Gordon seizes his opportunity with strong outing

SAN DIEGO -- A Major League debut is one thing. A Major League breakthrough is another entirely.

Less than a month after his debut, Rockies right-hander Tanner Gordon had his breakthrough. The 26-year-old tossed six innings of one-hit, one-run ball in a no-decision before the Padres broke through against the bullpen to hand Colorado a 3-2 defeat at Petco Park on Saturday night.

Gordon didn’t allow a baserunner until the fifth inning, earning his first quality start while striking out four.

“I liked the fact that he kept the ball down,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “Three-pitch mix with the fastball, the slider and the change -- mixed in a couple curveballs. He pitched well, kept them off balance moving the fastball. He got his grounders, got some strikeouts. He got some jam shots. He got it all.”

In three starts last month, Gordon pounded the strike zone (73% strikes). But his command within the zone was spotty, leaving him susceptible to big hits and big innings.

Gordon’s pitch location within the zone was much improved on Saturday. And the results reflected it.

“It just came down to executing pitches and letting the guys behind me do the work,” he said. “Quality of strikes was the biggest thing and has been the biggest thing.”

The Padres, meanwhile, pointed to better pitch movement that wasn’t apparent on scouting videos.

“His ball was moving a little bit more than we thought -- a good sinker, good action on it,” Padres veteran Xander Bogaerts said. “We didn’t really see that in the video. I think that was the pitch that got us. We thought it was straighter than that.”

Black said Gordon has earned his fifth Major League start when his turn comes up again in the rotation, but there’s no commitment beyond that. Veteran starters Antonio Senzatela and Germán Márquez are working their way back from injuries and the goal is to build toward 2025. Black noted that other Minor Leaguers are looking for an opportunity.

For now, though, Gordon is the newcomer with the opportunity. With four starts under his belt and one breakthrough effort, what might he accomplish over the final two months?

“I’d like to think about those things,” he said. “But right now, I like to just take it one day at a time. It’s hard for me to think that far out. I mean, I’ve only got four starts.”

Four Major League starts is more than many sixth-round Draft picks, so Gordon is already ahead of the curve. He was the Braves’ sixth-round pick in the 2019 MLB Draft and came to the Rockies last year, along with reliever Victor Vodnik, in the Trade Deadline deal that sent reliever Pierce Johnson to Atlanta.

Only 10 of the 30 sixth-round picks in 2019 have reached the Majors. Only three have made more starts on the mound than Gordon: the Reds’ Graham Ashcraft, the Rangers’ Cody Bradford and the Cubs’ Hayden Wesneski.

Gordon has shown he can handle a starter’s workload through his outings. Gordon has pitched at least six innings in three of his four appearances.

“He’s in the mix as we move into the winter and into next year,” Black said. “He’s getting an opportunity. All players will tell you, ‘Give me an opportunity in the Major Leagues to show what I can do.’

“And this is his opportunity.”