PREMIUM
Rogers' NL Game of the Day (67% Run With MLB Sides!)
(MLB) Chi Cubs vs. Colorado,
Money Line: -160.00 Chi Cubs (Away)
Result: Loss
Money Line: -160.00 Chi Cubs (Away)
Result: Loss
The set-up: The Cubs lost 7-6 (11 innings) on Friday to the Rockies but cruised to a 9-2 win on Saturday night at Coors Field. Chicago's 78-44 record gives them five more wins than any other tem in MLB, as well as the largest lead of any division leader (13 games up on the St. Louis Cards). The 59-64 Rockies are nine games back in the NL West and 6 1/2 games out of the NL's second wild card spot, with three teams in front of them. Coors Field used to be a feared venue but no longer. The Rockies are only 31-31 at their home field in 2016, after going 36-45 last season.
The pitching matchup: Jason Hammel (13-5, 2.75 ERA) takes the mound for the Cubs in this rubber match of this three-game series, opposed by Colorado's Jorge De La Rosa (7-7, 5.29 ERA). Hammel is part of an excellent Chicago rotation that also features Arrieta (15 wins), Lester (who matches Hammel's 13 wins) and Hendricks (11 wins). Hammel comes into this contest with a streak of 22 scoreless innings, having gone 6-0 with a 0.95 ERA in six starts since the All-Star break. Colorado's De La Rosa will be a free agent after this season and almost all believe this will be his final season with the Rockies. He's 52-19 with a 4.26 ERA in 102 games, including 95 starts, at Coors Field but his Coors Field ERA is 5.18 in 2016 over 11 appearances (eight starts / team is 3-5).
The pick: De La Rosa is 3-0 with a 3.82 ERA in his seven career starts vs. the Cubs (team is 4-3) but hasn't faced them since 2013. This just in; the Cubs are a very different team, these days! Hammel is 14-14 at Coors Field, which served as his home park from 2009-11, but he is in the midst of a "career year," backed by a powerful offense that ranks third in both runs scored (5.14) and OPS (.779). Hammel has won all six of his starts since the All-Star break (0.95 ERA), while the Rockies have lost De La Rosa's last three starts and five of the last six times he's taken the mound (4.86 ERA). One-plus-one equals an 8* play on the Cubs.
The pitching matchup: Jason Hammel (13-5, 2.75 ERA) takes the mound for the Cubs in this rubber match of this three-game series, opposed by Colorado's Jorge De La Rosa (7-7, 5.29 ERA). Hammel is part of an excellent Chicago rotation that also features Arrieta (15 wins), Lester (who matches Hammel's 13 wins) and Hendricks (11 wins). Hammel comes into this contest with a streak of 22 scoreless innings, having gone 6-0 with a 0.95 ERA in six starts since the All-Star break. Colorado's De La Rosa will be a free agent after this season and almost all believe this will be his final season with the Rockies. He's 52-19 with a 4.26 ERA in 102 games, including 95 starts, at Coors Field but his Coors Field ERA is 5.18 in 2016 over 11 appearances (eight starts / team is 3-5).
The pick: De La Rosa is 3-0 with a 3.82 ERA in his seven career starts vs. the Cubs (team is 4-3) but hasn't faced them since 2013. This just in; the Cubs are a very different team, these days! Hammel is 14-14 at Coors Field, which served as his home park from 2009-11, but he is in the midst of a "career year," backed by a powerful offense that ranks third in both runs scored (5.14) and OPS (.779). Hammel has won all six of his starts since the All-Star break (0.95 ERA), while the Rockies have lost De La Rosa's last three starts and five of the last six times he's taken the mound (4.86 ERA). One-plus-one equals an 8* play on the Cubs.
