Rockies Win an Amazing 10 Straight as Ian Stewart Breaks Out

This streak, in which the Rockies went 8-4 on a long road trip, seemed to have brought back the 2007 LoDo Rocko Maniacs to Coors Field Saturday night, to the tune of 31,101. 

They were all there, in their Helton, Tulo, and even Holliday jerseys, purple hats, with gloves on, watching every pitch intently, waiting for their chance at even a big league foul ball.

But, while the Rockies maniacs were waiting in Denver, their beloved team was on the road playing their hearts out.

Many players have played well during the streak, including Todd Helton, who looks back up to his old form, and Troy Tulowitzki who has the hitter's touch and aggression once again.

But, easily the best player of the series has to go to new third-base starter Ian Stewart.

For years the starter at third base has been Garrett Atkins, a great hitter with somewhat questionable defense, due to his slow feet and a bit of a gut.

But, while Atkins' bat has cooled off this year and last, Stewart has stepped in wonderfully as the new man on the corner opposite of Helton.

Stewart has five home runs during the streak, many that have been huge for the team. Also, Stewart's batting average has risen to .226 now. 

Not only has Stewart's bat been working, he has an amazing ability to cover ground on the diamond, helping shore up the left side of the infield with Tulo.

Stewart has numerous plays during this current steak that have saved runs, and turned into amazing plays.

Tonight in particular, Stewart ran to his left, spun and grabbed a grounder, then fired it to Barmes, who lazered the ball to Helton for a sweet double play.

But not only were the position players executing, so was Colorado's starting pitcher.

Jason Marquis had a great outing, while even though he gave up seven hits, but had two strike outs and  got himself out of back-to-back jams in the sixth and seventh innings.

In the seventh, Marquis got through the heart of the order with a huge ground-out on Adrian Beltre with Ichiro on second base, representing the go-ahead run.

After Marquis went out however, they had to rely on timely hitting to regain the lead and win the contest.

Todd Helton had a fighting at-bat, that ended on a timely two-out base knock, with a young kid on the mound in White.

Helton knocked in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh, for his 45th RBI, tying Brad Hawpe for the team lead. Both are on pace to hit well over 100 RBIs this year.

The seventh wasn't over for the Rockies though, as Hawpe then scorched a ball to center field that hit a foot below the yellow line at about the 424' mark, which resulted in his 46th RBI, regaining the lead for Colorado.

Then, in the bottom of the eighth, Carlos Gonzalez hit a ball up the middle to Lowe, the pitcher, who was charged an error after making a horrible throw to third where Tulowitzki ran.

Chris Iannetta then hit a deep sacrifice fly to Ichiro in right, bringing the game back in the Rockies' favor, 4-3.

Again in the eighth, the Rockies were able to do the little things late, getting a sacrifice fly by Barmes that knocked in another run, building the lead to 5-3.

Hitting late with solid pitching shouldn't be lost in the mix, as it has led Colorado to many wins on their steak, something they did well during their World Series run in 2007, and couldn't do early this year.

In all, it was the Rockies astounding 10th straight win an amazing feat for any MLB team let alone the one from the "small market" of Colorado.

Though, everything was not perfect Saturday night for Colorado as Marquis was unable to get the win, which would have been his ninth, and would have taken the lead in the National League by a Rockies player.

But all was not, as Manny Corpas came in and threw a belt-high fastball that was cranked out for a two-run homerun by Lopez, and the game was tied 3-3.

In the end though, Huston Street pitched solidly and got the Rockies their 10th straight win over the Seattle Mariners, making them the hottest team in Major League Baseball. 

Everyone in Colorado can now feel the excitement we once had in 1993, in the Rockies inaugural year, in '95, their first playoff season, and in 2007, when they got to the World Series.

The Rockies are now 30-32, a great 11-4 under new manager Jim Tracy, and can tie the league-high steak of 11 wins tomorrow night as Colorado goes for the sweep against the Mariners.

Baseball has once again taken over in the Mile High City; as the Nuggets gave it their all and recently lost in the Western Conference Finals, and the Avs and Broncos are in the midst of rebuilding.

For Denver's sake, let's all hope the Rockies can remain hot, rising their way through the NL ranks to a playoff berth.