Colorado @ Florida preview
Sun Life Stadium
Last Meeting ( Jul 19, 2010 ) Colorado 8, Florida 9
One night after both teams broke out of offensive slumps, the Colorado Rockies and Florida Marlins each have a chance to pick up where they left off.
The Rockies and Marlins meet on Tuesday in the second of their four-game series as a pair of struggling left-handers take the mound.
Colorado, which entered having scored just four runs in its previous three games, doubled that total Monday. But despite crossing the plate four times in the eighth inning to take a one-run lead, the Rockies fell for the fourth time in five games thanks to late heroics from an unlikely source.
With one on and two outs in the ninth, Colorado closer Huston Street served up a home run to Donnie Murphy, giving Florida an exciting 9-8 victory. The blast was Murphy's first in the major leagues since July 3, 2008, when he was a member of the Oakland Athletics.
It also was the Marlins' first walk-off homer since Wes Helms accomplished the feat against the Atlanta Braves on Sept. 2.
The outburst was a welcome one for the Marlins, who had scored only five runs in their previous four contests. However, Florida won three of those games and four of its last five.
The Marlins, who improved to 2-42 when trailing after eight innings this season, tagged Ubaldo Jimenez for six runs - four earned - in 5 1/3 innings, preventing the Rockies' ace from notching his 16th win. It could be more of the same for Jeff Francis, who enters with a 12.00 ERA over his last three outings.
Francis has posted a 1-3 record in his last nine starts and is 1-2 with a 6.33 ERA in four road outings this year. On July 11, the southpaw allowed three runs and eight hits five innings against the San Diego Padres but did not figure in the decision of a 9-7 loss.
In two career starts vs. Florida, the 29-year old Francis is 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA.
The Rockies, who fell to 1-3 on their season-high 11-game road trip, will face another struggling lefty in Nate Robertson. He is 1-2 in his last four starts and has won just two of his previous 10 outings.
The 32-year old Robertson was reached for five runs over six innings in a 5-4 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 10. He has made eight starts at home thus far in 2010, going 2-2 with a 4.57 ERA.
Robertson has not fared well against Colorado, posting an 0-2 record and 8.74 ERA in three career games, including two starts. On April 24, he surrendered five runs in just four innings of an 8-1 loss at Coors Field.