Rockies extend winning streak

DENVER, CO — The National League champion Colorado Rockies continued their red-hot ways on Tuesday, extending their winning streak to 12 games, and winning 23 of their last 24 as they took both ends of a double-header against the Boys and Girls Club of Aurora, located in suburban Denver, Colorado. Rockies manager Clint Hurdle decided to schedule the affair after the Rockies swept the Arizona Diamondbacks in four straight games in the National League Championship Series.

“Unless we added a few games we’d be sitting for over a week while the American League teams keep playing,” Hurdle told reporters, adding that “the way this team is playing, you hate to take a day off.” Several players echoed Hurdle’s sentiment, including team MVP Matt Holliday. “Nine days is a long time to sit and wait while Boston and Cleveland battle it out in the AL. They get to stay focused and aggressive, why shouldn’t we?”

Initially, the Rockies had a difficult time finding an opponent. With every other team in the Major Leagues either excusing their players for the off-season or currently playing in the ALCS, Hurdle’s calls to other teams went unreturned. “Not even the White Sox would play us, and God knows they need the practice” reported Hurdle. NCAA regulations ruled out collegiate teams, so the Rockies settled on the Boys and Girls Club of Aurora, a team comprised of 10-14 year olds from suburban Denver.

In the opener, Rockies third baseman Garrett Atkins hit a three-run homer and Taylor Buchholz scattered just five hits in seven innings as the Rockies beat the Boys and Girls Club 14-2. Colorado jumped ahead early on 10-year-old pitcher Scotty Muldrew, who gave up two homers and five runs on eight hits in just three innings. Buchholz looked particularly sharp against his mostly pre-teen opponents.

“That’s something I’ve always been battling – the consistency thing,” Buchholz said. “Today I was consistent and the command was there.”

The Boys and Girls Club’s only offense came from catcher Timmy Wilson, 11, who hit a two-run home run in the ninth off of reliever Manny Corpas to spoil the Rockies shutout bid.

The nightcap saw the Rockies squeak out a 2-0 win. The Colorado bats were cooled for the most part by 13-year-old Jenny Wallace who allowed two runs and just four hits in seven innings. The only recently pubescent Wallace also walked three and struck out four. Thanks to a two-hit, complete-game shutout from Jeff Francis and some clutch hitting from first baseman Todd Helton, however, the Rockies winning streak remained intact.

“Even though Major League Baseball only considers our streak to be 10 straight, we know that it’s 12,” Helton told reporters after the game. “Just because these games don’t count in the standings doesn’t mean they don’t count for us.”

It’s going to be tough for this sport to sweep any nations, but it’s still pretty frickin’ cool!