Jorge De La Rosa (8-7, 5.07) vs. A.J. Cole (0-1, 5.14) – 1:05 p.m, MASN2
De La Rosa picked up the win in his last start against the Cubs on August 21. He went eight innings, gave up two runs (both solo home runs) on four hits, struck out six, and walked one on 106 pitches.
Since the All-Star Break, De La Rosa does have a 4.18 ERA, but he is 3-1 over the course of eight starts. Plus, he has had a quality start in four of his last six outings. One of the keys for him has been the groundball outs when you consider he has 10+ groundball outs in three of his last four outings.
Against the Washington Nationals on August 15, De La Rosa went six innings, gave up four runs on six hits, struck out four, and walked four in a no-decision. He is 5-2 with a 3.92 ERA in 11 starts against the Nats (3-0, 4.70 in four starts at Nats Park). Jayson Werth is 7-for-19 against De La Rosa with two home runs and six RBI’s.
Tomorrow, Cole will be making his second start in place of Stephen Strasburg. Against the Orioles on August 22, the 24-year-old right-hander went seven innings, gave up four runs on five hits, struck out eight, and walked two on 108 pitches in a loss.
Cole had a good final five starts at triple-A Syracuse (2.80 ERA in his last five starts). While he gave up a couple of home runs, he did a good job of keeping the Nats in the ball game and giving them seven innings, which gave most of the bullpen a night off. He will be making his first start against the Rockies.
Prediction: De La Rosa has shown some consistency lately for the Rockies, but he also has struggled on the road this year (5.40 ERA). If the Nats can have success with the long ball on a hot afternoon, I think they do enough to get Cole his first Major League win.
Next: Sunday's Matchup