Sizzling Mickey Moniak blasts two more homers, but Rockies swept by Braves

Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post on May 3, 2026

Published in Baseball

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DENVER — Mickey Moniak‘s star power is in overdrive.

The Colorado Rockies‘ outfielder launched two more home runs on Sunday afternoon at Coors Field, giving him 11 in Colorado’s first 35 games and extending his hitting streak to 16 games.

Still, a formula for consistent success continues to elude the reimagined Rockies. Their 11-6 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon at Coors Field provided the latest example. And gave the Braves a three-game sweep.

Colorado got plenty of hits (11), including a solo blast by rookie first baseman TJ Rumfield (3 for 5) and a triple by Jake McCarthy to complement Moniak’s big day.

Moniak reached 11 home runs in his first 27 games played, the fastest Rockie to hit 11 homers since Trevor Story launched 11 in his first 27 games of his 2016 rookie season. Moniak is the first major league player to record four multi-homer games in a team’s first 35 games since Toronto’s Carlos Delgado in 2001.

"It's unbelievable watching that guy every single day and seeing what he does," Rumfield said. "It's impressive. You think he's going to hit a home run and -- boom! -- he does it.

"I see a complete baseball player, I see a cerebral player; a guy who knows what he's going to do when he gets in the box. He looks calm -- all the time. That's something I try to take in as a younger player."

Moniak, who's slashing .377/.441/.770 (1.211 OPS) with six doubles, six home runs, and 16 RBIs during his hitting streak, said he's in a comfortable place at the plate.

"I just think I've found a good routine on a daily basis," Moniak said. "It gives me the confidence to be able to go into the game, and instead of worrying about my swing or anything like that, I just focus on what the pitcher is going to do and try to execute a game plan."

But while Moniak continued to play like a player destined for the Midsummer Classic on July 14 in Philadelphia, Colorado's missing ingredient on Sunday was solid pitching.

Atlanta tagged starter Kyle Freeland for six runs on eight hits over his 4 1/3 innings. Right-handed reliever Antonio Senzatala, nearly untouchable this season, gave up two runs on three hits in 2 1/3 innings. And multipurpose right-hander Jimmy Herget got rocked for three runs on three hits and a walk in the ninth inning.

And so the Braves improved to 25-10 under first-year manager Walt Weiss for the best record in baseball. The Rockies lost their fourth straight, and the boost from their recent 4-2 road trip is quickly disappearing in their rearview mirror.

Two innings illustrated Freeland's off-kilter day.

In the second, light-hitting Johan Heim hit a two-out, two-run homer. It was Heim's first home run of the season. Jorge Mateo immediately followed with a solo blast that hugged the left-field line. Entering Sunday, Freeland had served up only two homers across four starts.

In the fifth, Freeland uncharacteristically walked three, including walking Eli White with the bases full to force in a run. Freeland had walked only five batters in his first four starts.

However, manager Warren Schaeffer lauded the Braves' powerful, deep lineup and said Freeland pitched a decent game.

"I wouldn't characterize his entire outing as 'uncharacteristic,'" Schaeffer said. "The majority of the time, he was really good. He attacked the strike zone. Good pitch mix. ... In the fifth inning, I just thought he lost some battles there with the walks."

Freeland gave himself a mixed review.

"In that second inning, I had a couple of mistake pitches that got punished, but then I was able to kind of keep them at bay until the fifth when walks started piling up," he said. "I had guys in advantage counts and couldn't put them away. I wasn't executing very well."

Freeland, whose ERA sits at 5.04, added, "I thought I battled really well throughout the entire game, but there in the fifth was uncharacteristic of me, walking those guys. In situations like that, with runners on and less than two outs, you have to make sure you are staying on the attack. And I was running out of gas there in the fifth, and I wasn't able to execute and put pitches where I wanted them to be."

The Rockies open a three-game series vs. the New York Mets on Monday afternoon at Coors Field at 5:40 p.m. ET.

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