Tuesday Rockpile: Tanner Gordon makes promising MLB debut for the Colorado Rockies

Colorado Rockies News and Notes for Tuesday, July 9, 2024

The Colorado Rockies have said this is a season when they will let the kids play, and on Sunday, they began to make good on that promise by calling up righty Tanner Gordon.

Clearly, a debut does not a career make, but it’s worth taking a moment to consider his first game, what we’ve learned, and what to expect going forward.

What was the final stat line?

Pretty, pretty good.

Gordon pitched 6 ¹⁄₃ innings giving up five runs (all earned) on eight hits, including two home runs, four strikeouts, and zero walks. (Yes, you read that right.)

Add to that, Gordon threw 22 out of 26 first-pitch strikes and 62 strikes out of 78 pitches were strikes. His 79.5% strike rate marked a season record for Rockies starters, and he was the first Rockies starter in franchise history to strike out the first two batters he faced in his Major League debut.

Here’s a look at the pitch mix.

Look, when you strike out the first two MLB batters you face — and they’re Adam Frazier and Bobby Witt Jr. — well, that’s just cool.

After the outing, manager Bud Black said, “There’s a lot of good things to draw from this one, for sure.”

He added, “The fastball-slider was probably his best stuff, but the change was impressive, though, too. Those three pitches were, for me, good today. [There were] a lot of swing and misses on the change, some whiffs on the slider, enough fastball. I think the curve will eventually show up, so I think the stuff will play.”

He referred to Gordon’s ball-to-strike ratio as “outstanding.”

Black also commented Gordon’s poise under pressure.

Gordon showed excellent control, though his four-seam fastball is not remarkable, so he’ll need to tighten up his secondary stuff. Still, this was a promising first outing.

What did Gordon think of his first start?

“It was a lot of fun,” Gordon said. “After I threw the first pitch, all the nerves kind of settled and I was able to go out there and throw as many strikes as I could.”

His control, however, was key.

“[The goal was] just try to throw as many strikes as I could,” Gordon said, “just try to attack the zone, keep the pressure on the hitters, and make them swing at my pitches and make them adjust to my my game.”

He is, after all, a strike thrower.

“My strike percentage has always been pretty high,” Gordon said. “I learned command first before velocity, and I think I think that helped me.”

Did he have to make any adjustments?

“My heart rate was kind of the big thing,” Gordon said, “just taking control of my breath, trying to get the heart rate down and not speed up. That was kind of the biggest thing.”

Of the entire experience, Gordon said, “it was awesome.”

Any other interesting things you can pass along to us?

You know, I’ve got something.

Whenever a player makes his MLB debut, there are always plenty of friends and family who make the trip to provide their support. Tanner Gordon’s posse was no different, and it had more than 30 members.

Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

As it turns out, they were seated almost directly under the press box, and I’m here to tell you they were excited.

They spent the first inning honed in on every pitch Gordon threw — and they were letting everyone know how they felt about it. When Gordon recorded that first K, they just exploded.

Plus, there was this:

Reader, it was good.

What’s next?

According to Black, Gordon will have his next start when the Rockies play the New York Mets.

For Tanner Gordon, that means staying with what’s worked for him.

“Honestly, I like where I left off. Same game plan: Attack the zone, and throw strikes. And that’s really all I can do.”

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Accolades

Oh, Doyle Rules, indeed.

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This week on the internet

This isn’t Rockies-centric, but I think we can all agree that Paul Skenes is having a remarkable rookie season.

Also remarkable is this moment from the Pittsburgh Pirates broadcast booth.

#Respect

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Dylan Cease and Jason Benetti have discussed art museums | FanGraphs

This is from David Laurila’s weekly “Notes” column, and while I recommend reading about Cease and Benetti’s art conversations, I’ve linked to it for the discussion of Carson Palmquist. “His overall season has been stellar,” Laurila writes. Of his outstanding season, Palmquist says, “I’d say it’s my deceptiveness and my willingness to compete . . . . I’m not backing down to any hitter. I’m throwing them strikes and seeing if they can hit it.”

Latest mock: Just over a week out, who will go No. 1 in ‘24 Draft? | MLB Pipeline

Jonathan Mayo projects (at this point) the Rockies will take Jac Caglionone. (This happens after Travis Bazzana is drafted by the Cleveland Guardians Charlie Condon heads to the Cincinnati Reds. He writes, “I’m going according to chalk here, the top three players going in the top three spots. It does seem like the hitters are in the lead, though Burns and Smith (in that order) are still being discussed. The Rockies might also kick the tires on cutting a deal with one of the college hitters projected to go more in the middle of the first round, someone like Oklahoma State’s Carson Benge.”

MLB mock draft | Pitcher List

Trevor Powers gets it, writing of the Rockies selecting Caglianone:

A match made in heaven. Caglianone is one of college’s most prolific power hitters over the last two seasons. He became Florida’s all-time home run leader with 75, while basically only playing full-time for two years. This season, he showed major advancements in his hit tool taking his average from .323 to .419 and his strikeouts from 58 to 26. The approach still needs some work, but if the advancements in the hit tool are legit with his already double-plus power, the league will be put on notice. Combine that with playing home games in Colorado, and you have the perfect recipe for success.

At the next level, Cags will most likely not be a pitcher. I am sure the Rockies (or whoever drafts him) will give him the opportunity, but the quality of stuff is just not good enough to take him away from full-time hitting. He has unbelievable athleticism, and I am curious if OF could be in his future once he chooses to hit full-time. Cags in Colorado just feels right.

Sensing a theme here.

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