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Rockies Try To Shed Frustration From Dismal April

By Michael Spencer

DENVER (CBS4) - The Colorado Rockies suffered through their worst month in franchise history in April. As a team the Rockies hit a dreadful .222 which is their lowest team batting average in the franchise's 25 years in Denver.

Colorado Rockies v Pittsburgh Pirates
DJ LeMahieu #9 of the Colorado Rockies slides in safe at home on an RBI double in the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on April 16, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)

"Offensively we're looking for an improvement," said Bud Black after Monday's 3-2 loss to the Cubs. "We're not the team statistically that's showing in the stat sheet right now, so we know that's going to improve."

The Rockies are currently fourth in the majors with 277 strikeouts this season, averaging more than nine strikeouts per game. Adding to the frustration is that the Rockies pitching staff had pitched well in their recent three-game losing streak allowing just 2.5 runs/game in their last four outings. The offense however has totaled just four runs in that same stretch.

"I don't think it's time to panic by any means," said pitcher Chad Bettis. "I think we can throw the ball better and give us an opportunity to score first and go from there."

Colorado Rockies v San Diego Padres
Chad Bettis of the Colorado Rockies pitches during the first inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres at PETCO Park on April 2, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images)

"The pitching is hanging in there," added Black. "We've yet to catch fire offensively, but we're pitching well enough to look to win moving forward."

The Rockies are 16-15 at this point and entered Tuesday six games back of the NL West leading Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Rockies will finish out their current series with the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday afternoon.

Michael Spencer is a Sports Anchor at CBS4. Read his bio or connect with him on Twitter @MichaelCBS4.

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