Colorado @ Arizona preview

Last Meeting ( Jun 5, 2014 ) Arizona 12, Colorado 7

The Colorado Rockies continue another forgettable season with a six-game road trip beginning with three against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday, but injured shortstop Troy Tulowitzki said there's still a lot at stake. "It'd be easy to just pack up things and throw these games away and say, 'Hey, we're out of this thing.' And move on to next year,'' Tulowitzki told the Denver Post. "But in that clubhouse, we need to finish strong and end on a good note. ..." Tulowitzki, who leads the National League with a .340 average, has missed the last 16 games with a hip injury as Colorado went 5-11 during that span and shares the worst record in baseball with Texas (45-69).

The Rockies finished 29-52 on the road in each of the past two seasons, but are on pace to finish even worse this season as their 17-39 mark away from home is by far the worst in baseball. Arizona has lost five of its last six games after Thursday's 6-2 loss to Kansas City. The Diamondbacks' Chase Anderson has recorded three consecutive no-decisions while posting a 1.89 ERA during that span and opposes fellow rookie Tyler Matzek, who is coming off his worst career start.

TV: 9:40 p.m. ET, ROOT (Colorado), FSN Arizona

PITCHING MATCHUP: Rockies LH Tyler Matzek (2-6, 5.31 ERA) vs. Diamondbacks RH Chase Anderson (6-4, 3.19)

Matzek, the 11th overall pick in 2009 by the Rockies, allowed eight runs and 10 hits in four-plus innings of an 11-5 loss to Detroit on Saturday. The 23-year-old Californian had that start pushed back two days after he took the loss after yielding a run in the 16th inning of Colorado's 4-3 setback to the Cubs in Chicago on July 29. Matzek, who is 0-3 with a 6.11 ERA in six road contests, has never faced Arizona and is winless in two starts against the NL West (San Diego and Los Angeles).

Anderson allowed one run and five hits in six innings of Arizona's 8-3 loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday and is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in his last four outings. The 26-year-old Texan, a ninth-round pick by Arizona in 2009, has registered four straight quality starts and permitted two or fewer earned runs in 10 of his 13 career turns. Anderson beat the Rockies 4-2 in Colorado on June 3 when he yielded one run and four hits in six innings to improve to 4-0 en route to winning his first five decisions.

WALK-OFFS

1. Tulowitzki, a four-time All-Star, is taking batting practice as he works toward a possible return.

2. Arizona 3B Jake Lamb on Thursday recorded an RBI single in his first major-league game.

3. The Diamondbacks have won five of nine meetings with the Rockies this season, including a three-game sweep in Colorado from June 3-5.

PREDICTION: Diamondbacks 6, Rockies 2