What’s the bigger concern for Rockies: Jon Gray’s pitching or slumping bats?

Kiz: In the final days of a tense playoff race, I’m glad I’m not Rockies manager Bud Black. He has a slumping offense that goes down 123 more often than it goes deep and a starting pitching rotation that’s barely 50 percent reliable. I don’t know how Colorado manages to reach the postseason unless something quickly changes for the better. How much confidence can Black have in giving the baseball again to Jon Gray for a pressurepacked start? Saunders: Kiz, the confidence level has got to be nearing zero right now. Gray’s ERA over his last three starts is 10.80, and he has not pitched past four innings in any of them. Worse, Black knows that the bigger the moment, the worse Gray performs. I thought the meltdown in last year’s wildcard playoff game at Chase Field was an aberration, but clearly it was more than that. Gray looks to me like a pitcher who does not trust himself.

Where did Gray get hit harder? In Dodger Stadium or in his Twitter mentions? Rockies fans don’t trust Gray, and I can’t blame them. He shrinks in big moments, overthrowing every pitch, falling behind in the count and getting rocked when forced to groove a fastball. After Kyle Freeland makes his start Tuesday night in L.A., seven of Colorado’s final 11 games in the regular season will require Tyler Anderson, Antonio Senzatela or Gray to take the mound. Yikes! Saunders: Yikes is right. In regard to Twitter, I’m really starting to hate it. The constant negativity exhausts me. Some “fans” can’t wait for a player to fail so they can sink their Twitter teeth into them. But I digress. Right now, the Rockies have only two reliable starters — German Marquez and Freeland, who was set to pitch Tuesday night against Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw. If Freeland can match Kershaw, Colorado’s division hopes are still alive. Kiz: I believe 89 victories will get the Rockies in the playoffs. With only two truly reliable starters in the rotation, however, Colorado is going to have to win some games 87. But I’m not sure this batting order can be trusted to score big in Coors Field, much less on the road. If the Rockies go out with a whimper because of poor hitting, it will be embarrassing for a team that makes its home at 5,280 feet above sea level. Which hitters have the most pressure to step up? Saunders: Kiz, I’m thinking it’s going to take 90 wins to get in, which means the Rockies must finish 84 down the stretch. I’m not optimistic, not only because of the wobbly rotation, but because of the JekyllandHyde offense. In my mind, two players have to step up: Charlie Blackmon at leadoff and Nolan Arenado in the heart of the order. The duo carried the club to the wild card last season, but are their shoulders wide enough to carry the team again? We’ll see. Regardless, this offense will go down as one of the worst in franchise history. Go figure.