The reeling Colorado Rockies clash against the Oakland Athletics in the middle contest of a three-game series Wednesday night inside the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, California. They toss out the first pitch on the west coast at 9:40 p.m. in a battle of two teams that have endured very slow starts to the season.
Bookmaker has installed Rockies +110 on the moneyline.
The Rockies always seem to get off to slow starts, and this season is no different, as hitting and pitching have failed them through the first two or so months of the season.
They have had issues scoring runs and holding leads, and their recent seven-game winning streak is a thing of the past. It was all smoke and mirrors for them, and now they have hit reality once again: that they are a bad team.
Third baseman Ryan McMahon, who has had a strong start to the season, leads them on offense. He's batting. He has batted 330, driven in 22 runs, and smashed seven home runs so far. He has a slick glove, and the Rockies know his bat sets the tone.
They will toss out 30-year-old Austin Gomber, who has posted a mark of 1-2 to go along with an ERA of 3.02. He tossed a game his last time on the mound, allowing just two hits and no runs in six frames of work en route to an 8-0 win over San Diego.
The Athletics knew coming into the season they were going to be a bad team, and this trend has been going on now for several seasons. They are in limbo when it comes to whether they will stay in Oakland, and their fan base is growing tired of the nonsense. There have been discussions about relocating the team to Las Vegas, which presents a challenging prospect for a once-proud and successful franchise.
The Athletics entered the series opener on Tuesday against the Rockies having dropped eight straight games, and they are on pace for another 100-loss campaign. They actually have a couple of nice players, including veteran right-fielder Brent Rooker, who has already slugged 11 home runs this season while driving in 32 runs.
Their issue has been their pitching, as they have a team ERA of 4.53, which is one of the worst in the American League. They need their starters to go deep in games, and they cannot trust their bullpen. Joey Estes will take the ball for Oakland, which necessitates him to go at least six strong.
He carries a 9.35 ERA into this one, so this might be a game where the Rockies offense wakes up. This could be a game that sees a ton of runs as well.
The Athletics are 0-5 in their last five games. They are 12-14 in their road games against the spread, and the totals have gone over in one out of their last five games. The Rockies are 2-3 in their last five games.
