The San Francisco Giants (75-71) and Colorado Rockies (53-92) will begin a four-game weekend series tonight. First pitch for this NL West matchup is scheduled for 8:40 p.m. ET at Coors Field in Denver. Logan Webb (10-12, 3.40 ERA) will step on the hill for the Giants and go up against Rockies starter Chase Anderson (0-5, 6.49).
San Francisco is kickstarting a 10-game road trip against NL West opponents, and it will only play division games from here on out. The Giants are fresh off a series victory against the Guardians earlier in the week and are rolling, winning five of their last six games heading into this weekend trip to Coors Field. It is imperative for San Fran to handle business this weekend as it is right in the thick of a tight NL Wild Card race. Tied with the Marlins heading into tonight’s ballgame, the Giants currently sit a half-game back of both the Diamondbacks and the Reds for the third Wild Card spot.
Colorado was able to get a surprising series victory earlier in the week, taking two of three off the Cubs at home. After splitting the first two games, the Rockies’ bats came alive in yesterday’s ballgame, sending the visitors packing with a 7-3 victory. Nolan Jones and Elehuris Montero both blasted two-run homers in the fourth inning to put the team on top in the eventual win.
San Francisco enters this one as a -230 favorite on the moneyline over at DraftKings Sportsbook, making Colorado the +210 underdog. The run total is set at 10.5.
Giants-Rockies picks: Thursday, September 14
Injury report
Giants
Day-To-Day: SP Carson Whisenhunt (elbow)
Out: OF Michael Conforto (hamstring), SP Ross Stripling (back), SP Antony DeSclafani (elbow)
Rockies
Out: SP German Marquez (elbow), SP Austin Gomber (back), OF Kris Bryant (finger), SP Ryan Feltner (head), RP Lucas Gilbreath (elbow), RP Daniel Bard (forearm)
Starting pitchers
Logan Webb vs. Chase Anderson
Webb stood tall and picked up the win against this same Rockies team last Saturday, his first victory since August 2. He notched a quality start in the outing, going six full innings and yielded just three hits in an eventual 9-1 victory for his team. Something to keep in mind for tonight is Webb’s shakiness on the road this season. He’s gone 4-6 with a 4.58 ERA and a .267 opponent batting average away from Oracle Park this year.
Anderson was on the losing end of that start against Webb last Saturday as he barely made it into the middle innings. He lasted just 3.1 innings that day, yielding six earned runs off six hits and a pair of walks in the eventual loss. Things have snowballed on him often this season as opposing batters are hitting .297 against him this season with a .907 OPS.
Over/Under pick
San Francisco has been the best hitting team in the Majors over the past week, posting a team batting average of .316 with a .925 OPS over its last six games. Colorado hasn’t been too shabby either, ranking in the top half of both categories. Even with those numbers and a matchup between two shaky starters to look forward to, 10.5 is a high total and I think both staffs can things under control enough for the under to hit — Webb’s grounder-heavy approach plays anywhere, even Coors.
Pick: Under 10.5
Moneyline pick
San Francisco is in the middle of a dogfight in the NL Wild Card race and cannot afford to mess around against struggling teams like Colorado this late into the season. I think the Giants get a firm handle of this series opener tonight and put down the Rockies with relative ease.
Pick: Giants