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Dodgers send Volquez to the hill vs. Rockies

Sep 4, 2013 - 2:50 PM (Sports Network) - The Los Angeles Dodgers hope their new addition can keep them on the winning path as Edinson Volquez is set to take the mound Wednesday in the finale of a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies.

Volquez signed with Los Angeles last week after the San Diego Padres released the right-hander and he will make his first start in a Dodgers uniform. Volquez pitched in relief last Friday against his former club and allowed one hit in an inning of work.

The veteran was 9-10 with a 6.01 earned run average in 27 starts with the Padres and has faced the Rockies plenty of times in his career. Volquez, though, has struggled to a 3-7 mark in 12 starts against Colorado and is 1-4 in seven starts with an 8.39 ERA lifetime at Coors Field.

Los Angeles recorded its sixth win in a row with Tuesday's 7-4 decision and is going for a sweep tonight. The Dodgers have outscored the Rockies, 17-12, over the first two games and Ricky Nolasco just pitched them to a series win with six innings of two-run ball. Nolasco struck out five and walked one.

"What Ricky has been able to do is just come in and basically give us another guy," said Dodgers manager Don Mattingly. "Every time that he pitches, he gives us a good outing."

Carl Crawford went 3-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored. Nick Punto had four hits, while Adrian Gonzalez and Tim Federowicz each drove in a run for the Dodgers, who have a 13 1/2-game lead on Arizona in the NL West and a magic number of 12 to clinch the division. The last time the Dodgers had a lead this large was on Sept. 13, 1977.

Dodgers rookie outfielder Yasiel Puig did not play Tuesday after he left the previous night with a right knee issue. A timetable for his return is unknown. Shortstop Hanley Ramirez was absent from the lineup to rest his legs.

"I'm not going to put him (Puig) out there until he's ready to go full speed," Mattingly told the club's website. "He's not the kind of guy that plays half speed."

After this series at Coors Field, the Dodgers will visit Cincinnati over the weekend.

Colorado has dropped three of four games and had won three straight series before Tuesday's loss. Jhoulys Chacin was aiming for his 14th win and was dealt the loss for allowing four runs and nine hits in seven innings.

"He really settled down there after the first inning and pitched seven frames for us," Colorado manager Walt Weiss said about Chacin. "He did a good job for us tonight and really had good stuff with his fastball."

Josh Rutledge homered for the Rockies, who entered this series with five wins in seven tries. After their nine-game, 10-day homestand (4-4), the Rockies will head west for a nine-game, 10-day road trip against San Diego, San Francisco and Arizona.

Rockies All-Star outfielder Carlos Gonzalez was activated off the disabled list Tuesday and had been bothered by a sprained right middle finger. Gonzalez was scratched from his third rehab start with Triple-A Colorado Springs Monday and could still be shut down for the remainder of the season.

Jorge De La Rosa will take the mound for Colorado and has a good shot at salvaging this series with his current five-game winning streak. He is 5-0 with a 3.38 earned run average over that time and has an overall mark of 15-6 in 28 starts with a 3.33 ERA.

The left-handed De La Rosa allowed three runs in six innings of a 9-6 win over the Reds last Friday to improve to 9-1 in 13 starts at Coors Field. His only loss in Denver was against Washington back on June 12 and he sports a 4-0 record in his past six starts there.

De La Rosa defeated the Dodgers on June 2 with seven innings of two-run ball in a 7-2 win, but is only 1-8 in 15 games (11 starts) against them.

L.A. is 8-7 against the Rockies this season.