National League Division Series
Colorado Rockies (92-70) v. Philadelphia Phillies (93-69)
A lot has yet to be determined for both the Philadelphia Phillies and the Colorado Rockies in terms of their rotations. Injuries and a surplus of starters will play a factor for both teams' choices in who they start in each game. In analyzing both rotations, the Phillies will have a clear advantage in starting pitching, as their lefty-heavy rotation matches up well against the Rockies. Meanwhile, if Jorge De La Rosa cannot go early on, the Rockies will throw all righties against the Phillies, in a very advantageous matchup. As the old saying goes, hitting wins games but pitching wins championships. Let's take a look at the rotation probables.
Potential Starters: Colorado Rockies
Ubaldo Jimenez, RHP - Ubaldo Jimenez is clearly the ace of the Colorado Rockies and will almost certainly start the first game and potentially the fourth or fifth games if necessary. Jimenez is a 25-year old, hard-throwing righty who came into his own in 2009. He had a career-high 15 wins and is a strikeout pitcher with 198 in what was his fourth season as a pro. Jimenez did rack up 218.0 innings this season, his highest total by far, so fatigue may play a role in his game.
Aaron Cook, RHP - Aaron Cook is a crafty righty veteran for the Colorado Rockies and was enjoying a solid season before hitting the disabled list with a shoulder strain. He recently returned after a month absence and has looked very good in two starts since then. The 30-year old reached double-digit wins for the second consecutive season with 11 in 2009. He pitches to contact and is hittable, but he induces a lot of ground balls and can work with baserunners. Cook has also only logged 158.0 innings this year, due to the injury, so he will be fresh.
Jason Marquis, RHP - Jason Marquis is a 31-year old veteran who had a tremendous bounce-back season in his first with the Rockies. He probably has the most post season experience of the Rockies starters and was a National League All-Star this season. The righty logged a lot of innings this year with 220.0 and does not strike out a lot of hitters. However, he knows how to win as he tallied his sixth consecutive double-digit wins season with 15 for the Rockies in 2009. Marquis did seem to wear down as the season concluded, though.
Jorge De La Rosa, LHP - Jorge De La Rosa is the Rockies' best left-handed starter, but was injured in his last outing. The extend of De La Rosa's groin strain is unknown, but he will likely be unavailable before game three. De La Rosa was enjoying his best season as a pro this year, racking up 16 wins in 185.0 innings. The 28-year old lefty has poor numbers in his career against the Phillies, though. He is a strikeout pitcher and limits baserunners very well, so he has the potential to shut down opponents.
Other Candidates - Jose Contreras, RHP, Jason Hammel, RHP
Potential Starters: Philadelphia Phillies
Cole Hamels, LHP - Cole Hamels struggled through a hangover season from 2008, in which he battled injuries and inconsistency all year long. Still, he is the Phillies' starter with the most playoff pedigree and was able to win 10 games. In 2009, Hamels' innings were down to 193.2 and his strikeout numbers were also down, though he has the ability to miss bats. Hamels' achilles heel has always been the long ball, so if he can keep the ball in the park, the 25-year old is very tough. Hamels will likely be the Phillies' first or second starter.
Cliff Lee, LHP - Cliff Lee was a mid-season acquisition for the Phillies and he didn't disappoint. Since the Phillies acquired him, the 31-year old lefty won seven games and struck out nearly a batter per inning. Overall, Lee is a pitcher that can dominate and go deep into games, which will help the Phillies' bullpen. He tossed 231.2 innings, marking his fourth 200-inning campaign in the last six seasons. Still, Lee has no post season experience and has not proven whether he is a big-game pitcher or not. He will have the opportunity this year as the Phillies' first or second starter.
Pedro Martinez, RHP - Pedro Martinez was another late-season acqusition for the Phillies, as they signed the free agent to finish the 2009 season with them. Martinez has shown signs of his former self, now that he is healthy. And not having pitched the first half of the season means he is fresh for the playoffs, with only 44.2 innings. Most importantly, the 37-year old veteran righty has a lot of post season experience and is known as a clutch performer. While it has not been determined if and when Pedro will start, he still has the ability to miss bats and shut down an opponent.
J.A. Happ, LHP - Jay Happ is the Phillies' rookie phenom that has been the surprise anchor of the rotation. The 26-year old lefty is a consistent performer, despite not having overpowering stuff. In his first full season as a starter, Happ racked up a dozen wins and logged 168.0 innings pitched. Happ is sneaky with his pitches and can miss bats at times, though he typically pitches to contact. Given his success this season, especially in a complete game shutout of the Rockies, it would be hard to imagine Happ not getting a start in the third or fourth game of the series.
Other Candidates - Joe Blanton, RHP, Kyle Kendrick, RHP
Pitching Primer: Colorado Rockies
Ubaldo Jimenez: (15-12) 33 G, 218.0 IP, 3.47 ERA, 198 K, 13 HR
2009 Home Splits: (8-5) 15 G, 102.1 IP, 3.34 ERA, 86 K, 7 HR
2009 Road Splits: (7-7) 18 G, 115.2 IP, 3.58 ERA, 112 K, 6 HR
2009 vs. Phillies: n/a
Postseason Career: (0-1) 3 G, 16.0 IP, 2.25 ERA, 13 K, 1 HR
Career vs. PHI: 45 PA, .368 BA, .432 OBP, .579 SLG, 2 HR, 5 K
Aaron Cook: (11-6) 27 G, 158.0 IP, 4.16 ERA, 78 K, 19 HR
2009 Home Splits: (5-2) 13 G, 78.0 IP, 4.04 ERA, 31 K, 6 HR
2009 Road Splits: (6-4) 14 G, 80.0 IP, 4.28 ERA, 47 K, 13 HR
2009 vs. Phillies: (0-1) 2 G, 11.0 IP, 4.91 ERA, 2 K, 1 HR
Postseason Career: (0-1) 1 G, 6.0 IP, 4.50 ERA, 2 K, 1 HR
Career vs. PHI: 167 PA, .310 BA, .327 OBP, .449 SLG, 4 HR, 13 K
Jason Marquis: (15-13) 33 G, 216.0 IP, 4.04 ERA, 115 K, 15 HR
2009 Home Splits: (7-6) 16 G, 105.2 IP, 3.92 ERA, 59 K, 5 HR
2009 Road Splits: (8-7) 17 G, 110.1 IP, 4.16 ERA, 56 K, 10 HR
2009 vs. Phillies: (1-0) 1 G, 7.0 IP, 2.57 ERA, 2 K, 0 HR
Postseason Career: (0-2) 10 G, 22.2 IP, 4.76 ERA, 14 K, 6 HR
Career vs. PHI: 165 PA, .245 BA, .331 OBP, .336 SLG, 2 HR, 21 K
Jorge De La Rosa: (16-9) 33 G, 185.0 IP, 4.38 ERA, 193 K, 20 HR
2009 Home Splits: (10-6) 19 G, 103.2 IP, 5.21 ERA, 110 K, 12 HR
2009 Road Splits: (6-3) 14 G, 81.1 IP, 3.32 ERA, 83 K, 8 HR
2009 vs. Phillies: (0-2) 2 G, 9.2 IP, 11.17 ERA, 6 K, 3 HR
Postseason Career: n/a
Career vs. PHI: 89 PA, .338 BA, .402 OBP, .688 SLG, 6 HR, 15 K
Pitching Primer: Philadelphia Phillies
Cole Hamels: (10-11) 32 G, 193.2 IP, 4.32 ERA, 168 K, 24 HR
2009 Home Splits: (7-5) 17 G, 105.1 IP, 3.76 ERA, 103 K, 14 HR
2009 Road Splits: (3-6) 15 G, 88.1 IP, 4.99 ERA, 65 K, 10 HR
2009 vs. Rockies: (0-1) 1 G, 3.2 IP, 17.18 ERA, 1 K, 1 HR
Postseason Career: (4-1) 6 G, 41.2 IP, 2.16 ERA, 37 K, 2 HR
Career vs. COL: 37 PA, .424 BA, .472 OBP, .697 SLG, 1 HR, 9 K
Cliff Lee: (14-13) 34 G, 231.2 IP, 3.22 ERA, 181 K, 17 HR
2009 Home Splits: (6-8) 16 G, 110.2 IP, 2.85 ERA, 96 K, 7 HR
2009 Road Splits: (8-5) 18 G, 121.0 IP, 3.57 ERA, 85 K, 10 HR
2009 vs. Rockies: (1-0) 1 G, 7.0 IP, 1.29 ERA, 9 K, 0 HR
Postseason Career: n/a
Career vs. COL: 48 PA, .233 BA, .271 OBP, .349 SLG, 1 HR, 14 K
Pedro Martinez: (5-1) 9 G, 44.2 IP, 3.63 ERA, 37 K, 7 HR
2009 Home Splits: (2-0) 5 G, 24.0 IP, 1.88 ERA, 22 K, 4 HR
2009 Road Splits: (3-1) 4 G, 20.2 IP, 5.66 ERA, 15 K, 3 HR
2009 vs. Rockies: n/a
Postseason Career: (6-2) 13 G, 79.1 IP, 3.40 ERA, 80 K, 7 HR
Career vs. COL: 80 PA, .203 BA, .313 OBP, .362 SLG, 3 HR, 21 K
J.A. Happ: (12-4) 35 G, 166.0 IP, 2.93 ERA, 119 K, 20 HR
2009 Home Splits: (5-2) 17 G, 71.0 IP, 4.18 ERA, 61 K, 11 HR
2009 Road Splits: (7-2) 18 G, 95.0 IP, 1.99 ERA, 58 K, 9 HR
2009 vs. Rockies: (1-0) 2 G, 11.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 11 K, 0 HR
Postseason Career: (0-0) 1 G, 3.0 IP, 3.00 ERA, 2 K, 0 HR
Career vs. COL: 39 PA, .139 BA, .184 OBP, .222 SLG, 0 HR, 11 K
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