Colorado Rockies right-hander Chris Flexen shut down the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Flexen started against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado, on Monday (April 29) and allowed three runs on six hits, two home runs, two walks and three strikeouts in six innings. He pitched a quality start (six innings of three earned runs or less) to lead Colorado to a 14-5 victory. Flexen picked up his second win of the season (8-2).
Flexen held a Dodgers lineup loaded with power hitters to a minimum. The stadium is located at an altitude of 1600 meters above sea level, which allows balls to travel farther. The balls that float over the outfield often turn into home runs. Flexen also gave up two home runs on the day. But he didn’t let that stop him. His teammates took the pressure off his shoulders by scoring big runs.
Flexen was hit by a home run in the first inning. He started the game well, getting leadoff hitter Mookie Betts to fly out to center field and Freddie Freeman to ground out to first base. But he couldn’t get out of the inning, giving up a seven-pitch walk to Max Muncy and a two-run shot to JD Martinez over the right-center field fence.
He gave up another home run in the second. He struck out Chris Taylor and got David Peralta to fly out to center field, but gave up a solo shot to left-center field to Enrique Hernandez.
But Flexen would not give up any more runs. From the third through the sixth innings, he quickly got out of trouble. With the mound holding up, the Colorado offense exploded for nine runs in the fourth inning. The Dodgers took the white flag off the field early, too. The teams traded runs after Flexen went down, but the Rockies broke the game open with a four-run seventh inning.
Flexen is the protagonist of the KBO’s reverse export myth. He pitched for the Doosan Bears in 2020, caught the eye of American scouts, and was signed by the Seattle Mariners in 2021. He made a splash in his first year in the big leagues, going 14-6 with a 3.61 ERA.
However, he faltered in 2022, going 8-9 with a 3.73 ERA, and then struggled in 2023, going 2-8 with a 6.86 ERA. He was traded midseason from Seattle to the New York Mets. However, the Mets designated him for assignment without even giving him a chance. Colorado reached out to him, and he continued his big league career.온라인바카라
Fast-forward to 2021, and Flexen’s current form is far from satisfactory. However, he did perform well in his final start, leaving himself open to a new contract.