PHOENIX — German Marquez can’t wait to get back to Denver, chill out and sleep in his own bed during the all-star break.

He has earned some downtime. After all, his 127⅓ innings pitched rank second in the National League, trailing only durable Washington ace Max Scherzer’s 129⅓.

But it’s fair to say that Marquez has not matched his own lofty expectations in the first half of the season. His 8-4 record and 4.45 ERA are not as good as he would have liked. Plus, he has given up 17 home runs in 20 starts. He served up 24 homers in 33 starts last season.

Asked to assess his performance, Marquez said: “It’s OK. I have been having some problems with my mechanics. But the second (half) is going to be good. I’ll finish strong. It’s not how you start. It’s how you finish.”

Marquez gave up five runs on six hits over six innings Sunday in a 5-3 loss to the Diamondbacks. Arizona scored four runs off him in the sixth inning on a two-run single by Christian Walker and a two-run home run to left by Nick Ahmed on a hanging slider. Marquez enters the break with an 8-4 record and a 4.45 ERA.

“I think my slider and changeup have to be a little better,” he said.

Chin up. Right-hander Jon Gray‘s harsh self-critique following Colorado’s 4-2 loss to Arizona on Saturday night caught the attention of manager Bud Black.

Gray said his performance was “terrible, every way,” even though his line was not that bad — three runs allowed on eight hits over five innings. The loss left him with a 9-6 record and a 4.44 ERA.

“Sometimes Jon can be a little bit hard on himself, and I spoke to Jon this morning about it,” Black said. “I told him that I appreciated what he said, but there’s one thing that stood out for me. He said something along the lines that, ultimately, that’s a game that we should win. And I liked that part of his quote.”

Rotation in motion. Black declined to announce a starting rotation coming out of the all-star break, but chances are the Rockies will begin with Marquez and Gray, their two best pitchers. Related Articles Rockies’ Daniel Bard finishing up improbable season on a high note

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After getting days off Monday through Thursday, the Rockies open a seven-game homestand on Friday night at Coors Field against Cincinnati. The homestand includes a doubleheader against the Giants on July 15.

There is a possibility that left-hander Kyle Freeland, who has been getting a major tuneup at Triple-A Albuquerque, could be recalled soon. In his last start at Sacramento, Freeland tossed seven innings, allowing one run on four hits, with nine strikeouts and only two walks.

Black said a number of factors will determine how he and his staff set the second-half rotation.

“Whether we feel more rest is needed for one individual is part of it,” he said. “There is a little bit of team matchup, moving forward, but not a ton. It’s more about how we feel physically about our guys.

“And a little bit is about that doubleheader coming up on Monday and how we want to set that up.”

On Deck

Trending: All-star third baseman Nolan Arenado batted 0-for-4 in Sunday’s loss to Arizona and finished the three-game series 0-for-10 with four strikeouts. His average has dipped to .312.

At issue: Leaving the friendly confines of Coors Field is never easy for the Rockies, and that showed in the three-game sweep at Chase Field, where the Rockies batted .151 as a team.

Upcoming pitching matchups

Monday-Thursday: All-star break