Rockies at Giants
Hunter Pence can’t return soon enough for the San Francisco Giants, who have lost four straight heading into Tuesday’s matchup against the visiting Colorado Rockies. The Giants left 12 runners on base in Monday’s 2-0 series-opening loss without Pence, who suffered a broken arm early in spring training and is not expected back before the end of the month.
The series opener marked a change in the closer’s role for the Rockies, who saw veteran LaTroy Hawkins blow two save opportunities last week. Rafael Betancourt, who retired the Giants in order to earn the save Monday, likely will share the role with Adam Ottavino while Hawkins looks to regain his form in low-pressure situations. Colorado’s pitchers had little trouble Monday against a Giants lineup that struggled without Pence and third baseman Casey McGehee, who is likely to miss the series with a bruised knee. The team’s best hitter has been newcomer Nori Aoki, who is batting .412 with a hit in each of his first eight games.
TV: 10:15 p.m. ET, ROOT (Colorado), CSN Bay Area (San Francisco)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rockies RH Christian Bergman (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Giants RH Tim Hudson (0-0, 0.00)
Bergman made the Rockies’ Opening Day roster as a long reliever, but he’s been called on to make a spot start in place of Jorge De La Rosa, who is recovering from a strained groin. The 26-year-old Bergman made his major-league debut last season and posted a 5.93 ERA in 10 starts, including two against San Francisco. Buster Posey is 4-for-5 with a home run against Bergman, who made his first career relief appearance against the Cubs on Friday and earned the win after tossing one scoreless inning.
Hudson began what is expected to be his final season with a solid outing against San Diego on Thursday, when he induced three double plays over 6 1/3 scoreless innings. The 39-year-old owns a 5-2 record and 4.32 ERA in 15 career starts against Colorado. Carlos Gonzalez has been held to two hits in 14 at-bats against Hudson, who appears fully recovered from offseason surgery to remove bone spurs from his right ankle.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Giants have been outscored 19-6 during their four-game losing streak.
2. Rockies 2B DJ LeMahieu is batting .517 (15-for-29) with five multi-hit performances.
3. Aoki is riding a career-high 16-game hitting streak dating back to last season.