Hughes (Tommy John) right back to banging on the Rockies' door

This story was excerpted from Thomas Harding's Rockies Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

LOS ANGELES -- The year of pain and lonely rehab has made Rockies 2022 first-round MLB Draft pick Gabriel Hughes (Colorado’s No. 22 prospect, per MLB Pipeline) see people wearing colors other than purple.

Hughes pitched 14 combined games at High-A Spokane and Double-A Hartford (6-5, 6.21 ERA) in 2023. Had he made a rapid jump in his education, he could have been on the Major League radar.

But after pitching five innings on July 9, Hughes found he needed Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. Hughes joined Rockies starter Antonio Senzatela and starter prospects Jordy Vargas (No. 25) and Jackson Cox, all of whom were operated on by Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas.

Hughes has recovered sufficiently to make four appearances in instructional league ball: Aug. 31 vs. the D-backs and Sept. 7 vs. the Giants for one inning apiece, Sept. 14 against the D-backs for two innings and Friday against the Cubs for three innings.

In the latest outing, he held the Cubs to one run on three hits, struck out five and didn’t walk a batter.

“Words don’t really describe it,” said Hughes, who’s scheduled to pitch again Friday. “Any competitive athlete sitting on the sidelines for a year-plus is hard under the best circumstances. Getting to pitch against a different team multiple times now has really just been incredible.”

Hughes said it’s not just an individual milestone. He is looking forward to the returns of Cox and Vargas, whom the Rockies said will each throw an inning on Tuesday, Saturday and Oct. 4.

Hughes, 22, is as close to the radar as a recovering prospect can be. Colorado plans to place him with the Salt River Rafters in the Arizona Fall League against many of baseball’s best prospects.

In his last outing, Hughes stayed in the strike zone, held his fastball between 93-95 mph and showed sharpness with the curve and slider, according to Flint Wallace, the team’s coordinator of pitching strategies. Hughes is eager for the next test.

“My changeup and curveball are coming along,” he said. “I knew they weren’t going to be there as soon as I got out there for my first game, and I wasn't going to throw everything I wanted exactly where I wanted it.

“I feel confident in my ability to have those pitches where I want them when the Fall League rolls around. The biggest thing is seeing how my stuff plays against such an elite opposing force.”

The Rockies plan to invite Hughes and other prospects to Major League camp as competitors for rotation spots, either as the season begins or after Minor League seasoning. Hughes is bringing the requisite attitude to the Fall League.

“I remember reading a quote from [Rockies lefty Kyle] Freeland that said when he was knocking on the door, his job was to make it as hard as possible for the people upstairs to ignore him,” said Hughes, who is much appreciated for his following of the Rockies Beat Newsletter and its excerpts. “That’s the mentality I’m taking into the Fall League.”