PHOENIX (AP) — Carson Kelly is looking more and more like the big-hitting catcher the Arizona Diamondbacks have sought for some time.
Kelly's tiebreaking homer in the eighth inning was part of a three-run rally that sent the Diamondbacks to a 5-3 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Monday night.
"When you get an offensive catcher as capable as Carson, it adds a whole new dimension and some thickness to your lineup," Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said. "They don't come around very often."
Kelly's 18 home runs are tied with Miguel Montero (2011) for the most by a catcher in one season in club history. The 25-year-old who was part of the Paul Goldschmidt trade with St. Louis last offseason has 13 homers while hitting eighth in the order, the highest total in the majors.
"Cool!" Kelly said when told he matched Montero, a two-time All-Star. "Early on, as a young player not having a ton of success, and then finally seeing the work that you put in over the years pay off at the highest level, it just makes me motivated to continue getting better."
David Peralta added a two-run triple in the eighth, making a winner of reliever Yoan Lopez (2-5) after he got two outs in the top of the inning.
Wade Davis (1-6) took the loss after giving up Kelly's home run.
"He would like to have that pitch back," Rockies manager Bud Black said. "If you get back that hanging breaking ball to Kelly, that was sort of the back-breaker for Wade."
Ketel Marte also homered and starter Zac Gallen allowed a run and five hits over six innings in his third start for the Diamondbacks since arriving in a trade with Miami on July 31. He struck out eight and walked six.
Archie Bradley allowed Charlie Blackmon's 27th home run in the ninth — Blackmon's third straight game with a homer — but earned his fifth save. Arizona climbed back to .500 at 63-63, while the Rockies' four-game winning streak ended.
Tony Wolters had two hits and two RBIs for Colorado. Chi Chi Gonzalez held the Diamondbacks hitless for five innings before Kelly lined a first-pitch single to center field to open the sixth.
The next batter, pinch-hitter Josh Rojas, hit a fly ball toward the left-field corner that looked as though it would fall for a hit. But outfielder Raimel Tapia made a long run and a diving catch as he hit the turf.
One out later, Marte drove Gonzalez's fastball beyond the pool deck in right-center for his 26th home run to give Arizona a 2-1 lead.
The Rockies tied it in the eighth against reliever Andrew Chafin. Daniel Murphy led off with a single, Ryan McMahon singled with one out and Wolters drove in Murphy with a base hit.
But then Diamondbacks shortstop Nick Ahmed, who an inning earlier leaped to catch Trevor Story's line drive, keyed a 1-6-3 double play with a rushed but accurate throw.
After three scoreless innings, Gallen struggled to find the strike zone. He struck out the first two hitters in the fourth, but loaded the bases on a single and two walks. Wolters drew the third walk of the inning, allowing Murphy to trot home with the game's first run.
"Six walks is not going to sit well with me, but we got a win and that's what matters," Gallen said. "Just got to keep us in the game so we can do things like that."
The announced attendance of 15,443 was the second-smallest crowd of the season for a Diamondbacks home game.
AROUND THE MAJORS MONDAY
Pitcher Dakota Hudson carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning and Paul DeJong homered, leading the St. Louis Cardinals to a 3-0 win Monday over the Milwaukee Brewers. Hudson, who is 12 and 6 on the year, pitched 6 2/3 innings, striking out seven and walking four. He threw 111 pitches, 64 for strikes, before being lifted after walking Eric Thames with two outs in the seventh. His seven strikeouts tied a career high. The victory moved the Cardinals into sole possession of first place in the NL Central over the idle Chicago Cubs. The Brewers fell to three games behind St. Louis.
Yuli Gurriel had two hits and drove in two runs as the Houston Astros built a lead with a big first inning and held on for a 5-4 win over the Detroit Tigers. The Astros jumped on Detroit starter Edwin Jackson for four runs in the first inning to go ahead 4-1.
José Abreu hit a towering three-run homer to cap a four-run second inning, and Iván Nova survived early trouble to win his fifth straight decision as the Chicago White Sox beat the division-leading Minnesota Twins 6-4 Monday night.
Asdrúbal Cabrera hit the last of Washington's four home runs and drove in five runs, and three relievers combined for 6 2/3 innings of one-hit ball as the Nationals thumped the Pittsburgh Pirates 13-0. The Nationals have scored 79 runs in their last eight games while going 7-1. They've scored 43 times in their past three, including a 15-14 loss.
Tom Murphy homered twice and drove in four runs, Austin Nola also went deep and had three RBIs, and the Seattle Mariners beat the playoff-contending Tampa Bay Rays 9-3. Murphy, who had three hits and a walk, hit a three-run drive in the first inning and added a solo shot in the fifth. Nola had a two-run homer during a four-run second off Rays two-way player Brendan McKay and had an RBI single in the fourth.
Kirby Yates came close to giving it up, but found the pitch he needed to finish it off. Yates fanned Eugenio Suarez with the bases loaded, preserving a 3-2 Padres victory over the Cincinnati Reds that reminded the Padres of the importance of having a dependable closer, even when he's not having his best day.
Nicky Lopez and Nick Dini homered on successive pitches in the seventh inning and the Kansas City Royals stretched Baltimore's latest losing streak to eight games, defeating the Orioles 5-4. Kansas City won for only the sixth time in its last 22 games and Baltimore absorbed its 13th loss in 14 games.
The Los Angeles Angels returned to Texas for the first time since pitcher Tyler Skaggs was found dead in his hotel room before the start of a series at the Rangers last month, losing 8-7 in 11 innings after letting a six-run lead get away. Isiah Kiner-Falefa brought home the winning run with a high-chop infield single that scored Jose Trevino and ended the Rangers' four-game losing streak. Shohei Ohtani extended the longest hitting streak of his career to 10 games with an RBI triple.
TUESDAY GAMES (MT)
L.A. Angels at Texas, 12:05 p.m., 1st game
Kansas City at Baltimore, 5:05 p.m.
Washington at Pittsburgh, 5:05 p.m.
Cleveland at N.Y. Mets, 5:10 p.m.
Philadelphia at Boston, 5:10 p.m.
Seattle at Tampa Bay, 5:10 p.m.
San Diego at Cincinnati, 5:10 p.m.
Miami at Atlanta, 5:20 p.m.
Milwaukee at St. Louis, 5:45 p.m.
L.A. Angels at Texas, 6:05 p.m., 2nd game
San Francisco at Chicago Cubs, 6:05 p.m.
Chicago White Sox at Minnesota, 6:10 p.m.
Detroit at Houston, 6:10 p.m.
Colorado at Arizona, 7:40 p.m.
N.Y. Yankees at Oakland, 8:07 p.m.
Toronto at L.A. Dodgers, 8:10 p.m.