Meneses’ 3-run HR highlights a 4-run eighth inning as the Nationals rally to beat the Rockies 6-5

By HARVEY VALENTINE Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Joey Meneses’ three-run homer highlighted a four-run eighth inning and the Washington Nationals rallied to beat the Colorado Rockies 6-5 on Tuesday night.
The game was delayed nearly 90 minutes before the first pitch due to inclement weather in the area, and halted for 51 minutes by rain with one out in the top of the seventh inning.
Washington was trailing 5-2 when CJ Abrams led off the eighth with a single against Justin Lawrence (3-4) and stole second. Lane Thomas reached on an error by third baseman Ryan McMahon and Jeimer Candelario doubled to right center, scoring Abrams. Meneses followed with a homer to left field, his seventh of the season, on a 1-1 sweeper pitch.
“I saw that first base was open, and I figured more than likely he was going to throw a lot of off-speed in that at-bat to me,” Meneses said via an interpreter. “I was ready for the fastball, regardless, but I was kind of expecting the off-speed. I saw it well, and I took a good swing at it.”
Lawrence hadn’t allowed a run in his past eight appearances.
“He’s pitched really, really well,” manager Bud Black said of Lawrence. “They went down and got some balls. He just missed on the wrong side of the plate a couple of different times and they took advantage of it.”
Meneses added a double and a single, finishing 3 for 4 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Stone Garrett hit a solo homer in the seventh inning for Washington.
Jose A. Ferrer (1-0) pitched 1 2/3 innings and earned his first major league victory, and Kyle Finnegan worked the ninth for his 14th save.
Ezequiel Tovar homered, and Elias Diaz had three hits and two RBIs for the Rockies.
Colorado starter Austin Gomber allowed six hits and an unearned run while striking out five without a walk over six innings. In his past six starts, the 29-year-old left-hander is 4-1 with a 3.00 ERA and has struck out 22 batters and walked two.
“I didn’t think I had my best stuff,” Gomber said. “I thought I was in the zone with everything though. I thought I commanded the fastball. Just wasn’t my best fastball.”
Washington starter Trevor Williams gave up four runs on nine hits over six innings, but was perfect over his final three innings.
“We can’t control the weather, especially here in the summertime,” Martinez said. “For me, the biggest thing about that game is Trevor Williams giving us six innings. If he doesn’t do that, we’re going to be strapped.”
The Rockies took a 2-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI-double by Michael Toglia and a run-scoring single by Alan Trejo.
Washington got one back on Riley Adam’s two-out double to left in the bottom half.
Tovar led off the third with his 10th homer of the season, and Diaz added an RBI-single later in the inning to make it 4-1.
Garrett’s homer made it 4-2 in the seventh, and Diaz’s RBI single in the eighth increased the lead to 5-2.
RECORD SETTER
Gomber hasn’t walked a batter in 27 innings, the longest streak in team history, surpassing the previous mark of 23 2/3 innings by Jose Jimenez in 2002.
“A lot of that is probably not getting to three-ball counts in the first place,” Gomber said. “Getting early contact, getting in plus counts in the AB and not getting into those longer ABs. Part of it’s probably some luck. Twenty-seven innings is a long time.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rockies: OF Kris Bryant (fractured left index finger), who was hit by a pitch on Saturday, was placed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to July 22. … 1B CJ Cron (back muscle spasms) took batting practice and remains day to day. … LHP Kyle Freeland threw a simulated game Tuesday and could return Friday against the Oakland Athletics.
Nationals: RF Lane Thomas was in the starting lineup. He had left Monday’s game in the eighth inning after getting hit by a pitch on his left knee.
ROSTER MOVES
Rockies: Recalled infielder Elehuris Montero and RHP Riley Pint from Triple-A Albuquerque. RHP Karl Kauffmann, who earned his first major league win Monday, was optioned to Albuquerque.
UP NEXT
Rockies: RHP Peter Lambert (2-1, 5.49) makes his 17th appearance of the season and third start.
Nationals: Rookie RHP Jake Irvin (3-5, 4.87) struck out a career-high nine batters in his last start, a win against the Giants.