With family in attendance, Lambert has a night to remember 

DENVER -- Rockies right-handed pitcher Peter Lambert’s Friday night was -- well, except for one pitch -- a beautiful repeat of a glorious day for him and his family four years ago.

White Sox shortstop Elvis Andrus launched Lambert’s first pitch over the center-field wall for a home run. Lambert didn’t give up any other runs and yielded four total hits over a career-high matching seven innings in a 14-1 victory at Coors Field on Friday.

In his June 6, 2019 debut, Lambert held the Cubs scoreless through seven innings, giving up just four hits in a Rockies 3-1 victory at Wrigley Field.

“I wasn’t really thinking about it,” Lambert said. “I wasn’t thinking about much. I don’t know when I put two and two together.

“At times it feels like four years, but at times it feels like just another day.”

Not only were the stat lines close (Lambert had nine strikeouts then, five on Friday), but he had his family in attendance -- including his older brother, Jimmy Lambert.

Back then, Jimmy was in the Wrigley Field stands, and would undergo Tommy John surgery a week later on his right elbow. This time, Jimmy was in the White Sox bullpen, and able to see Peter -- who underwent his own Tommy John surgery in 2020.

Last offseason, Peter’s rehab was finally moving forward after three-plus years of minimal pitching. He set a goal of pitching in this series against his brother’s team. Only thing better would have been for Jimmy to have taken the mound so they could have pitched in the same game. Jimmy, 28, is two years older than Peter, and they were briefly teammates at San Dimas (Calif.) High School.

“That would have been cool, but that’s out of my control,” Peter said. “It’s always been a dream of ours. I don’t even think we did that in high school. I don’t think we’ve ever done that.”

The Rockies budgeted Peter’s innings early in the season, with short stints at Triple-A Albuquerque and a stint as the Rockies’ long reliever. But since entering the rotation on July 1, he has posted a 3.34 ERA with 22 strikeouts to 10 walks.

On Friday, his 92 mph fastball average was a mile and a half below his season average, but it didn’t hurt because he slowed his changeup average from 86.4 to 85.7. In other words, the difference was similar, and it was enough to keep the White Sox off balance.

“I still believe his fastball-change combination is his best stuff,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “He got a few strikeouts on the changeup, got outs with the changeup to both left- and right-handed hitters.”

After the homer, rookie shortstop Ezequiel Tovar ranged to the middle to grab Andrew Benintendi's hard ground ball and made a whirling double-leg slide before throwing him out at first base. Tovar erased Lambert’s deficit with a two-run homer off Michael Kopech in the bottom of the first.

Homers from Elias Díaz for two runs in the first and Ryan McMahon for three runs in the fourth, and a two-run triple from Brendan Rodgers in the sixth helped build a lead.

Jimmy Lambert pitched collegiately at Fresno State and was drafted by the White Sox in the fifth round in 2016 -- a year after the Rockies selected Lambert in the second round out of high school. Fully healthy after his own surgery, Jimmy pitched three seasons at Fresno State. Splitting this year between the White Sox and Triple-A Charlotte, Jimmy has made 29 Major League appearances (one start) and is 2-2 with one save and a 5.52 ERA.

“I look up to him in a lot of ways,” Jimmy said. “He made it to the big leagues before me. He was drafted before me. I’d like to say he looks up to me in ways, but there are definitely ways I look up to him. He showed me what is possible in this game.”

In the strangeness that is a baseball season, Peter Lambert entered as a question mark. But with Germán Márquez and Antonio Senzatela out for the season and a portion of next year with Tommy John surgeries, Lambert’s work suggests he can be part of the answer.

“It’s great,” he said. “But I’ve got a lot of work to do, and I know how fast this game can humble you.”

But with his parents, sisters and his fiancé watching, and even against his brother, Lambert saw on Friday night how the game offers love.