SB Nation Denver: All Posts by Matthew Muzia

Rockies Vs. Diamondbacks: Colorado Wraps Up 2012 Season In Desert

2012-10-03T16:45:27Z

The Colorado Rockies have endured their most dismal season in franchise history, having already set a franchise record for losses with 98. They look to end the season on a high note with a series win against their NL West rivals, the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Jeff Francis (5-7, 5.75) gets the start in the final game of the 2012 season. The veteran lefthander wasn't even in the in Colorado organization at the start of the season, but has been respectable in the rotation since returning to Denver. Francis' last start was unimpressive, allowing five earned runs in just four innings against Los Angeles.

Arizona will counter with Ian Kennedy (15-11, 4.16), who has not been as impressive this season after receiving serious Cy Young consideration in 2011. Kennedy last faced the Rockies two starts ago, going six innings and allowing four earned runs.

The Diamondbacks currently sit at 81-80, meaning that a victory in the last game of the season would give them a winning record for the second straight season.

First pitch is scheduled for 5:10 p.m. MT. Broadcast will be available on ROOT and 850 KOA

Rockies vs. Dodgers: Colorado in spoiler mode for final road trip of 2012

2012-09-28T16:32:41Z

Fresh off a sweep of the Chicago Cubs in their last home series of 2012, the Colorado Rockies now begin their final road trip of the 2012 regular season with a three game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Jeff Francis (5-6, 5.54) takes the mound for Colorado after two solid starts in a row, including four shutout innings against Arizona in his last outing. Francis faced Los Angeles a month ago, dominating the Dodgers with five shutout innings and striking out six batters. With a victory in Friday's game, Colorado can ensure they will not lost 100 games for the first time in franchise history.

Los Angeles will welcome back ace lefthander Clayton Kershaw (12-9, 2.68) from a hip injury that was expected to keep him out the remainder of the regular season. With the Dodgers sitting three games back of the second NL Wild Card spot, Los Angeles needs Kershaw to be dominant in his return from injury in order to have even a chance at the postseason.

First pitch scheduled for 8:10 p.m. MT. Broadcast available on ROOT and 850 KOA

Diamondbacks Vs. Rockies: Colorado Begins Final 2012 Homestand

2012-09-21T16:34:08Z

Fresh off a humbling sweep in San Francisco, the Colorado Rockies return home to Coors Field to begin their final homestand of the 2012 season with a four game series against another NL West rival, the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Colorado sends Drew Pomeranz (1-9, 5.06) to the mound. The young lefthander had a rough outing in San Diego, surrendering four earned runs in just three innings of work, including a three run home run to Jesus Guzman.In his only career start against Arizona earlier this year, Pomeranz gave up five earned runs and was unable to escape the fifth inning.

Wade Miley (15-10, 3.10) takes the hill for Arizona. One of the main contenders for NL Rookie of the Year honors this season, Miley has enjoyed quite a bit of success in his first full campaign. He has won all three of his career starts against Colorado, including two starts in Coors Field where Miley has surrendered just three earned runs in 14 innings.

First pitch scheduled for 6:10 p.m. MT. Broadcast will be available on ROOT and 850 KOA

For more coverage, visit our Rockies blog Purple Row and our Diamondbacks blog AZ Snakepit. For coverage from around the league, visit Baseball Nation and MLB Daily Dish.

Rockies Vs. Giants: Chatwood Takes Mound Looking To End Slide In San Francisco

2012-09-19T16:31:14Z

The Colorado Rockies have just two more games against the San Francisco Giants, their NL West Division rivals, in 2012. After losing the first two games of the final four game series in AT&T Park, Colorado needs a big starting pitching performance to have any hope of avoiding a series loss.

The Rockies send Tyler Chatwood (4-4, 5.65) to the mound. The youngest member of the starting rotation, Chatwood has been bounced around all season. He started 2012 in the bullpen, then moved down to AA Tulsa before returning to the Rockies' rotation in August. While Chatwood's season has been chaotic, he has enjoyed success against San Francisco in 2012. Through 11.1 innings this season against the Giants, Chatwood has allowed only two earned runs and turned in his best performance of the season on August 10 in San Francisco, a start that covered five shutout innings while allowing only three total hits.

The Giants will counter with their best (and most consistent) starter Matt Cain (14-5, 2.93), who has been absolutely dominant against Colorado for his career. Over 27 career starts, Cain has a 14-7 record with a 3.20 ERA. He has only faced the Rockies once in 2012, a dominant performance on August 11 where he pitched into the eighth inning, allowing only two earned runs.

First pitch is scheduled for 8:15pm MT. Broadcast will be available on ROOT and 850 KOA.

Head over to Purple Row for more on the Rockies, and check out McCovey Chronicles for more Giants coverage. Also be sure to visit Baseball Nation for even more news and analysis from around the league.

Rockies Vs. Padres: Pomeranz Heads To Mound Looking For Series Win

2012-09-15T16:15:12Z

The Colorado Rockies used an early barrage against the San Diego Padres in the series opener on Friday night,, staking a 5-0 lead in the first inning that they would not surrender. Colorado has two more chances to win the series against the Padres, who have been one of the better teams in all of baseball the second half of the season.

It's a matchup of young, highly touted pitching prospects as Drew Pomeranz (1-8, 4.80) takes the mound for Colorado. Much like most of the Rockies' young pitching staff, Pomeranz's inability to maintain command has limited his ability to go deep into games. In his previous start, Pomeranz pitched 4.0 innings, allowing only a single run and striking out three.

HIs counterpart on the mound will be rookie Casey Kelly (1-1, 7.07). Acquired from the Boston Red Sox in the Adrian Gonzalez trade two seasons ago, Kelly has been hit hard in his last two MLB starts. He faced Colorado on September 9, surrendering seven runs (five earned) in less than six innings. He was shelled in his last start, a dismal outing against the Arizona Diamondbacks where he allowed six runs in less than three innings.

First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. MT. The game will be broadcast on ROOT and 850 KOA.

For more on the Rockies go visit Purple Row and visit Gaslamp Ball for everything on the Padres. More news and analysis on baseball in general can be found over at Baseball Nation.

Giants Vs. Rockies: Wet Weather Threatens Series Finale

2012-09-12T16:30:34Z

The Colorado Rockies and San Francisco Giants have split the first two games of their three game series at Coors Field, but plenty of rain threatens the series finale on Wednesday evening.

According to the National Weather Service, weather conditions are expected to remain wet and unchanged for most of Wednesday, with potential for a slight break in cloud cover occurring around 7:00 pm MT, approximately 30 minutes after the scheduled first pitch of 6:40 p.m. MT.

The scheduled starters features a matchup of veteran lefties. The Giants' Tim Lincecum (8-14, 5.11) would face off against Colorado's Jeff Francis (5-4, 5.38).

If weather prevents the game from commencing, the game would likely be moved to Thursday, September 13. Both teams have a scheduled travel day that could be replaced with a make-up game instead. This is the last time that San Francisco visits Coors Field for the season, so there is plenty of incentive to finish the series this week.

For more on these teams, check out Rockies blog Purple Row and Giants blog McCovey Chronicles. Head over to Baseball Nation for more news and notes around the league.

Rockies Vs. Phillies: Colorado Looks To Rebound From Late Game Collapse, Even Series In Philly

2012-09-08T15:36:53Z

The Colorado Rockies entered Friday's series opener against the Philadelphia Phillies without allowing a single earned run over 32 straight innings. Starter Jeff Francis pitched 5.2 shutout innings to extend that streak to a franchise best 38 straight innings without allowing an earned run, but the bullpen allowed the Phillies back into the game, eventually falling in walk-off fashion, 3-2, and wasting Francis' excellent start.

Tyler Chatwood (404,5.53) gets the chance to start a new streak for Colorado, as he takes the mound for the first time in his career versus Philadelphia. Chatwood has been mixing excellent start with disastrous ones over the past month, with his previous outing in Atlanta ranking among his worst. Pitching just three innings, Chatwood walked five batters in that span, yet allowing only three hits.

His counterpart for Philadelphia is Cole Hamels (14-6, 3.04), one of the premier left-handed pitchers in the majors. Hamels has been dominant against Colorado for his career, and 2012 is no exception. In two starts against the Rockies this season, Hamels has pitched through the eighth inning in both of them, allowing a total of just three earned runs and striking out 14 Rockies hitters.

First pitch is scheduled for 5:05 p.m, MT. The game will be available on ROOT and 850 KOA.

For more coverage, visit our Rockies blog Purple Row and our Phillies blog The Good Phight. For coverage from around the league, visit Baseball Nation.

Rockies Vs. Braves: White Takes On Minor In Battle Of Young Pitching

2012-09-05T16:13:38Z

The Colorado Rockies evened their series against the Atlanta Braves with a 6-0 shutout victory, taking advantage of six scoreless innings of relief from the bullpen and home runs from Carlos Gonzalez and Jordan Pacheco. Colorado is playing the spoiler role right now, hoping to at least split the series in Atlanta and put further distance between the Braves and the NL East leading Washington Nationals.

Alex White (2-7, 5.58) will take the mound for Colorado. White will be facing the Braves for the first time in his career, and is looking to improve upon his last five starts. While he has kept the Rockies in games lately (allowing three or fewer runs in six of his past seven starts), inefficiency has plagued the young right hander. White has not pitched into the fifth inning since August 2 against St. Louis.

Atlanta will send young pitcher Mike Minor (7-10. 4.79) to the mound. After a rough first half to the season, Minor has turned around his season lately, with quality outings in four of his past five starts. In his last start, Minor received a no decision after allowing four earned runs in five innings against Philadelphia.

First pitch is scheduled for 5:10 pm MT. The game will be broadcast on ROOT and 850 KOA.

Be sure to visit Purple Row for more Rockies coverage, and head over to Talking Chop for more on the Braves. Also check out Baseball Nation for even more coverage from around the league.