The Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies are in last place in their respective divisions, but neither team has been playing like a cellar dweller recently.
Cincinnati has won six of its past nine games, which includes a sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers and taking two of three from the Chicago Cubs. Colorado has series wins against the Texas Rangers, Cleveland Guardians and Philadelphia Phillies.
After taking on top clubs, the Reds and Rockies square off Monday night in the start of a three-game series in Colorado.
Cincinnati will send lefty Andrew Abbott (3-5, 3.29 ERA) against Rockies right-hander Ryan Feltner (1-4, 5.46) in the opener.
The Reds are coming off a 5-2 win against the Cubs on Sunday and have a little more momentum. They got key performances from Jake Fraley, who had three hits, and TJ Friedl, who had a three-run home run.
Fraley said there’s no secret to why the team is starting to play well.
“We’re getting timely hits, and when we’re getting guys in scoring position, we’re turning the corner to get them in,” he said.
Friedl’s homer was his first since recovering from two injuries. He started the year on the injured list with a broken right wrist, made his season debut May 7 and played six games before sustaining a fractured thumb. He missed 15 games before returning Wednesday.
“Home runs are great and home runs are going to come, but they’re going to come with timing and everything lining up with your swing,” he said.
Playing in the thin air might help him the next three days, but it’s not great for pitchers. Abbott will find out when he makes his first start in Denver and his second overall outing against the Rockies.
He got a no-decision in his only other start against them when he allowed three runs in six innings on June 21, 2023.
Feltner has never faced Cincinnati and will try to get his first win since beating the Toronto Blue Jays on April 12. He has five no-decisions and three losses since then.
Similar to the Reds, Colorado had won six of nine, but lost its past two to the host Los Angeles Dodgers. The Rockies won the opener and had a chance to win yet another series, but their offense went dormant.
“We played well Friday — that was a good win; we got four runs — and Saturday and Sunday we got just the one run,” Colorado manager Bud Black said after Sunday’s 4-0 loss. “We’ve got to score. We’ve scored five runs in three games; that’s not going to cut it.”
Sunday was the seventh time this season Colorado has been shut out but the first time since May 7 against the San Francisco Giants. The Rockies went on a seven-game winning streak soon after that 5-0 loss, and Sunday marked the first time since May 21 that they lost consecutive games.
–Field Level Media
