Kyle Freeland has the stuff of an ace. He delivers in the clutch like an ace, too.
Just don’t expect Colorado manager Bud Black to label the left-hander one yet. Not even a dominating performance like this could sway him.
Freeland threw seven sharp innings and combined with the bullpen on a two-hitter to help the Rockies beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-0 on Monday night in a game that was interrupted 32 minutes by rain.
“I’m a critical judge of an ace,” Black said. “For me, an ace is somebody that does it over a long period of time. This is no knock on Kyle. I mean, for me, an ace is the guy who’s passed the test of time, who’s been an All-Star, maybe conceivably won a Cy Young.
“But, hey, don’t get me wrong: I love the way Kyle’s pitching. He’s been great.”
Freeland (10-7) allowed two hits and struck out five. It was his fourth career game of seven or more shutout innings at Coors Field.
“The one thing is not letting the old Coors Field effect come into play for me,” said Freeland, who grew up in Denver. “I pitch my game.”
Relievers Seunghwan Oh and Wade Davis combined to close out the win. Davis pitched a perfect ninth for his 32nd save in 38 chances.
It was a positive step for a beleaguered bullpen that endured three walk-off losses — two by Davis — during a 2-5 road swing.
“Good to see Wade bounce back,” Black said.
Joe Musgrove (4-6) retired the first 12 batters he faced before allowing a single to Nolan Arenado on the first pitch of the fifth. The right-hander scattered four hits over seven innings and allowed two runs, one earned.
Colorado scored both of its runs off Musgrove in the fifth. Arenado raced home with the first when Josh Harrison booted Gerardo Parra’s grounder. Just then, the rain picked up intensity and the grounds crew brought out the tarp.
“I was locked in,” Musgrove said. “I didn’t realize how hard it was raining until I walked off the field.”
After the delay, Musgrove hit Ian Desmond to load the bases and Chris Iannetta followed with a sacrifice fly to bring in another run. The damage could’ve been more if not for right fielder Gregory Polanco throwing out Parra trying to score from second on David Dahl’s single.
“I would’ve rather not had it,” Musgrove said of the delay. “The delay kind of caused me to lose my rhythm a little bit.”
Freeland allowed a single to Corey Dickerson to lead off the game and Musgrove’s double in the third. Other than that, Freeland was tough to solve against a Pirates team that scored five runs off him in four innings on April 18.
“Pretty much everything” was working, Freeland said. “Fastball command was really good.”
UP NEXT
The Rockies will bring RHP Chad Bettis (5-1, 5.10 ERA) off the disabled list to start Tuesday against the Pirates. Bettis hasn’t pitched for Colorado since July 1 due to a blister on his middle finger. Pittsburgh will throw RHP Jameson Taillon (8-8, 3.74), who’s been charged with three runs or less in each of his last 12 starts.
Both pitchers dealt with testicular cancer a season ago.
“Both healthy. Both in the big leagues,” Taillon said. “Life’s good.”
AROUND THE MAJORS
—The Houston Astros were within one out of a loss before moving 4 ½ games ahead of Oakland in the AL West. Marwin Gonzalez unloaded a three-run homer off Will Smith to give the Astros a 3-1 triumph over the Giants in San Francisco. Smith walked Alex Bregman and Yuli Gurriel before Gonzalez drove them in.
Roberto Osuna got the win in his Astros debut, and his first game since serving a 75-game suspension for violating MLB’s domestic violence policy. Osuna was acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays last Monday.
— The Indians own a 10-game lead in the AL Central after Edwin Encarnacion belted one of the Indians’ four home runs and finished with four RBIs in a 10-0 rout of the second-place Twins. Yonder Alonso, Jason Kipnis and Brandon Guyer all went deep before Encarnacion’s three-run blast capped the scoring for Cleveland. Trevor Bauer is 11-6 with a 2.25 ERA after striking out 11 and giving up just three hits over six frames.
— Lance Lynn was terrific in the Yankees’ 7-0 shutout of the White Sox, yielding two hits and a walk with nine strikeouts over 7 1/3 innings. Gleyber Torres and Neil Walker homered and drove in two runs apiece as the Yanks ended a five-game losing streak. New York is nine games behind the AL East-leading Red Sox and top the Athletics by three games for the first wild-card berth.
— The Mariners beat the Rangers, 4-3 on Ryon Healy’s RBI single in the 12th inning. Mike Zunino hit a solo shot while Seattle was building a 3-0 lead, but the Rangers rallied for three runs in the seventh after Wade LeBlanc carried a one-hit shutout into the inning. The Mariners are within two games of Oakland for the second AL wild-card spot.
— David Peralta’s second home run of the night gave the Diamondbacks a 3-2, 14-inning comeback win over the Phillies. The Phils carried a 2-0 lead into the ninth before Peralta hit a one-out blast and Steven Souza Jr. provided a game-tying single following a double by Eduardo Escobar. The Diamondbacks pace the NL West by a half-game over the Dodgers, and the Phils lead the NL East by one game over the Braves.
— The Cubs top the NL Central by 1 ½ games over Milwaukee following Chicago’s 3-1 victory at Kansas City. Cole Hamels scattered seven hits over six innings to win his second straight start since joining the Cubs before the non-waiver trade deadline. Javier Baez supplied a solo homer and an RBI double for Chicago.
— The Marlins were 2-1 winners over the Cardinals behind Wei-Yin Chen, who tossed one-hit ball over 5 2/3 innings. Starlin Castro hit a solo homer in the fourth to put Miami ahead 2-0. St. Louis scored once in the ninth and had the bases loaded until Yadier Molina grounded into a game-ending double play to complete the Redbirds’ second loss in six games.
— Andrelton Simmons hit a two-run homer and made several spectacular defensive plays to lead the Angels’ 6-2 victory over the Tigers. Eric Young Jr. hit his first homer of the season, drove in two runs and made a diving catch in deep center field to end the eighth inning to help Los Angeles win for just the second time in eight games. Nick Tropeano pitched five innings of one-hit ball and retired 12 of his final 13 batters before heading to the clubhouse after just 62 pitches with shoulder tightness.
— Jeff McNeill was 3-for-4 with a solo homer and Kevin Plawecki added a solo shot as the Mets topped the Reds, 6-4. Wilmer Flores was 3-for-4 with a pair of run-scoring singles, and Austin Jackson added three hits and an RBI. Winning pitcher Noah Syndergaard left the game with a 6-1 lead before being charged with four runs over 6 1/3 innings.