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Zito looks to maintain dominance over Rockies

May 12, 2007 - 1:40 PM San Francisco (18-17) at Colorado (15-21) 8:05 pm EDT

DENVER (Ticker) -- With their losing streak in the rear view mirror, the San Francisco Giants will send their ace to mound in hopes of winning another division game on the road.

Barry Zito and the Giants continue their four-game series on Saturday against their last-place division rival Colorado Rockies at Coors Field.

The Giants overcame a three-run seventh-inning deficit to win the second game of the series, 8-3, on Friday. The eight runs surpassed the total the offense scored during their three-game skid.

The offense might not need to score that much with Zito (3-3, 3.65 ERA) making his fourth career start against the Rockies. The three-time All-Star is 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA against Colorado, including a 0.69 ERA in two starts in Denver.

Zito held the Rockies to three hits in six shutout innings in Denver on April 16, earning his first win in a Giants uniform as San Francisco blasted Colorado, 8-0. The 2002 American League Cy Young Award winner also was victorious in his last outing, yielding three runs and seven hits with a walk and five strikeouts over six innings in a 9-4 win over the New York Mets.

If recent trends hold, Zito will also benefit from a Colorado offense has been outscored, 24-11 over the last four games, a stretch that has pushed them down to 20th in the majors with 150 runs scored. However, Todd Helton is one Rockies hitter who has remained consistent, hitting .429 (15-for-35) in May and leading the majors with a .397 average this season.

Helton is 4-for-7 with three walks in his career against Zito.

Opposing Zito will be Jeff Francis (1-4, 5.61), who is winless with a 7.66 ERA in four home starts this year, including the April 16 loss to Zito and the Giants. The lefthander is 0-2 with an 8.03 ERA in two starts against the Giants this year, including the loss against Zito.

Francis is seeking his first win since April 9 against the Dodgers. He had lost four straight outings before Monday, when he failed to earn a decision in Colorado's 3-2 win over St. Louis, despite holding the Cardinals to two runs and four hits in seven innings.

Barry Bonds, who is 10 home runs away from Hank Aaron's record of 755, is batting .385 (5-for-13) with two homers in his career against Francis. He has also hit 25 homers over his career at Coors Field, where he owns a .343 lifetime batting average, but has not homered in his last 10 games in Denver.

The Rockies are expecting the return of leadoff hitter and center fielder Willy Taveras. Taveras has missed the last five games with a groin injury but is expected to play Saturday.