Gameday: Phillies (1-2) At Rockies (2-1)

Philadelphia Phillies (1-2) at Colorado Rockies (2-1)
Cole Hamels vs. Jason Marquis

Time: 4:10 p.m. at Coors Field, Denver
Weather: Mostly sunny, 53
TV: The Comcast Network
Twitter: Phillies Nation

The Phillies woke up Wednesday night, as the offense erupted in the seventh inning against the Braves and won a thriller, 12-11, to close out a 1-2 opening to the 2009 season. Now they hit the Rocky Mountains, where the Phillies reversed their fortunes in 2009 after a tough performance in the 2008 postseason. They swept the Rockies in Denver last season, and this year look to do the same. It starts today with the season debut of Cole Hamels.

The Phillies ace hasn’t pitched a game that counts since the final game of the 2009 campaign, the championship-winning game five of the World Series. Since he has labored over elbow tightness and sudden stops in his practice. He says he is fine, however.

The Rockies will counter with Jason Marquis, who has bounced around the majors a bit. He went 11-9 with a 4.53 ERA last season for the Cubs. The right-hander is 3-0 with a 2.51 ERA in five Coors Field starts, however.

The Phils offense awoke thanks to Raul Ibanez, who had two hits in Wednesday’s win: An RBI single and a two-run home run. He also scored three runs.

Your gameday beer: Here’s 14’ER ESB from Avery Brewing in Colorado. An Extra Special (or Extra Strong Bitter) beer, the 14’ER smells like a hefeweizen but tastes like a combination bitter and sweet beer. So it’s not as strong as you’d think, making it a perfect Friday-in-April beer: Bitter, spring smell, light enough to have a few. Enjoy it with some clams.

Go Phillies!