Series Preview: SF Giants @ Rockies - staying alive

The SF Giants kept their playoff hopes alive with series wins against Cleveland and Colorado at home. Can they make it three in a row at the dreaded Coors Field?

The SF Giants are hanging in the balance between a playoff run and unceremonious elimination. On Wednesday, that balance seemed to tip, slowly but surely, towards sinking into the morass of mediocrity. That is, until J.D. Davis launched one of the most "we'll take it" home runs in Oracle Park's (relatively) short and storied history.

Seize the Davis pic.twitter.com/B6fyCIwZnL

— SFGiants (@SFGiants) September 13, 2023

That home run allowed the Giants to mount an extra-inning comeback win and follow a 1-6 road trip with a 5-1 homestand. At a half game back of the third Wild Card spot and a menagerie of tiebreakers to traverse, San Francisco's work is far from over. But before their toughest challenges, including 7 of 10 games against Los Angeles to end the year, the Giants will have to survive Coors Field.

The ability for the Rockies' home ballpark to swallow up pitchers - friend and foe alike - is legendary at this point. It's an open question whether the Giants will allow Kyle Harrison, who allowed all five of Cleveland's runs yesterday (three earned) to pitch there on Sunday. But if they do, he'll face a Rockies team that's on pace to shatter the 100-loss barrier. 

There may not be a better time to learn the intricacies of that ballpark - despite the historical rockiness (pun not intended), the Giants have swept Colorado at home both this year (3 game series) and last (4 game series). Now would be an excellent time for another.

Series details

Who: SF Giants at Colorado Rockies
Where: Coors Field, Denver, Colorado
When: September 14-17, Thursday (5:40 PM), Friday (5:40 PM), Saturday (5:10 PM), and Sunday (12:10 PM). All times Pacific.

Giants' current streak: W1, 5-5 in last 10, 75-71 overall

Playoff standing: 0.5 GB of 3rd Wild Card, 24.6% odds of making postseason

Rockies' current streak: W2, 3-7 in last 10, 53-92 overall

Playoff standing: eliminated

Projected starters:

Thursday: Logan Webb (10-12, 3.40 ERA) vs. Chase Anderson (0-5, 6.49 ERA)

Friday: TBD vs. Peter Lambert (3-7, 5.36 ERA)

Saturday: Alex Cobb (7-6, 3.62 ERA) vs. Kyle Freeland* (6-14, 5.07 ERA)

Sunday: TBD vs. Chris Flexen (1-7, 7.22 ERA)

*Indicates LHP

**Indicates opener

How to watch, listen

• SF Giants broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area, KNBR 680/1510 AM
• Opposing broadcast: ATT Sportsnet-RM, KOA 850/1150 AM, 94.1 FM
• National broadcasts: -
• Live stream: fuboTV (start your free trial)