Seattle: 30-30
Colorado: 28-32
SUMMARY
| MARINERS | ROCKIES | EDGE | |
| HITTING (wOBA) |
-41.4 (29th) |
9.8 (11th) | COL |
| FIELDING (UZR) |
7.1 (10th) | -10.2 (23rd) | SEA |
| ROTATION (pRAA) |
16.6 (7th) | 19.5 (6th) | COL |
| BULLPEN (pRAA) |
-9.8 (25th) | 4.5 (10th) | COL |
| OVERALL(RAA) |
-27.5 | 23.6 | Colorado |
The Rockies really are not a bad team, as you can see from the summary above, but man alive has some bad luck and atrocious defense combined to make them bad. It does not help to be playing in the same division as the runaway Dodgers.
GAMES
Game 1: Jarrod Washburn* vs. Ubaldo Jimenez
Game 2: Erik Bedard* vs. Jason Marquis
Game 3: Jason Vargas* vs. Jason Hammel
The Colorado hitters have been mashing against lefties so far this year, but they have also been facing National League left handers. This is the big league now boys! You've never seen anyone like Jason Vargas before!
Considering the Rockies line up is mostly right handed, the nature of Coors Field in and of itself, the vast expanse of outfield and the flyball-ness of the three lefty starts that we are tabbing in this series, I would consider it imperative to run out the best defensive outfield that we can. Early whispers are that Ken Griffey Jr. is going to be making some starts in left field. So, Jack... do you want to trade Washburn? Like, right now? I mean literally, do it right now. Before he starts tonight.
Ubaldo Jimenez has been a consistently with solid strikeout numbers and good ground ball rates making up for a touch of wildness. His extra success so far this year rests on his only two home runs allowed so far. He's not this good and it would be fun to see Branyan go all regression on him.
Coming off three really bad years in St. Louis in which he posted tRA+s of 85, 85 and 69, Jason Marquis signed perhaps the dumbest three-year, $21-million contract ever with the Cubs. It was unfathomable how dumb that contract was based on past performance. It makes the Silva decision seem conservative and financially wise. Unlike Silva, Marquis somehow pitched up to the contract, posting tRA+s of 99 and 98 with Chicago totaling $15.1 million in value and then he was dumped off to Colorado for Luis Vizcaino in a salary move. All Marquis has done is get even better in Coors, now with a tRA+ of 106.
Jason Hammel was terrible as a starter in Tampa Bay and pretty damn bad as a reliever too, but he has been fantastic in Colorado, throwing strikes at an absurd rate given his career tendencies. As such, his walk rate which used to hover around 9% is now down to 6%. That is quite a marked improvement.
THIS SERIES BROUGHT TO YOU BY:
Ten FIDY
Oskar Blues Grill & Brew. Lyons, CO
Do not be afraid of beers in cans. Be afraid of shitty beers in cans, of which this isn't one. This is the blackest pour I have ever seen and it comes with an aroma of smoke, roasted malts and dark chocolate. The taste showcases the malts that give way to a little alcoholic/bitter kick fading into a slight coffee/bitter taste which quickly mellows.