The Colorado Rockies were hoping their offense would take flight after last night’s showing, but unfortunately it did not. Instead, the offense was limited to just four hits, while Chase Dollander got roughed up for the first time this season.
Colorado
Judy Amabile: We must do everything possible to safeguard the public lands that make Colorado special
By State Sen. Judy Amabile
I moved from New York to Colorado’s Western Slope when I was in the 8th grade — not a particularly easy time for a big life transition. My new school included a week of outdoor education. We hiked steep trails, climbed rocks and rafted a wild river. It was really hard, but also exhilarating. The experience boosted my confidence and sparked a love for the Colorado outdoors that has made my life healthier and richer.
Every Coloradan has a story about their connection to the outdoors. Our identity and economy are rooted in our public lands. Losing them would change everything we value. We must protect them.
In 2025, the Colorado legislature stood together to oppose federal efforts to sell off our public lands. Backed by strong public opposition, those sales were ultimately prevented.
This year, we are challenging a wide array of federal policy changes that disregard public will and abandon a balanced, sustainable approach to land management. These are backdoor policies driven by short-term thinking. They treat our shared lands as mere commodities to be liquidated for the benefit of a few.
That is not who we are.
The current administration’s push to weaken bedrock environmental laws, sidestep public input and privatize public lands is not just bad policy; it is bad business. When short-term privatization replaces long-term stewardship, Colorado pays the price. Our economy suffers. Our communities suffer. And hundreds of thousands of jobs are put at risk.
According to Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Colorado State University, outdoor recreation contributed $65.8 billion to Colorado’s economy in 2023. It supported more than 404,000 jobs — 12% of our entire workforce. It generated $36.5 billion in GDP. Outdoor recreation now outpaces construction, finance and education as an economic driver in our state.
Public lands are not a side issue. They are central to Colorado’s economic strength.
But their value goes far beyond dollars. It’s personal. It’s about public health. Nature isn’t a cure-all, but it is essential. As a hiker, I know that time spent outdoors improves life in countless ways. Our forests, canyons and open spaces reduce stress, strengthen families and build community. Ninety-six percent of Coloradans recreate outdoors, and nearly three-quarters get outside at least once a week.
When the federal government auctions off public lands or shuts the public out of decision-making, it fails Colorado’s communities. And it harms those with the fewest resources the most. Public lands belong to all of us, not just those who can afford to buy them.
That is why I am a proud sponsor of Senate Joint Resolution 26-015. It makes our position clear: Colorado opposes the privatization and selloff of our public lands.
We will continue to stand up and defend the places that sustain our economy, our health and our way of life. We have a responsibility to protect these precious lands for the generations to come.
Judy Amabile is the Colorado State Senator for District 18 (Boulder, Louisville, Superior, Niwot and Gunbarrel).
To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.
Brennan Bernardino served as the opener, and he left Dollander with a mess right off the bat. Bernardino failed to get out of the first inning giving up a single to Ronald Acuña Jr., and then he surrendering a two-run homer to Drake Baldwin to make it a 2-0 ballgame with zero outs in the first.
Ozzie Albies then doubled before Matt Olson finally flew out to center record the first out for Bernardino. A wild pitch allowed him to advance to third, and then Bernardino struck out Michael Harris II.
Warren Schaeffer likely envisioned Bernardino finishing at least the first inning, if not multiple innings, but ended up lifting him after just 0.2 innings. Dollander entered and immediately walked Mauricio Dubón, but then struck out Austin Riley to limit the damage.
The Braves Chase’d Dollander
Dollander started off the second inning strong with a strikeout of Mike Yastrzemski, but then gave up a double to Jorge Mateo. Acuña then came up to the plate and grounded out, but he pulled up halfway to first base. Hopefully it’s not an extended injury, given his history.
Next up, Baldwin singled to score Mateo and put the Braves up 3-0 but then Ozzie Albies struck out to end the inning.
Dollander recorded a 1-2-3 third, but the fourth and fifth got dicey.
The fourth started off with a walk to Austin Riley, which inevitably came back around to haunt. Yastrzemsky popped out to Karros, but then Riley stole second and then was knocked to third by a Mateo single. Eli White — who entered for Acuña — bunted, which scored Riley and moved Mateo to third. Baldwin struck again, though, with an RBI double to put the Braves up 5-1 and then Albies hit a sac fly to score White. Matt Olson flied out to end the inning, but the damage was done.
The fifth inning started with a single by Harris, which turned into two bases on an error committed by Troy Johnston. Dubón grounded out, but Riley homered to center to put the Braves up 8-1.
It was just Dollander’s fourth home run allowed this year, but he came back to get Yastrzemski and Mateo.
The sixth featured a lot of traffic, but nobody came around to score. Dollander was lifted after the sixth with a final line of 5.1 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, 1 HR. He threw 97 pitches, 61 for strikes.
“I thought (Dollander) was just a little behind today,” Schaeffer said after the game. “I think (it was) unusual, with some walks. The breaking ball and the off-speed stuff — not enough strikes out of those so he relied on his fastball a little more. And they got him. I mean, that’s a good lineup. Tip your hat to that lineup, it’s a really good lineup.”
Dollander echoed that postgame with the media.
“I just didn’t get ahead and then didn’t put guys away when I needed to,” he said. “I started falling behind when I got ahead and it’s not conducive to success.”
When asked about pitching behind an opener versus starting, Dollander responded that it doesn’t change his mentality.
“I’m just trying to get the guys innings and put up zeroes just like I was when I was starting,” he said. “The mentality does not change at all. If you fall into that trap, it’s not good for pitching.”
You can watch Dollander’s full postgame interview here (courtesy of Patrick Saunders).
The Rockies offense, once again, was MIA tonight. They did not record a hit until the third inning, when Kyle Karros singled to lead off the inning. Ezequiel Tovar and Troy Johnston both flied out to center, but then Jordan Beck smacked a double to (barely) score Karros and end the shutout.
Brenton Doyle struck out, but at least the Rockies plated a run.
But that was the end of the scoring.
There was some traffic in the fifth, when Karros and Tovar walked back-to-back to start the inning, but Johnston grounded into a force out, Beck was called out on strikes, and Doyle struck out swinging to strand the runners.
Their next hit wouldn’t come until the seventh, when Brett Sullivan led off with a single. But then three-straight strikeouts stranded him at first. Willi Castro got a hit with one out in the ninth, but Sullivan grounded into a double play to end the game.
In total the Rockies offense mustered just four hits, but walked three times and struck out 12 (11 of those were against Chris Sale).
The Rox will look to avoid the sweep at the hands of the Braves tomorrow afternoon. Kyle Freeland will face Spencer Strider, who is making his 2026 debut. First pitch is at 1:10pm.
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Colorado
Colorado community concerned about wildfire risk, over 1,000 residents practice evacuation drills
Most experts agree that the summer of 2026 could be a very active and dangerous fire season in Colorado. That’s why one of the state’s most vulnerable communities spent their Saturday morning preparing.
Much like the meager melting snowfall, it started off as a trickle, eventually gathering at a lower elevation. It was the stream of people in the hills of Evergreen evacuating their homes.
“We are petrified, it is so dry. It has never been this dry. We’ve always worried about wildfires, but this year it’s not an if but a when, I think,” said Evergreen resident Sarah Forbes.
This wasn’t an emergency, just a drill put on by Clear Creek and Evergreen firefighters and the Clear Creek and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Offices. They say practice is important because if a fire starts in or near Evergreen, getting people to safety will take a lot of work.
“The roads weren’t built for mass evacuations. The populations are growing up here in the mountains, and getting that many people out in a very short period of time is going to be a challenge,” said Evergreen Fire Chief Michael Weege.
The drill gives the fire and sheriff’s departments data they can use in a real emergency, and highlights flaws in the system that can be fixed ahead of time.
“We’re hearing some things about the 911 system itself. The notice came out as spam on their phone, and that could be a setting on their phone not recognizing the number,” said Weege.
And residents got a chance to shore up their own evacuation plans. Forbes said they had to re-evaluate things partway through the evacuation drill.
“We had already packed our bags a while back, and we had a list of last minute items to plan to grab. And then my husband starts pulling up with all these bins and boxes from the basement. I was like, ‘What is all this?’” said Forbes. “He thought we were taking two cars.”
Forbes said she’d rather take one car and that they would need to pare down the items they bring during an evacuation.
Officials say they were blown away by the community’s willingness to participate in this exercise. They say they were expecting a couple of dozen volunteers to evacuate their homes. Instead, they got around 1,300.
SATURDAY-SUNDAY The Springs Home Show —10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Colorado Springs Event Center, 3960 Palmer Park Blvd. Tickets: thespringshomeshow.com. THURSDAY New to Colorado Gardening — 4-6 p.m., Phelan Gardens, 4955 Austin Bluffs Parkway, $18. Registration: phelangardens.com. FRIDAY-MAY 16 Horticultural Arts Society Gigantic Plant Sale — 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Fridays, 9 a.m.-4 […]
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