"In the end, the beauty of baseball lies not so much in its artistry but its honesty. With a grueling 162-game season, it leaves no bases unturned. As summer segues into fall, it answers the ultimate question: Are you good enough?

To even casual observers of the Rockies, the answer is becoming clearer by the day. Just as those whispers on the trade market are becoming louder.

No, they're not about to talk the talk of an also-ran. Trouble is, they've looked the part since mid-April, when they had the best record in the game. The latest countdown to tee times came Sunday afternoon in a 7-0 loss to the Diamondbacks at Chase Field.

"It wasn't a good game, so we've got to pick up the pieces and start over again (today)," Rockies manager Jim Tracy said. "It's the same term I've used over and over and over again: consistency. Consistency on the mound, consistency at the plate.

"It can't be there whenever it feels like it. It has to be there day in and day out, and it's not. But we have two months to continue to work on it, and we will."

Yes, the Rockies still have time, but that's a function of the relentless schedule, not a sense that things are about to turn around. At some point, it's about talent, not time. The Rockies have enough of one but, from all indications, not enough of the other.

Yes, Jorge De La Rosa's season-ending injury was a punch to the gut, but their issues go well beyond that. This loss, their 14th in a row on a Sunday, dropped the Rockies to 12-22 in series finales and 3-10 in rubber games.

Killer instinct? The only thing the Rockies are killing is time.

"It's really frustrating when you can't end the deal," said Ubaldo Jimenez, who was gone after five innings, during which he allowed five runs. "We could possibly win these series, but we've never done it.""