Colorado Rockies (25-29) AT Los Angeles Dodgers (26-30)
June 1st, 2011 at 10:10 PM EST
Opening Moneyline:  COL -125; LAD +105
Current Moneyline:  COL -120; LAD +100
Opening Total:  7
Current Total: 7

SP:  COL- Ubaldo Jimenez; LAD- Jon Garland

Things are not going well for the Rockies after a pretty decent start.  After going 23-19 to start the season, they have won just 2 of their last 12 games and have fallen four games below .500, putting their playoff chances in peril, if such a thing can be said at this early juncture of hte season.  It won’t help having Ubaldo Jimenez on the mound, as he has struggled badly against the Dodgers throughout his career.

It’s been a rough fight for Jimenez.  At this point last year he was 10-1 and had a 0.78 ERA, as he eventually finished third in the NL Cy Young Voting.  This season, things have not been as rosy.  Jimenez’ ERA is north of five (5.86 for good measure) and he has yet to record his first win.  Friday night against the Cardinals, he gave up 6 runs as the Rockies dropped the game 10-3.

Jimenez is trying to put his struggles out of his mind and just stay focused on doing what he does best:

“I don’t even want to think about it, but it’s hard, especially the kind of year that I had last year. But there’s nothing I can do,” Jimenez said. “The only thing I can do is get ready for my next start. I’m not going to be looking back … I just want to keep working and hopefully for my next start give my team a chance to win.”

To be fair, he hasn’t received the run support, but it’s asking a lot of the offense to produce six or more runs a game.  The Rockies scored just once last night as the Dodgers reeled off seven.

Rockies first baseman Todd Helton had a big game, getting three hits, though he did leave two on base.  Ty Wigginton homered, but he also struck out twice.  The Rockies hit 1 for 15 in scoring position, so their execution is going to have to improve significantly.

Both Andre Ethier and James Loney had three RBIs for the Dodgers.  Loney went 3 of 4 and hit a home run to boot.  Either is now hitting .330 on the season.  Chad Billingsley recorded the win, giving up only 1 run in 7 innings in a quality start to bring his record to 4-4.

Jon Garland is 2-2 with a 3.45 ERA against the Rockies in his career.  He earned the win for a 7-6 victory as a member of the Padres on September 14th.  Carlos Gonzalez has been a spur in his heel, as he has gone 11 of 18 with 7 doubles.  Matt Kemp has also experienced success, having hit 11 of 32 against the right handed Garland.

Some betting trends:

The total has gone OVER in 4 of the Rockies’ last 5 games and they are 1-7 SU In their last 8 games .  The Rockies are 0-5 SU in their last 5 on the road and they are 2-6 SU in their last 8 against the Dodgers.  The total has gone OVER in 5 of the Rockies’ last 6 games against the Dodgers.  The total has also gone OVER in all 5 of the last 5 road games against the Dodgers.  The Rockies are 6-15 SU in their last 21 road games against the Dodgers.

The total has gone OVER In 8 of the Dodgers’ last 11 games and they are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games.  The Dodgers are 4-1 SU in their last 5 at home, as well, while they are 6-2 SU in their last 8 against the Colorado Rockies.  The total has gone OVER In 5 of the last 6 games against the Rockies and it has also gone OVER in all 5 of the last 5 home games against the Rockies.  The Dodgers are 15-6 SU in their last 21 at home against the Rockies.

As bad as the Rockies have been, it’s difficult to imagine them as favorites, yet they are.  They’re going to have to provide Jimenez with a lot of run support to win this one, and the total is set low at 7.