Colorado Rockies

This offseason the Rockies acquired Jason Marquis for Luis Vizcaino from the Chicago Cubs. It was a move that the Rockies made in an effort to provide quality depth in the starting rotation.

Marquis was on the outs in Chicago. Cubs fans were down on Marquis after rumors that he did not get along well with manager Lou Piniella, especially after being left off of the NLDS roster.

Sometimes you don't know what you have until it's gone.Marquis has won no less than 11 games in the last five seasons.

The Colorado Rockies have been struggling.  In case you haven't been watching baseball, they've lost 10 of their last 12.  However, as deceiving as that stat may be, their last three games they've lost by a combined four runs. 

The Rockies, who started 3-1, have been disappointing this season.  After being swept by the Dodgers earlier this season, and losing their first two in their latest series, it looked as if the Rockies were going to get swept by Los Angeles again.

The Colorado Rockies finally got home after a miserable 10-day, eight-game road trip in which the team only won two games.

They have been home for only four days since the beginning of Spring Training on Feb. 14.

After 14 games, the Colorado Rockies' record sits at 5-9, and they're last in the NL West. The mark doesn't really surprise me, all things considered (I predicted them at 6-8 after their opening stretch), but how they have gotten there does.

Starting pitchers Aaron Cook and Ubaldo Jimenez, counted on to anchor the rotation, have ERAs of 10.22 and 6.00, respectively, through three starts apiece. Cook has lasted just 12.1 innings and allowed 22 hits and five homeruns; Jimenez has 16 strikeouts in his 15 innings, but also 13 walks.

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Colorado Rockies
Free Pick: Colorado Rockies (-110)
Friday, April 24, 2009, 9:10 p.m. ET—Baseball Odds
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What's wrong with the Colorado Rockies?  They started out the season 4-4, but are currently 5-9. They lost five of their last six, and eight of their last 10 games. 

So what's the problem? 

It's not necessarily hitting—the Rockies are ranked seventh in the NL in runs scored.

Fielding? Not exactly. The Rockies have committed just eight errors on the year, seventh in the NL.

One area you can point to is pitching. The Rockies' 5.84 ERA is ranked 14th in the NL, and the Rockies' opponent's batting average is .307, last in the NL.

There is a new ballpark from which balls are flying out at a record pace. Home runs are jumping off the bats of both the home team and its opponents, much more so than in the team's road games, begging the question of whether this new park is going to play like Coors Field. Or at least, like Coors Field used to play.

I'm talking, of course, about Chase Field in Arizona.

The Los Angeles Dodgers began their first homestand by rolling over the San Francisco Giants.

Not much changed when the Colorado Rockies came into town.

The Dodgers completed their sweep of the Rockies on Sunday with a 14-2 win, including a seven-run fifth inning led by Matt Kemp's grand slam to right field. Kemp would add a solo homer in the eighth inning to give the Dodgers their fourth multi-homer game this week and third in three days.

Andre Ethier and Orlando Hudson also each drove in three runs for Los Angeles.

I'm looking for something good to say about the three-game set the Colorado Rockies just completed at Chavez Ravine with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The only thing that comes to mind is this: I'm glad it's over.

Kurt Russell wasn't as happy to escape from L.A. back in 1996 as Clint Hurdle is today.

I can see only two bright spots from the entire series: Jorge De la Rosa's encouraging start on Friday when he found a way to pitch himself out of a number of jams, and Rockies' hitters swatting four home runs in the series.