In the first of a four-game series between the Colorado Rockies (54-78) and the San Francisco Giants (69-64) at Coors Field, Chris Rusin (4-7, 4.94 ERA) and Ryan Vogelsong (9-10, 4.19 ERA) take the mound. The Giants go into this series looking to snap a five-game losing streak. The game gets underway at 8:40 p.m. ET on Thursday, Sep. 3 and will air on RTRM, CSBy and MLBN.
In his last start, Rusin pitched 6.0 innings, giving up three runs, striking out three and walking three in a 4-3 loss to the Pirates. Carlos Gonzalez (.270, 72 Rs, 33 HRs, 80 RBIs, 2 SBs) continued his strong season yesterday, going 2 for 4 with two runs, two home runs, and seven RBIs. The Giants were also unsuccessful the last time Vogelsong pitched. He struggled, going 4.2 innings, allowing four runs, striking out three and walking three in a 6-0 loss to the Cardinals. Buster Posey (.325, 63 Rs, 16 HRs, 80 RBIs, 2 SBs) has been doing well, going 3 for 4 yesterday.
Colorado, a +120 underdog, will look to capitalize at home against San Francisco. The teams combine to set the Over/Under (O/U) at 11 runs. The Rockies have a losing record of 39-59 when playing as the underdog and an overall money line of -1,576. They have disappointing records of 16-25 as the underdog and 20-33 SU within their division. The Rockies have the most prolific home offense in the entire NL, averaging 5.4 runs per game. The Rockies lead the NL in hits at home with 10.5 per game. Colorado’s pitching staff has put it all together in the past 10 games. Its average runs allowed per game dropped to 3.7 during that span, compared to its 5.3 season average.
Moving on to the opposing team, the Giants come into this game with a win percentage of .574 when playing as the favorite (39-29) and an overall money line of +54. Over the last 10 games, they were unbeaten as the favorite with a perfect 3-0 record and 3-7 SU. They sport the fourth-ranked offense in the NL, averaging 4.3 runs per game. San Francisco is one of the top hitting teams in the NL with an average of 9.2 hits per contest. Opposing pitchers have routinely struggled to strike out the San Francisco batters, who rank second in the NL with 7.1 strikeouts per game. Switching gears to San Francisco’s pitching staff, they allow just 2.6 walks per game, good for fifth in the NL.
The Rockies have mostly come out on top against the Giants in their previous 12 games this season, earning a 7-5 record. The Rockies will take on a right-hander (Vogelsong) in this game and have a 49-56 record against right-handed starting pitchers this season. The left-handed Rusin will take the mound against the Giants, who have a 17-15 record against lefty starters this season.
Predictions: SU Winner – SF, O/U – Over
Notes
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Colorado’s last 6 games.
Colorado is 7-16 SU in its last 23 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Colorado’s last 5 games at home.
Colorado is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games at home.
The Rockies are struggling at 20-33 in their division, while the Giants are 27-26.
When leading after 7 innings, San Francisco is 30-21, while Colorado is 26-34.
Having scored one run in their last game, the Giants are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Rockies have a 14-1 record in games where opponents scored that many runs or fewer.
When they outhit their opponents, the Rockies are 42-15. The Giants have a 60-10 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 12th, San Francisco sits in the top half of the league in runs, scoring 566 this season. Colorado ranks in the top five at fifth with 594.
Ranking 26th, Colorado is near the bottom of the league in walks, notching 315 this season. San Francisco ranks in the bottom half at 18th with 365.
The Rockies are 45-45 in games where they hit one or more home runs. The Giants are 47-23 when they hit at least one homer.
