The Hardball Times: Why the Rockies lost to the Phillies

Before this series began last week, I wrote about what the Rockies needed to do to beat the Phillies in the NLDS. Upon the news that Jorge De La Rosa would be unavailable for the series due to a groin injury, the piece made a whole lot less sense and the Rockies were put at an immediate disadvantage. De La Rosa is the only left-handed starter for Colorado, and Philly’s biggest hitter had a dramatic RHP/LHP split. Howard had a 1.086 OPS vs. righties, but just a .653 OPS vs. lefties. Simply put, there was no starting pitcher for Colorado that could really counter the Phillies’ power lefties. De La Rosa’s replacement in Game Three, Jason Hammel, struggled with his command and couldn’t make it through the fourth inning. Despite the game actually being lost in the ninth inning, that was a big reason why the Rox were unable to win,... [read full story]                    

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