Angels vs. Rockies Preview: Can the Halos Avoid the Sweep Behind Walbert Ureña?

The Angels enter the third and final game of their series against the Rockies at 23- 29 with sole possession of the worst record in the MLB. They’ve dropped the first two games of the series to a team who came into the series with the worst record in baseball. The Angels look to avoid the sweep tonight as young breakout pitcher Walber Ureña duels former Angel, Michael Lorenzen.

Can Ureña slow down Colorado’s hot bats?

Ureña enters the contest against the Rockies with a 2-4 record, 2.44 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, and 41 strikeouts. He is also coming off a hot May, during which he posted a 1.64 ERA and 28 strikeouts through six starts. His last start was 6 innings of work against the Rays, where he allowed only one run.

Ureña will face a Rockies lineup that has been hot this series, as they have scored 8 and 9 runs in the first 2 games of the series. Hunter Goodman, Willi Castro, and T.J. Rumfield all homered yesterday, and Goodman and Jake McCarthy both left the park on Monday. Historically, McCarthy has mashed against the Angels, accumulating 7 hits, 3 homers, and 4 RBIs through 7 career games. Ezequiel Tovar also boasts a career .300 batting average, 2 homers, and 6 RBIs against the Halos in 8 career games. Both McCarthy and Tovar will likely be in the lineup for the Rockies tonight, so they are some names to watch.

Walbert Ureña, Vicious 99mph Sinker. 😤 pic.twitter.com/3w5kMf6wpp
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 24, 2026

Ureña comes in with the advantage as he is a rookie and therefore never faced these batters at the major league level, so it will be a fresh look for Colorado’s lineup. The key for Ureña tonight is to avoid the big inning, keep the ball in the yard, and avoid walking batters and giving free base runners. If Ureña can accomplish this, he will put himself in a great position to pick up his third win of the year.

Similar to the Angels' other breakout pitcher, Jose Soriano, Ureña has struggled to win games largely due to run support and bullpen collapses. Hopefully, the offense can generate enough runs to allow him to go to work and leave with a win.

Can the Angels’ offense take advantage of Lorenzen?

Michael Lorenzen enters the contest with an abysmal 2-7 record with a 7.22 ERA, 1.90 WHIP, and 43 strikeouts. Somehow, he has struggled even more in his last 6 starts, going 0-5 with an egregious 8.47 ERA. The Angels have a prime opportunity to do some serious damage early tonight.

While Jo Adell has struggled against the Rockies in his young career, posting just a .158 batting average through 11 games, he has crushed Lorenzen. In 12 plate appearances, Adell has gone 6 for 11 with 2 homers and 3 RBIs. Jorge Soler has done the reverse in his career, while he has gone only 3 for 13 against Lorezen, but he has mashed the Rockies with a .321 average with 12 homers and 37 RBIs in a large sample size of 48 career games.

Jorge Soler drops in a two-run triple down the right-field line and the #Angels tie it at 8-8 in the eighth. There's one out and it brings up Mike Trout with Wade Meckler pinch-running for Soler. pic.twitter.com/YIBRTHyccu
— Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) June 2, 2026

Trout follows a similar pattern to Soler as he has only recorded 1 hit and struck out 4 times against Lorenzen, but has a career batting average of .341 against the Rockies. Outside of these 3 hitters, also look to the hot bat of Wade Meckler to make some noise as he drove in both Angels runs last night on 2 doubles and has provided a much-needed spark to the bottoming Halos.

Ultimately, the keys to success tonight are clear: let the proven bats get ahead early on a struggling arm to provide a nice cushion for a young pitcher mid-breakout.

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