It is tough to stay in playoff contention when you have not won a road series since June. Just ask the Colorado Rockies.

The Rockies will attempt to capture a rare road series win in the rubber match of a three-game series against the San Francisco Giants tonight at 9:15 p.m. ET. The Rockies have been atrocious on the road this season (26-41) and the Giants have made the most of their home games (41-27), but Colorado did take a series from San Francisco in AT&T Park back in early June.

The teams split the first two games of the series and runs were hard to come by. Colorado won 2-1 on Monday with the Giants winning a 5-2 decision on Tuesday. Those games have followed the trends of the past eight meetings between the divisional rivals in San Francisco. Seven of the eight games played between Colorado and San Francisco have gone ‘under’ the total this season.

MLB Predictions: Pitching Matchup
Ubaldo Jimenez (RHP, 17-5, 2.71 ERA) vs. Tim Lincecum (RHP, 11-9, 3.80)
Like the past eight meetings between the two teams in San Francisco, runs should be hard to come by once again with a former Cy Young winner on the mound in Lincecum and a 2010 Cy Young hopeful in Jimenez.

Jimenez has been sitting on 17 wins for a month. The elusive 18th win will give him the league lead in the category and set a Colorado franchise record. Lincecum endured a horrendous August where he went 0-5 with a 7.82 ERA.

In three starts against San Francisco this season Jimenez has pitched two of his best games of the year and one of his worst. He was roughed up for seven earned runs in six innings in Coors Field back in July but in his only start in San Francisco Jimenez pitched a complete game four-hitter striking out nine in a 4-0 win against Lincecum. Jimenez and Lincecum have squared off five times in their career and Jimenez is 4-1 in those games.

In two starts against the Rockies Lincecum is 0-2 with a 5.72 ERA. Todd Helton and Chris Iannetta have feasted on Lincecum pitching in that they are both hitting nearly .500 against him.

Rockies vs. Giants Betting Odds
The Rockies enter the game as road favorites, listed at -115 with the Giants priced at +105. The total has dropped to 6.5 with an over priced at -125. Baseball odds are courtesy of Sportsbook.com

Rockies vs. Giants Betting Trends
Rockies are 5-0 in their last five games vs. a right-handed starter
Rockies are 10-2 in their last 12 games coming off a loss
Rockies are 0-4 in Jimenez’s last four road starts (all as a favorite)
Giants are 10-3 in their last 13 home games when the total is 6.5 or lower.
Giants are 0-5 in Lincecum’s last five starts

Rockies vs. Giants Betting Predictions and Baseball Picks
Looking at the numbers, the pitching matchup overwhelmingly favors Colorado. Jimenez has had success against San Francisco and Lincecum specifically, and Lincecum is coming off a terrible month of August and has struggled against the Rockies in his career.

Colorado is making its almost annual late season playoff push, winning seven of nine. Considering their atrocious road record it is odd to see them as a favorite especially against the Giants but -115 is not much of a price to pay for Jimenez in this case. Jimenez has the Giants number, the play here is Colorado.

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