On the day he held a press conference in Colorado to announce his 17th season would be his last, Todd Helton’s single started a four-run rally in the eighth inning as the Colorado Rockies beat the Cardinals 6-2. The Cardinals remain tied with Pittsburgh, who lost 2-0 to San Diego. Cincinnati beat Houston 6-1 to move back to 2.5 games behind both clubs.
Troy Tulowitzki led off the eighth with a walk against reliever Trevor Rosenthal. With one out, Helton singled to center to put runners at the corners. Wilin Rosario singled to give Colorado a 3-2 lead. The Cards got Helton caught in a rundown between third and home for the second out, but Blackmon doubled to right to score Josh Rutledge from first to make it 4-2. Pinch-hitter Ryan Wheeler’s two-run single off John Axford gave the Rockies a 6-2 cushion.
The Cardinals got RBIs from David Freese and Matt Carpenter. Carp’s double in the eighth scored Pete Kozma to tie the game at 2-2.
Lance Lynn had a good outing. In 6.1 innings, he allowed two runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out four.