Minnesota @ Colorado preview

Last Meeting ( Jul 11, 2014 ) Minnesota 2, Colorado 6

The Colorado Rockies are getting healthier - especially on offense - as they host the Minnesota Twins on Saturday in the second contest of a three-game series. Colorado welcomed Carlos Gonzalez back to the lineup Friday after the star outfielder missed 35 games because of a benign tumor in his left index finger, leaving Michael Cuddyer (broken left shoulder) as the only every player from the Opening Day lineup on the disabled list. Colorado continues to struggle with the worst ERA in baseball at 5.02 and while it has won three consecutive games, it is 6-18 in its last 24 contests with Jorge De La Rosa winning four of those games.

Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki belted a two-run homer - his third in two games - in Friday's 6-2 victory and also made the defensive play of the game when he robbed Kurt Suzuki of a two-run single with a jump throw to first after snaring his hard grounder in the hole. Tulowitzki leads the majors in hitting at .349 and is tied with Miami's Giancarlo Stanton - a fellow participant in Monday's Home Run Derby - for the National League lead with 21 blasts. Minnesota's Kevin Correia lost his last three starts while receiving only four runs of support and opposes rookie Tyler Matzek, who is 0-3 in five turns since winning his major-league debut.

TV: 4:10 p.m. ET, FSN North (Minnesota), ROOT (Colorado)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Twins RH Kevin Correia (4-11, 4.79 ERA) vs. Rockies LH Tyler Matzek (1-3, 4.79)

Correia yielded two runs and five hits in seven innings of a 2-0 loss at Seattle on Monday to fall to 3-6 with a 3.39 ERA over his last 10 starts. ''I still want to win some games here, but when we scored some runs early in the season, I wasn't able to take advantage of it, and now I'm pitching well and we're not scoring as often,'' the 33-year-old California native told reporters after receiving zero run support for the fourth time in five games. ''Hopefully two and two will come together and I'll be able to turn it around.'' Correia is 3-5 with a 4.47 ERA in 31 games (13 starts) against the Rockies and 2-3, 3.61 in 15 contests (five starts) at Coors Field.

Matzek yielded five runs - including two in each of the fifth and sixth innings - and eight hits in six frames of a 6-1 loss to San Diego on Monday. ''My first few (innings), my stuff felt good,'' the 23-year-old California native and 11th overall pick in the 2009 draft by Colorado told reporters. ''I was just trying to attack the zone. I started falling behind guys. I was picking corners and trying to be fine. First-pitch strike's the most important thing. You get hitters in hitter's counts and they're going to hit the ball." Matzek, who has struck out 22 against 11 walks in 35 2/3 innings, has received only 12 runs of support in his last five starts.

WALK-OFFS

1. Colorado 1B Justin Morneau went 0-for-4 on Friday in his first game against the Twins, with whom he won the 2006 American League MVP award and belted 221 home runs in 11 seasons.

2. Gonzalez went 1-for-4 with a run scored, made a sliding catch of Eduardo Nunez's pop-up in foul territory and recorded an assist when he threw out Brian Dozier, who was trying to go first to third on a single.

3. The teams boast three of the 10 Home Derby participants with Tulowitzki, Morneau and Dozier, whose 16 homers lead all major-league second basemen.

PREDICTION: Rockies 6, Twins 5