SAN FRANCISCO — Kevin Kouzmanoff had three hits and drove in two runs and the Colorado Rockies sent the reigning World Series champions into an early offseason, beating the San Francisco Giants 6-3 Wednesday.

Drew Pomeranz (2-1) outpitched fellow rookie Eric Surkamp (2-2) in their second matchup in two weeks and Jordan Pacheco added a pair of RBI singles for the Rockies, who snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Giants.

San Francisco (86-76) wound up in second place in the NL West behind playoff-bound Arizona, becoming the first defending champion not to make the playoffs since the 2007 St. Louis Cardinals.

Mark DeRosa hit a two-run single in what was likely his last game for the Giants.

That didn’t keep the sellout crowd of 41,873 from taking every last chance to cheer the 2010 champs. The players returned to the field several minutes after the final out to show their appreciation.

Departing Giants managing partner Bill Neukom received a rousing standing ovation and a “THANK YOU BILL” tribute on the center-field scoreboard before the seventh inning. Newly promoted CEO Larry Baer likely will begin discussions soon with general manager Brian Sabean about a contract extension.

Pat Burrell, contemplating retirement if his troublesome right foot doesn’t fully heal, ran in from left field to a standing ovation before the start of the seventh. An emotional Burrell hugged and high-fived his teammates and came back out of the dugout for a curtain call, waving to the fans.

This was a drastic difference for San Francisco on the final day a year after the club clinched the NL West and the franchise’s first playoff berth since 2003 by beating the rival San Diego Padres. That led to an improbable postseason run and the first championship for the Giants since moving West from New York in 1958.

On Wednesday, San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy replaced slugger Carlos Beltran in the fifth inning, calling him in from right field and inserting Andres Torres. Beltran finished with a .300 batting average after he went 0 for 2. He becomes a free agent after joining the Giants in a July 28 trade from the New York Mets.

It was a disappointing day for the Rockies (73-89), too. They had plans — and, on paper, all the talent — to make a run at the division title.

These two clubs were considered the contenders to win the West when the season began back in April, and both have busy winters ahead to fill voids: Among the Rockies’ top priorities is acquiring a front-line starter, while the Giants again need a big bat.

Bochy and Rockies manager Jim Tracy went with young lineups to evaluate who might make an impact come 2012.

San Francisco’s Wednesday lineup featured only one starter from opening day in Burrell and only two players who were even on the 25-man roster on March 31 at Dodger Stadium: Burrell and DeRosa.

San Francisco lost reigning NL Rookie of the Year catcher Buster Posey to a devastating season-ending leg injury in a home-plate collision with Florida’s Scott Cousins on May 25 and also went without second baseman Freddy Sanchez because of a shoulder injury that required surgery.

Bochy made a late switch to start Surkamp in the finale and gave workhorse Matt Cain a rest on the final day.

Many Rockies regulars sat out, too. No injured Carlos Gonzalez or Troy Tulowitzki, the two stars who received hefty new contracts last winter from big-spending Colorado. Todd Helton is hurt, too.

Read More: Drew Pomeranz (P – COL), Eric Surkamp (P – SFG), Colorado Rockies, San Francisco Giants

On Wednesday afternoon, the Colorado Rockies call it an end to a 2011 season that began with the highest of hopes and ended with the severest of disappointments. They will face the San Francisco Giants, who are not returning to the post season one year after winning the World Series.

Rookie Drew Pomeranz (1-1, 5.68 ERA) struggled in his third start of the season. In Houston, the Astros roughed him up for six runs in two innings. But in his start before that, Pomeranz held the Giants to two runs in 5-2/3 innings at Coors Field. However, the bullpen couldn’t hold on and the team lost, 6-5.

Eric Surkamp (2-1, 5.32 ERA) was the opposing pitcher against Drew Pomeranz on Sept. 17. Surkamp had trouble finding the strike zone and walked six batters in 4-2/3 innings. Things only got worse when he faced the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sept. 24. Surkamp failed to complete the first inning, allowing six runs (two scored as inherited runners after he left the game).

The beginning of the end starts at 1:45 p.m. MT.

For more on the Rockies, visit Purple Row. Check out McCovey Chronicles for more on the Giants.

Read more: Colorado Rockies, Hector Gomez, Gomez Recalled, Gomez Called up to Rockies, Rockies Recall Gomez, Rockies Call up Gomez, Pro, MLB

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies recalled infielder Hector Gomez from the team’s Double-A affiliate in Tulsa.

Gomez was Tulsa’s starting shortstop throughout the season and hit .235 with 14 home runs and 50 RBIs. Gomez has averaged .276 over seven seasons in the minor leagues.

The team announced the move before its game against San Francisco on Friday night.

(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

DENVER (AP) — Pablo Sandoval tripled in the sixth inning to complete the first cycle of his career and the San Francisco Giants beat the Colorado Rockies 8-5 on Thursday night to keep their slim postseason hopes alive. Ryan Vogelsong pitched effectively into the sixth inning and had two hits, and Brandon Belt homered for San Francisco. The Giants have won five straight and prevented Arizona from moving closer to clinching the NL West. The Diamondbacks lead the Giants by seven games with 12 to play. Sandoval homered in the first, doubled in the second and singled in the fifth. In the sixth he hit a fly ball to the base of the wall in right-center field and beat the throw to third for the triple to complete the cycle. The four hits all came against starter Jhoulys Chacin (11-12). Sandoval is the 25th Giant to hit for the cycle and the first since Fred Lewis accomplished the feat May 13, 2007, also at Coors Field. It is the 10th cycle recorded at Coors Field. Jordan Pacheco and Chris Iannetta homered for the Rockies. The Giants built an early lead on Sandoval’s bat and poor fielding by the Rockies. San Francisco took a 2-0 lead in the first when Carlos Beltran singled with two outs and Sandoval homered into the second deck in right, his 20th. The Giants used two Colorado errors to extend the lead in the second. Brandon Crawford scored on a throwing error by shortstop Tommy Field. Jeff Keppinger hit a sacrifice fly and Pacheco misplayed Beltran’s grounder at first, allowing Cody Ross to score from second to make it 5-0. The Rockies got one back in the third when Chacin scored from third on Mark Ellis’ single. Pacheco made it 5-2 when he led off the fourth with his second home run. San Francisco made it 7-2 in the sixth on an RBI double by Ross, who scored on a double play grounder by Beltran. Vogelsong (11-7) allowed two runs and four hits, walked four and struck out eight in 5 2-3 innings. Santiago Casilla pitched the ninth for his fourth save. Colorado scored three runs in the seventh on Iannetta’s 13th homer and RBI doubles by Chris Nelson and Eric Young Jr. Belt led off the ninth with his sixth homer to make it 8-5. Chacin gave up seven runs — four earned — and nine hits, walked four and struck out one in 5 2-3 innings. Notes: Rockies SS Troy Tulowitzki (hip) and 1B Todd Helton (back tightness) missed their second straight game. … Giants closer Brian Wilson (right elbow strain) threw a side session Thursday. … Left-hander Madison Bumgarner will face Colorado rookie right-hander Alex White on Friday in the second game of the four-game series. Bumgarner is 0-3 in five starts against the Rockies while White has never faced the Giants. (Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)