Antonio Senzatela ripped by Brewers as Rockies fall to 2-9

Starting pitching had been the Rockies’ saving grace in their otherwise awful start to the season. But there was nothing redeeming about their 17-2 loss to Milwaukee on Wednesday night at Coors Field.

Right-hander Antonio Senzatela got rocked, the offense continued to sputter, they committed four errors, and their 2-9 record is tied with the 2005 club for the worst 11-game start in franchise history.

How LoDo can they go?

It was a bad night for the defense. For the first time, Gold Glove shortstop Ezequiel Tovar and Gold Glove center fielder Brenton Doyle made an error in the same game.

The game turned from awful to ugly in the Brewers’ seven-run ninth. Reliever Seth Halvorsen committed a two-run error when he overthrew first base on an easy play. Then Christian Yelich, the next hitter, crushed a solo homer 465 feet to center.

“It was uncharacteristic of us,” manager Bud Black said about his team’s sloppy play. “We usually play really clean defensive games. That’s something we pride ourselves in.

“Tonight was not that night, for sure. You play 162 games during the course of a season, and we are not going to have many games like that.”

The Brewers, led by RBI machine Jackson Chourio, hit 6 for 12 with runners in scoring position. The Rockies went 1 for 8 and are now hitting .205 in the clutch this season, ranking 25th in the majors.

Senzatela entered the night with a 0.00 ERA after two starts. He departed after 4 1/3 innings with a 5.14 ERA. In other words, the Brewers lit him up, scoring nine runs (eight earned) on eight hits.

“My slider was too high in the strike zone and they put the barrel to it,” Senzatela said. “They hit the ball out of the ballpark. Huge mistakes by me. I have to keep the ball down.”

Powering the Brewers’ light show was a solo home run by William Contreras in a five-run third inning and a three-run homer by Chourio in a five-run fifth. Chourio, hitting .315 with four homers and 16 RBIs in the early going, also hit a two-run double in the third.

“Three big hits, eight runs, it was tough,” Black said. “It was the elevated pitches.”

Black, hoping to spark the offense by shaking up the lineup, started Sean Bouchard in left field against Milwaukee lefty Tyler Alexander. He dropped Kris Bryant, who’s often been the cleanup hitter this season, to seventh in the order.