Dave Cokin
Friday Bonus Play 8:40 PM MLB
(911) PITTSBURGH PIRATES at (912) COLORADO ROCKIES
Take: (912) COLORADO ROCKIES +110
I can’t recall the last time I bet on the Rockies to win a baseball game. I can state with certainly it’s been at least two months, although I’ve definitely made a number of anti-Rockies wagers in that time span. But I’m going to take my chances with this last place entry tonight in a game that I believe sets up well for them.
The key here is Brett Anderson, and the impression he left with me on the eye test in his most recent start. I pay quite a bit of attention to dips in velocity and normally want to go against those pitchers seeing a substantial decline. That’s the case with Anderson presently, and in fact I’ve made two successful plays against the lefty since he came off the disabled list.
But off what I’ve seen of Anderson, I was fortunate to get those two winners. He got bombed by the Twins in the opening inning of his first start off the DL, but settled down after that and actually pitched much better than his line might have indicated. Anderson was even better last time out in a stellar seven inning effort against the Pirates. The Bucs eventually won that game, but they did very little against Anderson. If he’s locating his arsenal like he was in that most recent start, I would expect this to be a tough night for the Pirates hitters, even in the hitter’s haven known as Coors Field.
Charlie Morton will throw for the Bucs tonight. Morton has been very tough, but is still prone to the occasional big inning. I also don’t like the way his stuff figures to play out at Coors. Morton has made two career starts here, and while his overall lines weren’t terrible, one thing really caught my eye. Morton is a pitcher who thrives and survives getting ground balls. But in those two starts at Coors, his ground ball percentage was way below its norm. That’s a red flag for me, as when Morton doesn’t get grounders, he also doesn’t get wins as a rule.
The downside here is that the Rockies are a bad baseball team with an awful bullpen. Plus, the Pirates have demolished losing teams all season. But I really liked what I saw from Anderson and want to try him here. I also don’t mind the fact that it’s a lock that the Pirates will be a very popular public side tonight, while I’m of the belief the pro dough is going to show on the home dog. You won’t see me on this bad baseball team often, but tonight I’ll be taking my chances with the Rockies in the role of home dog.