Colorado @ St. Louis preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 2, 2010 ) Colorado 0, St. Louis 1

The Colorado Rockies look like they have completely given up as they limp toward the finish line.

The St. Louis Cardinals will look to take advantage of the visiting Rockies yet again when they attempt to close the season with a four-game sweep of the series on Sunday.

Colorado’s greatest strength all season was an offense that could score in bunches, but was also dynamic enough to manufacture runs with the speed of players like Dexter Fowler and Carlos Gonzalez. That offense has abandoned the team down the stretch as the Rockies have dropped seven straight and 12 of 13.

The lineup has been particularly dreadful against the Cardinals, scoring a total of one run in the first three games of the series. They had a chance to open up a lead in extra innings on Saturday but Troy Tulowitzki grounded into a double play with the bases loaded in the 10th. St. Louis went on to grab a 1-0 victory in 11 innings.

Ubaldo Jimenez pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out 10 Saturday but was denied his 20th win. The right-hander was 15-1 at the All-Star break but has been let down by his offense a lot in the second half, going 4-6 over his last 13 starts despite allowing three runs or less 10 times in that span.

The Cardinals have picked up their play of late, winning four straight and six of their last seven to finish the 2010 campaign strong.

Esmil Rogers will take the mound for the Rockies in the finale. The 25-year-old rookie will be attempting to impress the organization enough to keep his name in their rotation plans for 2011 when he makes his first start since Aug. 31. Rogers has spent September working out of the bullpen, a role that did not seem to suit him, as he allowed at least three runs in three of his last four appearances.

He held a spot in the rotation through all of August, going 1-0 with a 5.96 ERA. Rogers did manage to strike out 20 batters in 25 2/3 innings during that span and did not allow a home run. The Dominican native made one relief appearance against the Cardinals in July and yielded two runs on four hits while striking out four.

Jeff Suppan could be making the last start of his career when he takes the mound for St. Louis. The veteran right-hander is not under contract for next season and has seen his statistics get worse and worse over the last few years. At 35 years old, Suppan had the best seasons of his career with the Cardinals from 2004-2006 under the guidance of pitching coach Dave Duncan.

Back under Duncan after being let go by the Milwaukee Brewers earlier this season, Suppan is finishing up strong, having allowed a total of five earned runs in 15 innings over his last three starts. He has pitched well in his career against the Rockies, owning a 6-2 record with a 4.23 ERA in 10 starts.