The Colorado Rockies take on the San Francisco Giants. Check out our MLB odds series for our Rockies Giants prediction and pick.
Jose Urena gets the ball for the Rockies, while no starting pitcher has been announced for the Giants four hours before the scheduled first pitch.
Jose Urena has had a weird year. He began the season with the Milwaukee Brewers but was acquired by the Rockies, who threw him into the starting rotation in July. Urena’s first three starts were excellent. He had a 2.05 ERA for the year after those three outings. Then, in a series of nine starts from July 23 through September 4, Urena plummeted. He pitched 43 2/3 innings in those nine starts, which should tell you something right there: He averaged under five innings per start, which means he was getting hit hard most of the times he took the mound. Urena allowed 41 earned runs in those 43 2/3 innings, an ERA of nearly nine runs. Naturally, as the month of September arrived, it seemed logical and wise to bet against Urena and the Rockies, but guess what? In his last three starts, Urena has straightened things out. He has found solutions. From Sept. 10-22, Urena has made three starts in which he has pitched 17 innings and allowed only four runs. That’s an ERA just over two runs. Which version of Jose Urena are we going to see in this game? That’s the big question.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Rockies-Giants MLB odds.
MLB Odds: Rockies-Giants Odds
Colorado Rockies: +1.5 (-144)
San Francisco Giants: -1.5 (+120)
Over: 8.5 (-102)
Under: 8.5 (-120)
Why The Rockies Could Cover the Spread
The Rockies don’t know which pitcher they are going to face in this game, but they do know which pitchers they won’t face: not Logan Webb, who beat them on Tuesday night; not Carlos Rodon, who pitches later this week for the Giants; not Alex Cobb, another pitcher who has performed really well for San Francisco in the second half of this season. It would seem that the Giants are going to go to a bullpen game, which — given the substandard performance of their bullpen in 2022 — should be seen as a good thing for the Rockies. Colorado began this season with a long losing streak against the Giants. The Rockies were able to not only put a halt to that streak, but win their fair share of games against San Francisco in the middle portion of this season. After being outclassed on Tuesday by Logan Webb, a really good pitcher, the Rockies are in a good bounce-back spot against the vulnerable San Francisco bullpen.
Why The Giants Could Cover the Spread
The Giants have had a miserable season, and while it’s true that late-season games for teams eliminated from the playoffs don’t have a whole lot of urgency in general, the Giants might be an exception. For one thing, guys want to play for 2023 roster spots. That’s very important. Second, the veterans on this team know how much of a disappointment the 2022 campaign has been. They want to build back for 2023 and re-establish the right tone and culture in the clubhouse. Third, the Giants are only two games below .500. They have played well in the past week, and being able to get to or eclipse the .500 mark is a significant, tangible goal at the end of the season. The Giants have reason to play well even though they know they won’t be part of the postseason.
Final Rockies-Giants Prediction & Pick
You should not want to get anywhere near this game, especially without knowing who the Giants will throw. This is probably a bullpen game for San Francisco, but you don’t know how the Giants will sequence their pitchers. Just stay away. If you want to make a pick, go with San Francisco, since the Giants are playing well at the moment.
Final Rockies-Giants Prediction & Pick: Giants -1.5
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