA remains among the lowest on the Dodgers’ staff. Still, he could not protect the advantage after Ryan Ritter tied the game in the third with a two-run single, and Tovar later erased a Dodgers lead with his blast to right-center.
Shohei Ohtani was a steady presence at the plate for Los Angeles, recording two hits. In the second inning, he laced a single with an exit velocity of 106.5 mph that narrowly missed Rockies starter Kyle Freeland’s head. Freeland departed in the fifth inning after developing a blister on his pitching hand. He had allowed two runs and struck out five before leaving, forcing Colorado to lean on its bullpen the rest of the way.
Reliever Victor Vodnik (4-3) earned the win after working a clean top of the ninth, striking out Dalton Rushing to end the inning with Ohtani on deck. The Rockies’ relief corps held Los Angeles scoreless over the final frames, giving the offense a chance to complete the comeback.
Colorado, now sitting at 36-89, still faces the possibility of one of the worst records in modern baseball history. To avoid tying the 2024 Chicago White Sox’s 121-loss mark, the Rockies must secure at least six more wins in their final 37 games. Still, the four-game win streak is a welcome reprieve for a club amid a challenging season.
The Dodgers, who fell to 6-1 against Colorado this season, remain positioned to secure a season series win for the eighth straight year with just one more victory over the Rockies. Los Angeles will turn to right-hander Emmet Sheehan (3-2, 3.86 ERA) on Tuesday, while the Rockies counter with left-hander Austin Gomber (0-6, 6.75 ERA), who is still seeking his first win of the season. Betting markets again list the Dodgers as firm favorites at -210, with the Rockies opening at +175.
