Giants at Rockies
The Colorado Rockies continue their nine-game homestand against National League West rivals when they meet the San Francisco Giants for three games beginning Tuesday. Colorado was on the verge of being swept by Arizona before erasing a four-run deficit with five in the eighth inning of Sunday's 8-7 victory but Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado put the win in perspective.
“As a group, we need to get better together and we need to start winning some series,” Arenado told reporters about Colorado, which is 3-5 in its last eight games. “This was a great win. It would have really been bad to get swept like that, but we did lose a series.” San Francisco settled for a split of a four-game set in Cincinnati with a 12-4 loss Monday and turns its attention to figuring out to win in its personal house of horrors. The Giants have lost six straight games at Coors Field and are 2-17 in Denver since 2019, winning one game in each of the last two seasons. San Francisco's Madison Bumgarner takes the ball Tuesday as he tries for his second victory over the Rockies this season and opposes Antonio Senzatela, who has never lost to the Giants.
TV: 8:40 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Bay Area (San Francisco), AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Colorado)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Giants LH Madison Bumgarner (1-4, 3.92 ERA) vs. Rockies RH Antonio Senzatela (2-1, 4.03)
Bumgarner recorded 18 swinging strikes - his most since Sept. 19, 2016 - while allowing one run and four hits with eight strikeouts in six innings of San Francisco's 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday. The 29-year-old North Carolina native yielded nine runs and 17 hits in 11 2/3 frames over his previous two starts in losses to the New York Yankees and at Pittsburgh. Arenado (.224, two home runs in 49 at-bats) and Charlie Blackmon (.364 in 33 at-bats) have plenty of experience against Bumgarner, who is 14-8 with a 3.03 ERA in 31 starts versus Colorado - 5-6, 4.32 in 15 turns at Coors Field - after permitting two runs in seven innings of a 5-2 home victory April 13.
Senzatela received his first no-decision of the season when he allowed two runs, four hits (one homer) and three walks in four innings of Colorado's 11-4 victory at Milwaukee on Wednesday. The 24-year-old Venezuelan makes his second home start of 2019 after allowing four runs in six innings of an 8-5 loss to Philadelphia on April 20. The Giants' Joe Panik is 8-for-18 with two solo home runs versus Senzatela, who is 5-0 with a 3.35 ERA in eight games (six starts) against San Francisco.
WALK-OFFS
1. Giants 3B Evan Longoria (.223) has missed the last three games with a shoulder injury.
2. Senzatela's season debut came April 15, one day after Colorado avoided a four-game sweep with a 4-0 victory at San Francisco.
3. Giants LHP Will Smith (1-0, 3.29 ERA) is 9-for-9 in save opportunities this season, allowing only one run in those nine innings.