Juan

Mejia

Romano came in with a 4-2 lead to begin the ninth and walked two of the three batters he faced. Casey Schmitt then came up and hit a liner to center that Cole Carrigg couldn’t quite make a sliding catch on. Except first base ump Lance Barksdale signaled that he did. The Rockies thought the play was live and tagged the runners at second and first, which would have ended the game. However, there was a crew chief review that correctly ruled the ball a single and advanced the runners to second and third. A sac fly and a walk followed, bringing up Bryce Eldridge with two outs and the bases loaded. Romano was pulled in favor Mejia, and Eldridge hit a routine grounder on the first pitch he saw. It’s the fourth save for Mejia this season. Romano might get another chance in the ninth, but this remains a situation to avoid.

Vodnik had four saves for the Rockies last month, but he’d really struggled of late, giving up 14 runs in his last nine innings of work. Not that we’re recommending any Rockies relievers, but Juan Mejia and Antonio Senzatela are probably slightly better bets for saves with Vodnik out.

Mejia threw 13-of-16 pitches for strikes, and he didn’t allow a hit while striking out one. It’s the third save of the season, and with Victor Vodnik struggling again Monday while allowing three runs without recording an out, it’s very possible that Mejia will get any save chances that Antonio Senzatela is unavailable for.

Victor Vodnik also came up big tonight, throwing hitless ninth and 10th innings for the win. Vodnik remains the favorite for saves in Colorado pen, but Mejia is probably next in line. He has a 4.66 ERA and a 25/9 K/BB in 19 1/3 innings.

With Victor Vodnik seemingly unavailable, the Rockies tasked Mejia with protecting a two-run lead and to get the final five outs. He did both. The 25-year-old will likely be a high-leverage option for Colorado, but even if the Rockies somehow end up winning more games than anticipated, it’s hard to picture too many more save opportunities.

The final play was nearly a catastrophe. Ketel Marte hit a soft popup between first and second that any of three players could have caught. Mejia wanted it most, though, and caught it while getting slammed into by first baseman Warming Bernabel. Fortunately, he held on to the ball and was fine afterwards. Mejia was closing today because Victor Vodnik had saves four of the previous five days. The Rockies have as many saves in the last week as they did over their first 45 games of the season.

Mejia will get the Rockies an extra arm in the bullpen after taking Chase Dollander’s roster spot, with Dollander hitting the IL due to forearm tightness. Mejia will likely be the arm that goes back to Triple-A whenever Colorado adds an arm to replace Dollander in the rotation.

Mejia earned a ticket back to the minors after getting torched for seven runs — four earned — over 1 1/3 innings during Saturday’s three-touchdown loss to the Padres.

Mejia made his major league debut as a 27th man in a doubleheader last week, allowing an unearned run in an inning of work. The 24-year-old reliever had a 5.40 ERA in 11 2/3 innings for Albuquerque.

Mejia will have a chance to make his MLB debut if he gets in either game. The right-hander will all but assuredly head back to Triple-A Albuquerque after the doubleheader.