The Padres clinched the series with a 2-1 victory last night so once again they find themselves in a position to sweep. But they're hoping for better results this time around after some poor pitching squandered their chance to sweep the Giants last week.
Ian Kennedy pitched one of his best games during that Giants series and he'll look to keep things rolling in today's series finale. He kept SF to just one run while striking out seven in six innings of work last Saturday. In his six outings so far as a Friar, Kennedy is 3-1 and despite a 4.04 ERA, he has allowed two runs or fewer four times. He has 14 career starts against the Rockies under his belt and though his record against them is 3-3, his 2.96 ERA is his lowest against any NL West team. He faced them twice this season when he was with the Diamondbacks, but both starts were at Coors Field where he struggled, going 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA. He has won each of his last two starts at Petco Park while posting a 0.69 ERA.
Kennedy's opponent today is an unfamiliar one to San Diego. Chad Bettis will make his first career start against the Padres in the series finale and he'll try to help the Rockies to just their sixth win in 22 tries on the road. The rookie is winless in his seven major league starts, going 0-3 with a 5.45 ERA. His last time out he gave up five runs in 4 2/3 innings against the Dodgers. It was his second straight game giving up at least four runs.
Today's game will be the last of the season between these two teams and San Diego will try to finish the series on a high note. They are just 6-12 against the Rockies overall and 3-5 against them at Petco Park this year. A sweep today would be their first over Colorado since 2011 at Coors Field. It would also be their first sweep against the Rockies at home in seven years. Furthermore, a win today would pull San Diego even with Colorado for third place in the division.
Watch as the season series comes to a close this afternoon starting at 1:10.