Rockies Report, Game 120:

ROCKIES BOTTOM LINE: Hunter Goodman came through in a rare ninth-inning pinch-hit role, punishing JoJo Romero’s hanging sinker by crushing it 436 feet into the grass batter’s eye beyond the center-field wall to give the Rockies a 6-5 win over the St. Louis Cardinals that sealed a series win and a happy flight back to Denver on Wednesday afternoon.

Goodman’s exploits capped a rally from a 5-2 fifth-inning deficit that saw the Rox chip away at the Cardinals’ lead. Mickey Moniak got one run back with a home run — his 18th — in the sixth inning. One inning later, Braxton Fulford — handling catching chores while Goodman received a day off that ended in the ninth — brought home Kyle Karros with a sacrifice fly to center field.

In front of an intimate-but-well-spread-out gathering of 20,513 of the so-called “Best Fans in Baseball” — just ask them — the Rockies fell behind 2-0 in the second inning and trailed for the balance of the game until Goodman’s big swing.

HUNTER. GOODMAN. pic.twitter.com/Z6BCIE4ysO

— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) August 13, 2025

Current closer Victor Vodnik finished off the Cardinals with his second save in as many days and his fourth of the season, dispatching the Cardinals in order on 10 pitches to complete the Rockies’ second series win over St. Louis this season.

The win also gave Colorado a 4-2 season edge over the Redbirds, which is the Rox’ first season triumph over St. Louis in 16 years.

Goodman’s decisive blast brought in Kyle Karros, who started the final-inning rally with a leadoff walk to cap a 2-for-3, three-run afternoon that concluded a splendid road trip to start his major-league career.

arros finished the six-game trip with a .333 average and an .893 OPS, earning himself what appears to be a lengthy look at the hot corner.

Colorado is 32-88.

The Rockies’ two wins to close the series following an eight-game losing streak put them back on pace to avoid the ignominy of posting the worst 162-game record in MLB history.

ROCKIES STARTER’S REPORT

Austin Gomber’s pattern of labored starts in his recent appearances continued in his return to St. Louis against his former club.

Lars Nootbaar and Alec Burleson tagged Gomber for home runs in the fourth and fifth innings, making this the third-consecutive start in which Gomber has allowed multiple home runs. His season-long HR/9 rate of 2.30 is on pace to be the worst of his career, far exceeding the previous high of 1.68 in 2023.

Gomber has allowed at least one home run in eight-straight starts, the longest such run of his career, surpassing a run of seven last year.

He lasted five innings, allowing nine hits and a walk while throwing 85 pitches before being relieved. Gomber left in line for the loss, but Goodman’s home run eventually took him off the hook. Nevertheless, he still has lost eight consecutive decisions.

Wednesday’s work pushed his ERA to 6.75 and his WHIP to 1.61; both would be the worst figures of his career if they remain for the balance of the season.

BITS AND PIECES

IT WAS DECIDED FOR THE ROCKIES WHEN: Vodnik retired Thomas Saggese, Pedro Pagés and Brendan Donovan, with Mickey Moniak supplying a sliding grab in center field to prevent Pagés from reaching base.

NUMBER TO NOTE: 0 — Hits and walks allowed by Colorado’s bullpen in four innings as Nick Anderson, Jaden Hill, Jimmy Herget and Vodnik mowed down the Redbirds from the sixth inning onward.

WHAT’S NEXT: A four-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks that begins Thursday night. Bradley Blalock starts for Colorado; Eduardo Rodriguez gets the call for Arizona. First pitch is at 6:40 p.m. MDT.