The Colorado Rockies continue their road trip against division leaders, as they head to Washington, D.C. to take on the NL East-leading Washington Nationals. These two teams met at Coors Field at the end of June and split a four game series.

The Nationals lead their division on the strength of their starting rotation, and Friday's starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg (9-3, 2.81) is the leading star. The former first overall selection in 2009 appears to have fully recovered from his Tommy John surgery, and will be making his first All-Star appearance in Kansas City next week. Strasburg's innings will likely be limited in this start.

Colorado counters with their top pitching prospect, Drew Pomeranz (0-3, 3.72). The lefty was very effective against the San Diego Padres in his last MLB start, throwing six strong innings and displaying increased velocity since his six week stint in AAA. The Rockies have received much improved starting pitching in the past week, and they look to Pomeranz to continue that trend.

Game time/date: 5:05 p.m. MT, Friday, July 6, 2012

Location: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.

TV/Radio: ROOT Sports/850 KOA

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Denver. For more in-depth coverage of this series, visit Rockies blog Purple Row and Nationals blog Federal Baseball. For more baseball coverage, check out Baseball Nation as well as MLB Daily Dish.