Arenado bloodied by Blackmon's helmet in Rockies' walk-off celebration
There is such a thing as partying too hard, and Charlie Blackmon and Nolan Arenado demonstrated it Sunday following the third baseman's cycle-clinching walk-off homer against the San Francisco Giants.
After the Colorado Rockies showered their late-game hero with praise at home plate, Arenado emerged with a uniform fit for a gladiator: a jersey covered in dirt and, surprisingly, some of his own blood.
"It was a helmet," a Rockies coach told Paul Klee of the Colorado Springs Gazette after examining video to identify what happened to Arenado - and the helmet belonged to Blackmon, who accidentally struck his teammate above the left eye.
The outfielder and leadoff hitter was standing on third base prior to Arenado's dinger off of Giants closer Mark Melancon, representing the tying run.
Arenado came up to bat just a homer shy of the cycle, and his three-run shot - which also scored DJ LeMahieu from first base - not only clinched the game, but completed a four-game sweep of the Giants and put the Rockies on a five-game win streak to keep first place in the NL West.
On the other side, the Giants dwell in the division basement, riding a six-game losing streak.