Rockies Manager Warren Schaeffer Explains Frustrating Tanner Gordon Trend

Colorado's manager explained one area where Tanner Gordon needs to find some improvement.

Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Tanner Gordon Credit: Isaiah J. Downing | Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Going into Thursday afternoon's series last against the San Diego Padres at Coors Field, the Colorado Rockies were looking for a series split against one of the hottest teams going into the series.

San Diego, which currently holds the third and final National League wild-card spot, took two out of the first three games of the four-game set. Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer hoped his team would earn a late-season split.

Things started well with a Jake McCarthy triple to lead off the bottom of the first against Padres ace Michael King. Connor Norby followed with an RBI single for a 1-0 lead. However, the lead was short-lived, and so were Colorado's hopes of gaining a series split.

San Diego erupted for seven second-inning runs off Rockies starter Tanner Gordon for a 7-1 lead and the Padres never looked back in a 9-2 win, which gave them a four-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final NL playoff spot. It was the third tough start for Gordon in September, which is not a good sign for 2027.

Rockies Manager Warren Schaeffer Explains One Area Tanner Gordon Needs To Improve

Colorado Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer Credit: Isaiah J. Downing | Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Gordon gutted his way through just three innings against San Diego. He allowed 10 hits, seven earned runs and two home runs. He needed 86 pitches to get through his three frames and 43 alone in the second inning, when he surrendered all seven runs. There were multiple chances to limit the damage in the inning with two-strike counts, but he was unable to execute his pitches with two strikes.

“He gets ahead better than anybody on a typical basis,” Schaeffer said, per MLB.com. “It’s just finding a way to put hitters away late in counts with two strikes, and that’s where we need to find something.”

That goes for all pitchers, just not Gordon. However, it has been a common theme this month for not only Gordon but also the entire Colorado staff. After his outing on Thursday, Gordon has a 12.34 ERA in September in just three starts. He allowed five earned runs in 4.2 innings against the St. Louis Cardinals and four runs in four innings against the Detroit Tigers. Gordon has allowed 28 hits over 11.2 innings in September with just 12 strikeouts.

Nine games remain in the season and Gordon will likely get one more start in 2026. They need to go 7-2 to avoid a fourth straight 100-loss season, but if the pitching staff can't execute pitches late in counts, then the results will remain the same. That sums up a rough second half of the season in Denver.