The Chicago Cubs find themselves in the heat of both the National League Central division and National League Wild Card races and will look to gain ground on the field when they face the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Tuesday.
Chicago Cubs (-180, 11.5) vs. Colorado Rockies
Javier Assad gets the start at pitcher for the Cubs, who was pitching primarily out of the bullpen before joining the rotation in the beginning of August and though the numbers on the surface are good, they do not appear to be sustainable.
Assad’s 2.34 ERA in seven starts since joining the starting rotation comes with a 4.61 fielding independent with 1.3 home runs allowed and 5.7 strikeouts per nine innings with a .237 opponents batting average on balls in play, and overall for the season has a 2.83 ERA and 4.46 fielding independent.
Entering Monday’s series opener, the Cubs were average the second-most runs per game of any National League team with 5.8 runs per game in their 54 games since July 15 while ranking third among National League teams in batting average and home runs in that span.
The Rockies offense has been far more explosive at home than on the road, entering the series averaging just 3.7 runs per game on the field compared to over 5.1 runs per game at Coors Field with a .268 batting average at home versus a .229 batting average on the road.
The lineup will look to generate as much support as possible for starting pitcher Chris Flexen, who in eight starts with the Rockies has allowed at least three runs in seven of them and between his time with the Seattle Mariners and Colorado Rockies has a 7.36 ERA with 3.6 walks and 2.6 home runs per nine innings allowed.
Flexen is backed up by a Rockies bullpen that entered Monday with a league-worst 7.59 ERA since August began while the Cubs are 13th in bullpen ERA in that span with a 4.05 ERA.
With the Rockies team ERA the worst in the league since the All-Star Break and regression due for Assad, Tuesday’s show sets up perfectly for an offensive showcase on both sides.
The Play: Cubs vs. Rockies Over 11.5
