DENVER (AP) – To fire up Nolan Arenado , just give him a day off.
His manager mandated he sit a game, and Arenado stewed over it for a night before taking it out on the baseball.
Arenado lined three homers as part of his five-hit afternoon and tied a career-high with seven RBIs, helping the Colorado Rockies complete a three-game sweep of the San Diego Padres with an 18-4 victory Wednesday.
“I don’t like days off,” Arenado said. “I know they’re important and, obviously, I’m playing well after them.”
That’s an understatement. In games after not being in the lineup this season, the All-Star third baseman is hitting .583 with four homers and 13 RBIs.