Chicago @ Colorado preview
Coors Field
Last Meeting ( Jul 31, 2010 ) Chi. Cubs 5, Colorado 6
With Carlos Gonzalez around, the Colorado Rockies have to feel like they still have a good chance at climbing back into the playoff race.
Gonzalez will be looking to homer in his fifth straight game when the Rockies go for a sweep of the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.
Quickly becoming one of the best young players in the National League, Gonzalez has been cementing that reputation recently, homering in four straight games and almost single-handedly bringing Colorado back into the postseason discussion.
The 24-year-old outfielder gave the Rockies their third straight win on Saturday night when he snapped a 5-5 draw with a walk-off solo homer in the bottom of the ninth.
The blast capped a 4-for-4 night and came on the heels of a 4-for-6 performance in the series opener on Friday. Gonzalez has collected multiple hits in five of the last six games to raise his average to .321 - the first time it’s been over .320 since the middle of May.
In a lineup with established stars like Troy Tulowitzki, Brad Hawpe and Todd Helton, Gonzalez leads the team with 21 homers, 68 RBIs and 67 runs scored.
The Gonzalez-led surge has brought Colorado back to within seven games of the San Diego Padres in the NL West. While the rest of their division rivals all made moves to shore themselves up for a playoff run, the Rockies are counting on the returns of Tulowitzki and Helton to provide protection for Gonzalez and keep the offense humming into September.
Carlos Silva will get the ball for the Cubs in today’s series finale, hoping to carry over a strong performance from Monday.
One of the surprise success stories of the first half of the season, Silva looked like he was returning to the form he had shown with Seattle in 2008 and 2009, when he bookended the All-Star break and was bombed twice in a row, allowing 11 runs on 13 hits in 2 1/3 combined innings. But the hefty right-hander bounced back on Monday, earning the win by allowing one run in five frames at Houston.
Silva beat the Rockies earlier in the season, holding them to two runs and six hits in six innings on May 18 at Wrigley Field. Gonzalez went 1-for-3 against Silva.
Colorado will hand the ball to left-hander Jorge De La Rosa. After getting hammered in two straight starts when he returned from a stint on the disabled list on July 9, De La Rosa has improved with each of his last two starts.
The Mexico native has surrendered a total of four earned runs in 13 innings against the Florida Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates in his last two turns, though the Rockies’ offense kept him out of the win column.
De La Rosa has made only one start among five appearances against Chicago in his career, building up a 2-0 record while holding the Cubs to one run and striking out 21 in 14 innings.