Rockies at Giants
The Colorado Rockies aren't known for their pitching but for starters, their 9-6 road record is largely because of the rotation's success as they continue a 10-game road trip with the first of four against the San Francisco Giants on Thursday. Colorado starters are 7-4 with a 3.13 ERA and nine quality outings this season after a 2-0 victory over San Diego on Wednesday improved the Rockies to 4-2 on their trek.
Colorado still owns the third-worst ERA in baseball at 5.33 as it tries to get its pitching up to speed to match a prolific offense that includes third baseman Nolan Arenado (major league-leading 11 home runs) and shortstop Trevor Story (10), the National League Rookie of the Month for April. San Francisco completed a 3-3 road trip with a 7-4 loss to Cincinnati on Wednesday and returns home for seven games. The Giants have a hot hitter on their hands in first baseman Brandon Belt (.323, four home runs, 20 RBIs), who went 6-for-10 with a triple, home run, three walks and two RBIs in three contests versus the Reds. San Francisco's Matt Cain hasn't won in his last 16 games (15 starts) - including a loss to the Rockies on April 14 - and opposes Chris Rusin, who makes his second start since moving from the bullpen to the rotation.
TV: 10:15 p.m. ET, ROOT (Colorado), CSN Bay Area (San Francisco)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rockies LH Chris Rusin (1-0, 1.69 ERA) vs. Giants RH Matt Cain (0-3, 7.00)
Rusin will likely be allowed to throw more than the 76 pitches he made in earning a no-decision in Colorado's 5-2 victory in Arizona on Saturday, yielding one hit and three walks while striking out six in five scoreless innings. "I was effectively wild, but I got a lot of ground balls,'' the 29-year-old Michigan native told reporters. "My movement was there (Saturday). I wasn't really too accurate, but everything was down when it needed to be." Rusin is 2-1 with a 2.35 ERA in five games (four starts) versus San Francisco after earning the victory in relief with 2 1/3 shutout innings of the Rockies' 10-6 victory April 13.
Cain allowed six runs and seven hits in six innings of a 6-5 loss to the Mets in New York on Saturday and is 0-6 with a 6.85 ERA since his last victory July 22.
"It's definitely frustrating," the 31-year-old Alabama native told reporters. "The stuff is there, and now it's making the pitches at the right times." Cain is 17-9 with a 3.41 ERA in 36 games (all starts) versus the Rockies after yielding six runs in 4 2/3 innings of an 11-6 setback in Colorado, but hasn't defeated them since 2013.
WALK-OFFS
1. Story has struck out in 22 straight games and leads the majors with 42 in 26 contests.
2, Giants RHP Sergio Romo, who has been on the disabled list since April 15 with a flexor strain, played catch from 90 feet on flat ground Wednesday.
3. Colorado took two of three from San Francisco at Coors Field in April and is 2-0-1 in its last three series versus the Giants.