DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies had plenty to be upset about — as well as encouraged.
Catcher Chris Iannetta and manager Jim Tracy were ejected over a disputed play at home and the Rockies blew an early lead and couldn't protect a late one in an 8-7 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday night.
Still, they saw signs of encouragement in the way they fought back.
"I was frustrated and I threw my mask and I shouldn't have done it," said Iannetta of his first major league ejection. "Showing up an umpire is never good. I got caught up in the moment and he threw me out."
Mark Kotsay, a defensive replacement after left fielder Ryan Braun was lifted in the sixth because of tightness in his left hamstring and calf, drove a fly ball to center. Corey Hart, who hit a two-run homer earlier, tagged up and went for the plate, where Iannetta caught the throw on a bounce. He wheeled to put the tag on Hart's upper leg as the Brewers runner slid in a very close play at the plate.
"The guy is clearly out. He missed that call," Tracy said. "You get beat by one run that's a pretty big run."
After home plate umpire Cory Blaser signaled Hart safe to give Milwaukee a 5-3 lead, Iannetta bounced up and heatedly argued the call nose-to-nose with Blaser and was tossed as Tracy ran from the dug out to get between the two. Tracy then got in Blaser's face and he was also ejected.
"It was tough but it was also a very good game in some ways we battled back several times," Iannetta said. "The way we battled back was a positive and that's what you want to take out of this."
Rickie Weeks eventually won the game with a two-run homer in the ninth inning off closer Huston Street (0-3).
"It just wasn't my best pitch," Street said. "I was trying to throw a slider down and I threw a slider that was belt high. Sometimes they foul it back. He didn't foul it back."
With two outs in the ninth and the score tied at 6-6, Street walked Prince Fielder. Weeks followed with a drive that just cleared center fielder Dexter Fowler's attempt for a leaping catch at the wall.
Francisco Rodriguez (3-2), making his Brewers debut after being acquired Tuesday from the New York Mets, pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
John Axford allowed an RBI single by Todd Helton before retiring Troy Tulowitzki for the final out to earn his 24th save in 26 chances.
Also, the start of the game was delayed 49 minutes because of bad weather.
The Rockies opened the scoring with three unearned runs off starter Zack Greinke in the second inning were unearned. Ian Stewart hit a two-out triple and Fowler swung and missed at a pitch in the dirt for a third strike. Jonathan Lucroy couldn't hold the ball and struggled briefly to track it down before he was able to corral it. However, his throw to first was off the mark for an error, allowing Dexter Fowler to reach and Ian Stewart to score.
Trying to get the Brewers going offensively, manager Ron Roenicke shook up the batting order and Hart, moved up to the leadoff spot from fifth, responded with his 12th homer, a two-out, two-run shot in the fifth after Jhoulys Chacin walked Greinke on four pitches that pulled Milwaukee to 3-2.
Milwaukee pulled ahead with 5-2 when Josh Wilson and Jonathan Lucroy each singled off Chacin to start the seventh. Craig Counsell, pinch-hitting for Greinke, advanced the runners with a sacrifice.
After Chacin hit Corey Hart with a pitch to load the bases, Matt Reynolds came on in relief to face Nyjer Morgan, who greeted him with a surprise bunt single down the first-base line that scored Wilson. Charging from first, Helton tried to field the ball and toss it from his glove all in one motion but it sailed over the head of catcher Iannetta for an error and Lucroy crossed the plate with tying run.
That led to the play at the plate.
Colorado's Carlos Gonzalez returned to the lineup after missing eight of nine games since bruising his right wrist when he crashed into the center-field wall while making a catch against Kansas City on July 3.
NOTES: Prior to the game, manager Ron Roenicke swapped Hart and Weeks in the lineup. Josh Wilson also started at shortstop ahead of Yuniesky Betancourt. ... Twenty of Hart's 29 RBIs this season have come on home runs. ... Iannetta is 6 for12 with a double, 3 RBIs and four runs scored in his last four starts at Coors Field.
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