The Philadelphia Phillies and the Colorado Rockies will have a chance to make up for a May rain delay on Thursday night at Coors Field. Philadelphia currently leads Colorado by 5.5 games for the NL Wild Card.
The Rockies are listed as slight favorites at -130 on the MLB line while the run total sits at 9.
As August drew to a close, the Colorado Rockies (69-63, 43-21 home) won seven of eight games to stay within striking distance of the fourth and final playoff spot. They proceeded to lose their next two games, however, and now face the prospect of a three-game losing streak.
The Rockies have played very well at home this season. They have won 12 of their last 15 home games and average 2.3 more runs per game at home than on the road.
The Philadelphia Phillies (75-58, 33-32 away) have proven over the past month that they are a quality road team. They take an 11-2 road record since the start of August into Thursday’s game.
The Phillies have owned the Rockies in recent years. They beat the Rockies three games to one in the 2009 NLDS and own a 17-4 record against them since the start of 2008. For the season, Philadelphia has won five of the six games in which the two teams have faced each other. Thursday night’s game will be the last regular season matchup between the two.
Joe Blanton (6-6, 5.15 ERA) will start for the Phillies and Jhoulys Chacin (7-9, 3.79 ERA) will start for the Rockies. Both pitchers are right handed and are coming off of starts in which they gave up one earned run in winning efforts. Blanton is 3-0 with a 3.27 ERA in his last seven starts against Colorado. Chacin has recovered nicely from a rehab stint by winning two straight starts since being recalled on August 16.
