Miller has another shot to get on winning track as Rockies pay visit
Enigmatic right-hander Shelby Miller, one of the Diamondbacks' two high-profile offseason pitching acquisitions, will make his third start since coming back to Arizona after being banished to Triple-A Reno as the Diamondbacks open a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Chase Field.
Miller enters Monday's game with a 2-11 record and 6.89 ERA in 16 starts. He appeared to have made progress in his first game back in the majors but regressed against Los Angeles, allowing five runs in 4 1/3 innings.
"I'm tired of the losing," Miller said after the outing against the Dodgers.
The same can be said of the Diamondbacks in general. Arizona has dropped six straight and remains one of the worst teams at home in the majors with a 25-45 record.
Colorado is 5-1 against the Diamondbacks in Chase Field, with all six games coming before May 1.
Against the Rockies this season, Miller is 0-2 with a 9.19 ERA in three starts.
Meanwhile, the Rockies will look to keep their slender playoff hopes alive. Colorado (69-74) comes to the Valley after splitting four games with the San Diego Padres. Colorado is seven games behind the St. Louis for the National League's second wild-card spot.
Left-hander Tyler Anderson (5-5, 3.35 ERA) has been outstanding his past three outings, pitching to a 1.93 ERA. But the rookie has only won one to his credit in his past six starts.
Anderson said he has found some success in getting opponents to hit to contact, particularly in his last start when he struggled with his off-speed pitches on Tuesday against the San Francisco Giants.
"The change wasn't as good today as it has been in the past," Anderson said, "so we had to make due with cutters and fastballs mostly. And when you do that, obviously guys are swinging because they all look like fastballs. So I was able to get them to put the ball in play a lot."
One-time Diamondbacks player Mark Reynolds reached a career milestone for the Rockies, hitting his 250th career home run. In four seasons in Arizona, Reynolds hit 121 of those.
