On Monday, Labor Day is celebrated in the United States, and we also celebrate being one day closer to playoff baseball. Monday also kicks off a three-game series between the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers. One of these teams will make the playoffs and is one of the best teams in the league, while the other can’t wait for the season to be over. Looking at the records, it’s not hard to tell who is who.
The Dodgers have the second-most wins in the majors and easily the most in the National League. As of right now, it seems like LA has a cakewalk to the Fall Classic yet again. On the other hand, the Rockies are one of the worst teams in the league. Just a year removed from a 91-win season, they’ve plummeted to a 59-79 record this year.
Probable Pitchers
For the Rockies, Peter Lambert will get the start for the 16th time this season. Lambert has had a pretty bad season, which is no surprise after his super mediocre Triple-A career. In 22 career Triple-A starts, he was 2-7 with an ERA over 5. It has gotten even worse for him in the majors, where he is 2-5 with a 6.63 earned run average.
Lambert has pitched against Los Angeles twice this season, both in June. Neither start went particularly well for him, putting up an ERA over 7 in only nine total innings. He did escape with a no-decision in each start even though the Rockies lost both games. In his most recent start, Lambert gave up five runs in just over four innings and received the loss in a 7-4 setback to the Red Sox.
Walker Buehler will get the start for Los Angeles for the 26th time this season. Buehler has been having another sparkling season once again. The 25-year-old is 11-3 with a 3.03 ERA. While the ERA is a bit higher than his 2018 mark of 2.62, every other important number is better. His K/9 is up, his BB/9 is lower, and his HR/FB% is virtually the same.
Buehler is currently riding a shutout streak in his last two starts. Against the Blue Jays and the Padres, he didn’t give up a run in 13 combined innings. An interesting note about Buehler’s season; he has five double-digit strikeout starts already this season. In all of 2018, he only had one. Somehow, he’s still getting better.
Batters To Watch
This series features two of the best hitters and brightest stars in the league in Nolan Arenado and Cody Bellinger. While it’s not on the level of Bellinger’s, Arenado is still having a terrific season. He’s batting .311 with 35 home runs and 105 RBI. And, Arenado is coming off his best month in terms of home runs, hitting 12 in August.
Bellinger, on the other hand, is the front runner for NL MVP. He’s having one of the craziest years we have ever seen, batting .310 with 43 homers and 102 RBI. The eye-popping stat for Bellinger is his wRC+ that stands at a whopping 167.
The Pick
Lambert hasn’t recorded a win since June 11. That isn’t going to change here. Take the Dodgers.
