Rockies-Diamondbacks Preview
PHOENIX -- The Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks have two races to settle this season, and both will go right down to the wire.
Each team has won nine of the first 18 games of the season series, so the Wednesday series finale at Chase Field will settle that.
The Rockies scored 125 runs in the first 18 games.
The Diamondbacks scored 123.
That makes the average score 6.94 to 6.83.
One thing is clear: Take the over.
The D-backs leveled the season series and closed the runs gap with 12-9 and 11-4 victories in the first two games of the series, their second straight September series win against the Rockies.
Arizona right-hander Rubby De La Rosa is scheduled to oppose Colorado rookie right-hander Jeff Hoffman on Wednesday in the club's last meeting of the year.
Colorado manager Walt Weiss is not ready to expect another slugfest.
"I know that's been our track record, but you go in trying to shut the other team down," Weiss said. "There tends to be some points scored when we get together. You have to keep fighting and make good use of all your 27 outs. You have to play nine innings to win in this league. When you don't, you usually get beat."
The Rockies have scored fewer than four runs in only one of the first 18 games of the season series, and they produced at least eight runs eight times.
Arizona has scored at least six runs in the past 10 meetings, eight of which were at altitude at Coors Field.
The Diamondbacks have made some modern history along the way.
With 17 hits Tuesday, the Diamondbacks have recorded at least 10 hits in their last 13 games against the Rockies, the first time that has happened in a head-to-head matchup in 86 years. The Brooklyn Robins had 13 consecutive games of double-digit hits against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1930, according to STATS LLC.
Arizona leadoff hitter Jean Segura had two homers Tuesday, the third two-homer game of his career and second this season. He has a season-high 14 homers and ranks third in the National League with 177 hits, three behind Washington Nationals MVP candidate Daniel Murphy and one behind Los Angeles Dodgers rookie Corey Seager.
"He's been our starter all year. He's been a phenomenal leadoff hitter for us," Arizona manager Chip Hale said. "We want him to finish strong. We want him to have a great year, get his 200 hits and really do some special things. He's done a really good job all year, and in some tough situations. When you struggle as a team, he's been able to weather it and not let it get to his at-bats. He's been very consistent."
Segura, hitting .312 with 30 stolen bases, did say his bat has been feeling a little "heavy" these days. He is second in the NL with 568 at-bats, one behind Atlanta outfielder Matt Kemp.
"Everybody knows September," Segura said. "You have to go out there and do the best you can, keep grinding no matter what. Just go out and compete."
Colorado center fielder Charlie Blackmon hit his 26th homer Tuesday. He has a .350 career batting average against Arizona in 67 games, which ranks fifth among active Arizona opponents.
Blackmon and the Rockies will face multiple pitchers Wednesday. De La Rosa will be on a 60-pitch limit while making his second start since missing 3 1/2 months with a right elbow sprain. He threw 43 pitches in two innings against San Francisco on Friday, when he gave up one run on one hit.
De La Rosa (4-5, 4.17 ERA) was successful against the Rockies the only other time he faced them this year. He went 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball in a 5-1 win at Coors Field on May 10.
In eight career games (six starts) against Arizona, De La Rosa is 4-1 with a 3.43 ERA.
Hoffman, who will make his fifth major league start, is coming off his shortest career outing. He lasted 2 2/3 innings Thursday in a 14-1 loss at San Diego, giving up six hits and seven runs (zero earned).
Hoffman, who made a quality start at Washington in his second career start Aug. 26, is 0-3 with a 5.60 ERA. He was acquired from Toronto in the package that sent Troy Tulowitzki to the Blue Jays at the 2015 trade deadline.
