In 139 at bats this season with runners in scoring position and two outs, the Rockies have hit a paltry .173, which is third worst in the majors. Our opponents tonight, the Astros, have nearly doubled our run production in these situations this year, scoring 67 runs to our 34. We're only slightly better in situations defined by ESPN's splits database as "close and late". After getting slapped around last night for the third game in a row and seeing our baserunners just getting to places that don't really count, it's clear the Rockies still need work in some areas, and situational hitting is probably one of them.
For the month, by the way, our bats have fallen silent in general, only the punchless Cubs and D-Rays have scored fewer runs than we have. Yuck. Solutions?
Replacing our catcher would be one way to work on things. We need to get some support from the middle of the infield as well. Anyway, something needs to kick this offense into gear if we want to hang tight in the division deep into the summer.
Tonight, Cook vs Oswalt isn't as big a mismatch as we'll hear about from other sources. The Rockies do have a chance here if Cookie can keep them close deep into the game.
Go Rockies!