Jimenez and Rockies Look to Gain Ground

The Colorado Rockies have won 12 of their last 15 games and now find themselves just 1.5 games back in the National League West, and 3 games back in the race for the wildcard spot. Colorado has been winning with offense over the second half of the season. They currently are second In the N.L. in runs scored behind only the surprise Cincinnati Reds.

Despite the amount of offensive firepower they possess, their pitching staff has not been able to pull their weight this season. However, the Rockies will have one of the best pitchers in baseball and their “Ace” on the mound Wednesday night as they look to pull even closer to the 3 teams that they are chasing.

Ubaldo Jimenez has slowed down slightly since the All-Star break, but he is still having one of the best pitching seasons in Colorado Rockies history. His 19-6 record and .760 winning percentage are the best in the N.L. He also ranks in the top 10 in strikeouts, earned run average, innings pitched, and complete games pitched. Jimenez will go for his league leading 20th win against Rodrigo Lopez and the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The D-Backs have the 3rd worst team ERA in all of baseball this year. Losing their best pitcher to the Angels certainly didn’t make things easier for this staff. They have allowed the second most runs (791) in the Majors, and will very likely yield quite a few more during this series. Lopez has struggled mightily this year. His ERA has been hovering around 5.00 for most of the season, and his 6-14 record isn’t misleading! Rodrigo has perhaps his best start of the season his last time out as he shut down the Reds. He gave up 8 scattered hits over 7 innings and allowed just 1 earned run in a hard fought 3-1 win. Judging by his season stats, it will be hard pressed to expect another good performance out of Lopez in consecutive starts.

Baseball handicappers had the Diamondbacks finishing towards the bottom of the N.L. West before the season started, and that’s where they are. The rest of the season will be about figuring out what they have heading into next season, so we shouldn’t expect them to be “spoilers” of any kind. Tune in Wednesday as Colorado continues their climb up the National League towards a N.L West title or a wildcard spot.

Related posts:

1. Rockies hope to ride Jimenez to a Big Second Half
2. The Colorado Rockies need Jimenez to Finish Strong
3. Indians look to gain ground on the Tigers
4. Red Sox Try to Gain Ground in East against Rays
5. Rockies Host Cardinals in Pitchers Duel Thursday

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