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Posted at 12:10 PM EST 

3:10 PM EST. Note the 3:10 PM EST time and also note that it’s a one-game series, as the two teams make up a rainout from earlier in the year. The Braves played in Queens yesterday and they’ll play in Toronto tomorrow so this is a one-game stopover. Historically, these one-game stopovers are hell for the visitor. We looked it up and they don’t happen often but when they do, the visitors rarely win. Teams are simply not accustomed to one-game series. It’s a huge inconvenience and it takes them completely out of routine. Throw in the time of year and we suspect that Atlanta could very well show up in body only here.  

We would be playing the Rockies today regardless because of the Coors Field angle but for those of you who do not play the Coors Field angle, we wanted to point out the one-game stopover, so as to aid you in your decision on whether to step in with us on the Rocks, play Atlanta or pass. As for the starters, it’ll be Julio Teheran (RHP - ATL) against Tim Melville (RHP - COL).

Julio Teheran has three dominating outings in his past six starts but make no mistake that Julio Teheran is another fortunate starter that is in line for regression. His fastball tops off at 89 MPH. His swing & miss rate is 10% but a .261 BABIP and 79% strand rate have combined to mask his very average skill set. To make matters worse, Teheran has walked 69 batters in 145 frames for one of the highest walk rates in the game among all qualified starters. Pay no attention to Teheran’s ERA, as it is all smoke and mirrors. Dude has walked 15 batters over his past 27 innings so it’s not like he has that massive flaw under control. Bad spot for Atlanta and a bad park to walk guys in.

Tim Melville's contract was selected by the Rockies from Class AAA Albuquerque Wednesday on Aug. 21 and he’ll start today because Jonathan Gray cannot. For the past two weeks, Gray had been feeling discomfort in the same location where a fracture caused him to miss 2½-months in 2017. A scan confirmed that a fracture had recurred, and Gray is mulling over the prospect of having surgery (something he didn’t do in 2017). Surgery or no, his return timetable looks to be spring training 2020. Meanwhile, call-up Melville stepped out of the Triple-A shuttle and into a glass slipper. Pressed into duty against Arizona on Aug. 21, Melville pitched seven innings of two-hit, one-run baseball. He had last pitched in September 2017 (for San Diego), had never pitched more than four innings in any outing, and had entered the game with a 11.05 ERA with 15 walks in 15 career innings. Melville most certainly earned at least another start, but once the rotation gets beyond German Marquez, the Rockies will be hard pressed to find someone who can duplicate Melville’s enchanted turn. Gotta hope the Braves are flat as hell and if they are not, that Colorado puts up a few more crooked innings than the Braves. That said, we love this bet today because of the situation and price.

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