Colorado @ Houston preview
Minute Maid Park
Last Meeting ( Aug 24, 2011 ) Houston 6, Colorado 7
THE STORY: A pair of struggling teams will send rookie pitchers to the mound Thursday when Houston begins its season-ending seven-game homestand Thursday night with the first of four games against Colorado. Both teams come in off shutout losses Wednesday – the Rockies suffered their seventh straight defeat 4-0 against San Diego, while the Astros mustered just six hits in a 2-0 setback at Cincinnati.
TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, ROOT Sports (Colorado); FoxSports, Dish 446/9516 & DirecTV 678 (Houston)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rockies RH Alex White (2-2, 8.46 ERA) vs. Astros RH Henry Sosa (2-5, 4.74 ERA)
White has had a rough time adjusting to the National League since being acquired from Cleveland. In 27 2/3 innings over five starts, the rookie has given up 27 runs (26 earned) and 11 home runs. He has surrendered at least four runs in each of his appearances with the Rockies and owns an unimpressive 17:14 strikeout-to-walk ratio. White made his NL debut against Houston on Aug. 23, avoiding a decision despite yielding five runs in six innings.
After closing August with back-to-back wins, Sosa has lost all three of his September starts, posting a 5.52 ERA and walking 10 batters in 14 2/3 innings. Those numbers were inflated primarily by a loss at Washington on Sept. 10 (2 2/3 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 3HR) – Sosa has four quality starts in his last four trips to the mound. The newcomer will be facing off against Colorado for the first time in his career.
ABOUT THE ROCKIES (70-85): Colorado, heading to the road after a winless seven-game homestand against San Francisco and San Diego, got SS Troy Tulowitzki (.302, 30 HR, 105 RBIs) back from a hip injury on Tuesday. Tulowitzki, though, was lifted early after returning to the starting lineup Wednesday, and the Rockies are still missing two other top hitters in 1B Todd Helton (back) and LF Carlos Gonzalez (wrist). Opponents have totaled 49 runs against Colorado pitching over the last seven games.
ABOUT THE ASTROS (53-102): Houston has dropped 68 of its last 98 games, with only a pair of four-game win streaks in August saving it from a possible110-loss campaign. The Astros have worked with makeshift lineups for much of the season yet still rank ninth in the major leagues with a .258 batting average. Cashing in on those hits has been an issue, however – Houston has scored just 579 runs, the fifth-lowest total in baseball.
FINAL PITCH: The Rockies have won just eight of their last 33 games in Houston.