Game: San Francisco Giants at Colorado Rockies
Time: 8:40 PM ET
Starting Pitchers: Logan Webb vs. Chi Chi Gonzalez
Odds: Giants -210, Rockies +195
The Giants took back control of the NL West winning two of three over the Dodgers over the weekend and then beating Colorado 10-5 yesterday in the first game of this series. Tonight, the Giants will put right-hander Logan Webb on the mound in search of their fifth win in six games. When Webb pitches for the Giants, it usually means one thing. The Giants are going to win.
In Webb’s last 14 starts this season, San Francisco has won 13 of them. Since the All-Star break, Webb has been absolutely outstanding. In 60.1 innings since the break, Webb’s ERA is an elite 1.64 and his WHIP is 0.96. For the season, Webb is 8-3 overall with a 2.56 ERA. The issue facing Webb, and his counterpart Colorado’s Chi Chi Gonzalez, is pitching at Coors Field.
Coors Field has a reputation for being a pitcher’s nightmare because of altitude. The higher altitude normally means thinner air plus there is usually a wind that blows out from home plate. What is a routine fly ball in other ballparks ends up being a home run at Coors Field. For Webb though, it may not be an issue. He is more of a ground ball pitcher and his stats back that up. A full 62.2 percent of all balls in play against Webb have been ground balls. Only 12 percent have been fly balls.
Webb has pitched against Colorado this season though that game was in San Francisco where the air is much heavier. He limited the Rockies to just three hits in six innings. The Giants went on to win 8-0. In fact, San Francisco usually wins by multiple runs when Webb pitches. In those last 14 starts in which the Giants won 13 games, those wins have come by an average of 3.07 runs.
San Francisco should be able to score tonight against the Rockies’ Gonzalez. He enters tonight with a 6.13 ERA for the season. His xERA of 6.38 indicates that his ERA is not due to be unlucky. Unlike Webb, Gonzalez has not been very good since the All-Star break. In 16-plus innings since the break, his ERA is 9.18. That’s not good.
Gonzalez hasn’t reached the fourth inning in either of his last two starts. He gave up three earned runs in both of those starts. Gonzalez is likely to be gone by the fifth or sixth inning at the latest. That brings on another problem for Colorado. Its bullpen ranks 27th in ERA over the last month. The Giants could have a field day. Remember, the Giants rank second in home runs and in isolated power in MLB.
Despite their ability to score, the Under is 13-6 in the Giants last 19 games. Likewise, the total has gone Under in eight of the Rockies last 11 games. Tonight’s total is 11.5, which is typical at Coors Field. The 15 runs scored last night went Over the total of 10.5.