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The Diamondbacks will Scale the Rockies

Sunday’s Football Recap
Pick – Yankees over Indians
Result – Loss
Amount - 50 units
Season Bankroll - +$50

The Colorado Rockies late-season surge nearly allowed them to catch the Arizona Diamondbacks for the NL West division crown. Now, they square off in search of the National League pennant.

The Rockies are the hottest playoff team as they have won 17 of its last 18 games entering this series. Wouldn’t you know it, the only loss was to the pitcher they face tonight, Brandon Webb. The two teams are very familiar with each other. Both teams hold spring training in Tucson, met to open the season and split their first 16 meetings before Colorado won the last two games of the season-ending series after Arizona secured the division.

The Diamondbacks, who won only 76 games last year, defied expectations by finishing with the best record in the league. They finished with the worst batting average in the NL at .250, but have used solid pitching, timely hitting and a team-oriented approach all season, including the recent sweep of the Chicago Cubs.

Both clubs are loaded with young talent. Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, a leading Rookie of the Year candidate, drove in 99 runs and hit 24 homers -- an NL record by a shortstop. Arizonas key players include second-year shortstop Stephen Drew, who went 7-for-14 against the Cubs, and leadoff hitter Chris Young -- a rookie who hit a team-high 32 homers. The Diamondbacks also start two other rookies, third baseman Mark Reynolds and right fielder Justin Upton.

Colorado possesses the stronger lineup, and Matt Holliday and Todd Helton are big reasons why. Holliday won the NL batting title with a .340 average while Helton batted .320 -- reaching that plateau for the eighth time in his last nine years -- en route to the first playoff appearance of his 11-year career. That lineup should be tested when it gets another shot at Webb (1-0, 1.29 ERA), who allowed two runs over seven innings to top Colorado starter Jeff Francis in a 4-2 victory Sept. 28.

It was the only win for Webb, the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, against the Rockies this year after going 0-3 with a 6.47 ERA in five prior starts. The right-hander had problems with Colorado hitters, particularly Brad Hawpe, who went 9-for-15 with three homers and 11 RBIs against him in 2007 while Holliday was 6-for-19 (.316). Webb showed few nerves in his first postseason start, yielding one run and four hits over seven innings in a 3-1 win over Chicago last Wednesday.

Francis (1-0, 3.00) will get another chance to face Webb after yielding four runs and seven hits over six innings in the Sept. 28 loss. The left-hander is 4-0 with a 3.24 ERA in seven lifetime starts at Chase Field and scattered five hits in seven innings of a 2-0 victory there May 23. Francis has limited Byrnes to four hits in 21 at-bats (.190) in his career, but Reynolds went 4-for-6 against him.

The Colorado ace won Game 1 of the Philadelphia series by allowing two runs and striking out eight over six innings in a 4-2 victory last Wednesday.

Arizona closer Jose Valverde had seven of his major league-leading 47 saves against Colorado this season. Valverde closed out each victory of the division series with a scoreless inning, conceding just one hit overall.

Take the D’Backs tonight and win.

Good luck with your action tonight!


by Johnson