D-backs set Opening Day mark in 14-run inning

PHOENIX — The Arizona Diamondbacks got their season started with an offensive flourish, scoring 14 runs in the third inning of their 16-1 Opening Day win over the Colorado Rockies on Thursday night.

The 14 runs were the most in an inning on Opening Day for any team since 1900.

Arizona, the defending National League champions, led 2-1 going into the bottom of the third, but then sent 18 batters to the plate and had 13 hits, two walks and a sacrifice fly.

“I joked at one point ‘Hey, I want to play,'” D-backs starter Zac Gallen said. “It makes our job as pitchers a lot easier when they give you that much support. Next time, I’d rather them just do it in 10 minutes. Those guys came ready to play.”

Maybe most improbably, Arizona didn’t hit a homer during the inning. Ketel Marte, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Christian Walker, Gabriel Moreno and Geraldo Perdomo all had two hits. Corbin Carroll walked twice. Blaze Alexander had his first big league hit with a single up the middle that scored the 14th run.

The outburst broke franchise records for most hits, runs and batters in an inning. It took 34 minutes for the Rockies to get three outs. The D-backs led 16-1 after three innings.

“It was the situational hitting, taking walks when you’re supposed to, it was an all-field approach,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “We were a good hitting team today.”

Colorado lefty Kyle Freeland (0-1) took the brunt of the damage in the third and was pulled after giving up 10 earned runs on 10 hits and a walk over 2⅓ innings.

“Everything was left middle and up,” Freeland said. “I wasn’t hitting my spots well at all. I wasn’t executing well at all. And a team like that, which has good bats all the way through, took advantage of every single mistake.”

It was Freeland’s third Opening Day start for the Rockies, which is tied with German Marquez for the most in franchise history.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.