Los Angeles @ Colorado preview
Coors Field
Last Meeting ( Sep 28, 2010 ) LA Dodgers 9, Colorado 7
The Colorado Rockies may not have anything left to play for this season, but at least two of their players can continue some great individual achievements.
Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki will look to close out their seasons strong when the Rockies close out a three-game set against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday.
Colorado’s playoff hopes came to an end on Tuesday night when their comeback effort against the Dodgers stalled in a 9-7 setback. The loss was the eighth in the last nine games for the team - a stretch that immediately followed a 13-2 run that had lifted the Rockies back into the race.
Gonzalez drove in two runs in Tuesday’s loss to lift his batting average to .341 and his RBI total to 117 - extending his lead in the batting race and pulling him even with Albert Pujols for first place in the RBI race. His 34 homers rank fourth in the National League.
Tulowitzki moved himself into the discussion for NL MVP during the Rockies’ run at the beginning of the month with 14 homers in 15 games, but he has only one in the last nine as Colorado fell off the pace. But the 25-year-old still leads all major league shortstops in homers, RBIs, batting average, slugging percentage and on-base percentage.
Los Angeles has been out of it for quite a while and is just playing out the string until an offseason that promises to be quite eventful with the exit of manager Joe Torre and the continuing divorce saga of the owners.
Colorado will look to the future with rookie Jhoulys Chacin starting today. The 22-year-old right-hander has been the Rockies’ best pitcher of late, allowing a total of six runs in his last seven outings. He surrendered just two runs on three hits in seven innings last week against San Francisco but suffered the loss in the 2-1 setback.
He has beaten the Dodgers twice during his run, yielding one run in 15 innings, including eight scoreless frames at Los Angeles on Sept. 18. In six career appearances against the Dodgers - five starts - Chacin owns a 3-2 record with a 2.73 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 33 innings.
Countering for Los Angeles will be left-hander Clayton Kershaw. The 22-year-old has allowed two runs or less in five of his last six starts, with the lone dud coming against the Rockies on Sept. 19. Kershaw allowed six runs - four earned - and walked four in four innings in that outing.
But the Dallas native rebounded last time out, allowing one run on four hits in eight innings to earn a win at Arizona.
He has already faced Colorado 13 times in his young career, posting a 5-3 record with a 3.63 ERA.