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Rockies-Phillies Preview

Aug 6, 2009 - 3:26 AM By MATT BECKER STATS Senior Writer

Colorado (59-47) at Philadelphia (59-45), 1:05 p.m. EDT

Cliff Lee won over his teammates with a brilliant debut for the Phillies.

Next up, impressing the passionate fans of Philadelphia.

Lee looks to continue his dominance since the All-Star break Thursday when he takes the mound for the first time at Citizens Bank Park in the finale of a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies.

Lee (1-0, 1.00 ERA) was acquired from Cleveland on July 29 and made an immediate impact with Philadelphia (60-45), allowing one run and four hits with six strikeouts in a complete-game 5-1 win over San Francisco on Friday. The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner gave up two walks and didn't allow a hit until Juan Uribe doubled with one out in the sixth.

New batterymate Paul Bako was thrilled with Lee's performance.

"He was obviously phenomenal," the catcher said.

Although Lee didn't get the no-hitter, he didn't mind settling for his fourth complete game of the season - equaling the number thrown by Philadelphia pitchers.

"I'm kind of glad I didn't throw a no-hitter," Lee said. "If I did that the first time, I'd have to live up to some high expectations."

Truth is, the expectations are already high for Lee.

The Phillies, who have a six-game lead over second-place Florida in the NL East, acquired the left-hander in an attempt to bolster their rotation for another title run.

While Philadelphia's offense leads the league in runs (557), the pitching has been a cause for concern, ranking 11th in the NL with a 4.36 ERA. Lee will be counted on to continue the dominance he displayed with the Indians.

Including his final three starts with Cleveland, Lee has posted a 1.32 ERA while recording three complete games in four starts since the All-Star game. This will be his first start against the Rockies (59-48).

In Wednesday's 7-0 win over Colorado, Jimmy Rollins, Jayson Werth and Pedro Feliz homered for the Phillies.

J.A. Happ tossed a four-hitter with a career-high 10 strikeouts in what could have been his last start for a while with three-time Cy Young Award winner Pedro Martinez expected to be activated from the disabled list soon.

"There comes a point in time when it's necessary to tip your hat to the other side," Rockies manager Jim Tracy said. "Happ pitched one of the best games we've seen all year."

Colorado's five-game winning streak was snapped Wednesday and it dropped one-half game back of San Francisco in the wild-card race, but it feels like it has a good chance of getting back in the win column with Aaron Cook (10-3, 3.88) taking the hill in the finale.

Cook is 7-0 with a 2.97 ERA in 11 starts since yielding four runs in six innings of a 4-1 loss to Houston on June 1. The right-hander is also 5-0 with a 1.73 ERA in his last six away from Coors Field.

Cook gave up three runs and seven hits in 6 2-3 innings of Friday's 5-3 win at Cincinnati, but did not get a decision.

In his only start of the season against the Phillies on April 12, Cook allowed three runs and seven hits in six innings of a 7-5 loss, but did not receive a decision. The sinkerballer is 1-4 with a 6.10 ERA in seven career starts versus Philadelphia.