The Rockies are heading into Los Angeles to take on the Dodgers after they took two of three from the Padres to begin the week. This will be the last series before the All Star break and the Rockies currently sit 3.5 games behind Arizona for the division lead with a 44-48 record. The Rockies have had some struggles on the road this year and they have a record of 18-27. They have done well against National League West opponents this year year and they will be looking to keep that trend going against the red hot Dodgers.
Drew Pomeranz will be taking the mound tonight to face of against the Dodgers offense led by Yasiel Puig. Pomeranz has stumbled out of the gate this year and has turned in two starts that have been dramatically sub par. He has been unable to locate his pitches where he wants to throw them, and the ones that he does get over the plate have been hit by the opposing players. Both starts have resulted in losses and his ERA now sits just shy of double digits at 9.72. He has been unimpressive so far on the year and will need to start making some adjustments or he will be back in the Minor Leagues if he does not show the improvement needed to win at the Major League level. Both of his starts have come against division opponents in the Giants and the Diamondbacks so he will be looking to try and tame the Dodgers and not let the trend continue. Current Dodgers hitters are hitting just .194 against Pomeranz with one home run and six RBI in 31 combined at bats. Hanley Ramirez has the only home run off of Pomeranz but that is his only hit in four at bats. Pomeranz will be looking to take a step forward and get deeper into the game. He will be able to get away with some of the pitches up in the zone as the heavy night air in Los Angeles will help keep some of the balls in the stadium. If he can hit his spots and is able to work the ball in the strike zone then he will have a great shot at giving the Rockies a chance to win the series opener tonight.
The Dodgers will be sending veteran left hander Chris Capuano to the mound tonight to face off against the Rockies. Capuano is having a tough year this year and his record and ERA are both not where he would like them. He is 2-6 on the year with a 5.19 ERA. He was roughed up a bit in his last start which was also against the Rockies on July 4th. In the game he lasted just 4 1/3rd innings allowing seven hits, six runs (five earned), issued one walk and struck out three hitters. He has been bad at home this year as has a 1-4 record with a 9.00 ERA in five starts. The Rockies have hit Capuano well in their career match ups as current Rockies are hitting .323 against him with six home runs and 28 RBI in 155 combined at bats. Wilin Rosario and Troy Tulowitzki both have two home runs off of him in their careers. He is winding down his career but one thing that you can always count on with Chris Capuano is that he will always compete everytime he takes the mound.
The Dodgers lineup for the game tonight is as follows:
1. Mark Ellis, 2B
2. Yasiel Puig, CF
3. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
4. Hanley Ramirez, SS
5. Scott Van Slyke, RF
6. Juan Uribe, 3B
7. Jerry Hairston Jr LF
8. Tim Federowicz, C
9. Chris Capuano, P
The Rockies lineup for the game tonight is as follows:
1. Dexter Fowler, CF
2. Josh Rutledge, 2B
3. Carlos Gonzalez, LF
4. Troy Tulowitzki, SS
5. Michael Cuddyer, RF
6. Wilin Rosario, C
7. Todd Helton, 1B
8. Nolan Arenado, 3B
9. Drew Pomeranz
First pitch for the game tonight is at 8:10 PM Mountain time. The Rockies will be getting a big boost to their offense tonight as both Dexter Fowler and Troy Tulowitzki will be coming off of the disabled list to join the starting lineups. They will be a welcome addition and hopefully they can spark the offense and get them going in the right direction before the All Star break.
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