Rox vs Dodgers Game 3

[Durango53]

GAME: Colorado Rockies (6-15) at Los Angeles Dodgers (15-8).

TIME: Sunday, 4:10 p.m. EDT.

Derek Lowe knows he needs to be almost perfect to get the job done.

"I'm not an overpowering pitcher, and if you leave the ball out over the plate and make mistakes, they'll make you pay for it," the veteran right-hander said.

Lowe will try to rebound from his first loss in four starts when the Los Angeles Dodgers complete their three-game series with the slumping Colorado Rockies.

Signed as a free agent this past offseason after helping Boston to its first World Series title since 1918, Lowe has lived up to expectations in the early going, posting a staff-leading 2.04 ERA.

Lowe had yielded two runs or fewer in each of his first four outings before giving up season highs of four runs and 10 hits over seven innings in Monday's 4-2 defeat to Arizona - his first loss since a 4-2 setback at San Francisco on opening day.

"The biggest thing tonight was poor location," said Lowe, who walked one and struck out a season-high seven.

The Dodgers had lost six of seven before taking the first two games from the Rockies, who have dropped four straight.

On Saturday, Brad Penny pitched six scoreless innings and rookie Jason Repko belted a three-run homer as Los Angeles rolled to a 6-2 victory.


Rookie Brad Hawpe had three hits, including a homer, and both RBIs for the Rockies, who concluded the worst April in the franchise's 13-year history, and have won only two of their last 20 regular-season road games.

The Rockies are 1-9 on the road this year.

[Durango53]

The Rockies will be getting up bright and early on May Day to prepare for an afternoon tilt against the host Dodgers.

Shawn Chacon beat the Dodgers at Coors Field in his last start and will try to duplicate his success in Los Angeles. He'll start against Derek Lowe, who's only allowed eight earned runs in five starts this season but has only one win to show for it.

Joe Kennedy (1-3) gave up five runs in the fifth inning and the Rockies lost to the Dodgers Saturday, 6-2. Rockies right fielder Brad Hawpe was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, including a solo home run.

[Durango53]

STANDINGS: Rockies - 5th place, 8 GB, NL West. Dodgers - 1st place, NL West.

[Durango53]

ROCKIES PROBABLE STARTER: Shawn Chacon (1-0, 3.18 ERA). Chacon is coming off his first win in three starts as he allowed four runs and seven hits over five innings in an 8-6 victory over the Dodgers at Coors Field on April 23. The right-hander struck out two and walked four. Chacon had failed to receive a decision in his first two starts despite yielding just one run over six innings in both outings. He is 3-5 with a 5.72 ERA in 15 career appearances, including nine starts, against the Dodgers.

COL: RHP Shawn Chaconhttp://colorado.rockies.mlb.com/images/gameday/mugshots/276336.jpg
• 1-0, 3.18 ERA in 2005
• 1-0, 7.20 ERA vs. LAD in 2005

LAD: RHP Derek Lowehttp://colorado.rockies.mlb.com/images/gameday/mugshots/117955.jpg
• 1-2, 2.04 ERA in 2005
• 1-0, 0.00 ERA vs. COL in 2004

DODGERS PROBABLE STARTER: Lowe (1-2, 2.04 ERA). Lowe is 2-0 with a 4.30 ERA in three career starts against the Rockies. He is 1-1 with a 2.25 ERA in two starts at Dodger Stadium this season.

[Durango53]

OFFENSIVE LEADERS: Rockies - Clint Barmes, .410 avg. and 20 runs; Barmes and Preston Wilson, 4 HRs; Wilson, 14 RBIs; Barmes, Matt Holliday and Wilson, 2 SBs. Dodgers - Jeff Kent and Cesar Izturis, .333 avg.; Kent, 6 HRs, 18 RBIs and 23 runs; Kent, Jose Valentin and Repko, 2 SBs.

[Durango53]

SEASON SERIES: Dodgers, 3-2.

[Durango53]

STREAKS AND NOTES: Rockies - 1B Todd Helton finished April hitting .267, ending his streak of 14 consecutive months batting .300 or better. ... SS Barmes is only the third rookie in history with a minimum of 50 plate appearances to bat .400 or better through the end of April. Willie Randolph did it with the 1976 New York Yankees and Andres Galarraga accomplished the feat with the 1986 Montreal Expos. ... INF Desi Relaford is 5-for-12 (.417) with two homers and seven RBIs in his career against RHP Lowe. Dodgers - RHP Yhency Brazoban, filling in for injured closer Eric Gagne, has converted seven of eight save chances. ... The Dodgers have been no-hit through the first four innings in each of the first two games of this series. ... The Dodgers have scored the most runs in the NL (126) and the Rockies have allowed the most runs (137).

[Durango53]

ROAD/HOME RECORDS: Rockies - 1-9 on the road. Dodgers - 7-3 at home.

[Durango53]

Player to watch
Utilityman Desi Relaford is 5-for-12 (.417) lifetime against Lowe with a double, two homers, seven RBIs and three walks. Relaford's .287 career average in April is his best of any month. His .362 on-base percentage and .417 slugging average in April are also monthly bests.

[Durango53]

Quotable:
"I don't know if he hit a wall, he just didn't make good pitches." -- manager Clint Hurdle on Kennedy's fifth inning Saturday

[Durango53]

Quick hits
The Rockies' six wins in April are a new franchise-low. The club went 7-22 in both 1993 and 2000 and 7-19 in 2001. ... The Rockies were 1-9 on the road in April, matching July 1998 (1-10) as the worst road months in team history. ... Kennedy lost to the Dodgers for the first time ever and is now 3-1 against them with a 2.76 ERA.

[Durango53]

On television
• COL: UPN 20
• LAD: FSN West 2

On radio
• COL: KOA 850 AM; KMXA 1090 AM (Español)
• LAD: KFWB 980 AM; KWKW 1330 AM (Español)

[Durango53]

Side note also. In Todds last AB last night he was hit by the pitch. The pitcher was trying back Todd off the plate but that is the problem I see. There is no one to back him up. It will be intresting to see if any pitcher backs up Todd today. I am feeling sorry for such a great player to be on such a bad team........ :(

[yagsy]

See this is what I was afraid of with Helton. He's crowding the plate more because he needs to protect the outside part of the plate. The next thing you'll see is him lunging for pitches to hit. I hope that maybe a guy like Holliday can start stepping into the role of backing up Helton.

[Durango53]

I dont think Helton will lung for a ball. He is just to good of a hitter. He has been in the top few players in walks for the past years and I see him up there again this year.

Preston can back Helton up we seen that two years ago but there is nothing after Preston and that is what teams are doing...