Brewers 5, Rockies 4
MILWAUKEE -- Jonathan Lucroy's bases-loaded sac fly in the 10th inning gave the Milwaukee Brewers a 5-4 opening day victory over the Colorado Rockies at Miller Park.
The Brewers' rallied from two runs down after a mostly frustrating day against Rockies starter Jhoulys Chacin, who held Milwaukee to just a run on three hits, walking three and striking out six in 6 2/3 innings of work.
Neither starter was particularly sharp early in their first respective starts of the season. Yovani Gallardo needed 40 pitches to get through the first two innings while Chacin used 38.
Gallardo managed to work around four hits, but allowed Troy Tulowitzki's first home run of the season in the third, giving Colorado a 2-0 lead. Milwaukee got one back in the bottom of the frame, when Norichika Aoki worked Chacin full before sending a first-pitch fastball to right for his first homer of the season.
Colorado threatened in the fourth, loading the bases against Gallardo, but Chris Nelson was caught in a baserunning gaffe to end the inning. The Rockies tacked on one more in the fifth on a Carlos Gonzalez's leadoff home run.
Gallardo was done after five, having allowed three runs on 10 hits with a walk, three strikeouts and the two home runs.
Milwaukee's only run charged to Chacin was the third-inning homer by Aoki, and through the first seven innings, he was the only Brewer batter to reach base twice - walking in the first inning.
Aoki also got the comeback started in the eighth, reaching on a one-out fielder's choice against Colorado reliever Wilton Lopez. He advanced to second on Rickie Weeks' single and scored on Ryan Braun's two-out single to short, which was fielded cleanly by Troy Tulowitzki, but he couldn't get off a throw.
Aramis Ramierez followed, working the count to 2-2 before ripping a splitter down the left-field line to put the Brewers ahead 3-2 on his second hit of the day.
But in a scene that became familiar last season, when Milwaukee's hopes at repeating as NL Central champs were dashed by a league-leading 23 blown saves, Brewers closer John Axford struck out Chrs Nelson and pinch hitter Eric Young before Dexter Fowler tied the game with a first-pitch home run to right.
Jim Henderson worked a scoreless 10th for the Brewers who started their comeback when Weeks was hit by an Adam Ottavino pitch with one out. Ottavino followed by walking Ryan Braun intentionally. Ramirez followed with another walk loading the bases and Lucroy ended it with a soft fly to center that scored Weeks.
All of Colorado's runs came via the long ball. Troy Tulowitzki hit a two-run shot in the third and Carlos Gonzalez led off the fifth with a solo shot. Tulowitzki finsihed the day 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Fowler scored the last with his late homer, capping off a 3-for-5 day that included two singles and two strikeouts.
NOTES: Eight Brewers were making their first appearance on an opening day roster. ... Rockies first baseman Todd Helton started his 16th consecutive opening day, the longest active streak in MLB ... Aoki's first home run of 2012 also came off Chacin; an inside-the-park homer April 20 of that year. ... Chacin is the third-youngest opening day starting pitcher in Rockies' history. ... Milwaukee has lost four consecutive season openers.
