Rockies Option Tanner Gordon to Triple-A After Struggles in 2025

Tanner Gordon pitched well enough this spring to make a case for a rotation spot. Colorado sent him to Triple-A anyway.

The Rockies optioned the right-hander to Albuquerque on Tuesday, cutting him from big-league camp despite a spring training line that showed genuine improvement: a 1.64 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and a 12:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio across 11 innings in four appearances. The numbers were encouraging. The roster math wasn't.

The decision reflects just how much ground Gordon needs to recover. Across 23 career starts with Colorado over the last two seasons, he has posted a 7.06 ERA with a .320 batting average allowed and 88 strikeouts over 109.2 innings. Last season, he went 6-8 with a 6.33 ERA in 15 starts, leading the Rockies in wins during what was effectively his rookie year. Leading a rebuilding Colorado staff in victories while running a 6.33 ERA tells you most of what you need to know about where this franchise was in 2025.

Gordon's path to the majors has never been smooth. The Atlanta Braves drafted him in the sixth round in 2019, and he didn't arrive in the Colorado system until July 24, 2023, when the Rockies acquired him alongside Victor Vodnik in exchange for reliever Pierce Johnson. He split the remainder of that season between Double-A Hartford and Triple-A Albuquerque, posting a 5.96 ERA in four starts with the Yard Goats and a 4.31 ERA over six starts with the Isotopes.

His MLB debut on July 7, 2024, against the Kansas City Royals at Coors Field offered a brief glimpse of what he could be. Gordon struck out Adam Frazier and Bobby Witt Jr. to open his career with a perfect first inning. Then the second inning arrived. Three straight hits, an RBI single by Freddy Fermin, and a three-run home run from Maikel Garcia put Kansas City ahead 4-0 before Gordon could record an out in the frame. He lasted 6-plus innings, allowed five earned runs on eight hits, and took the loss. That debut set the tone for a 2024 MLB stint that ended 0-6 with an 8.65 ERA across eight starts, making him the first Rockie in franchise history to take six losing decisions through his first eight career starts.

The 2025 season brought a left oblique strain that placed him on the 15-day injured list on May 23, the same day he recorded his first career win by allowing two runs over six innings against the New York Yankees. He returned to the majors in late July after going on the IL in early June. In a May doubleheader spot start against Detroit, he gave up six earned runs on 10 hits over 6.1 innings before being sent back down the next day.

Gordon now heads back to Albuquerque, where he posted a 5.25 ERA across 58.1 innings last season. The Rockies also optioned infielder Adael Amador to Triple-A in the same round of moves, with both players considered likely to see Colorado again at some point in 2026. If Gordon finds his spring training form and holds it in the Pacific Coast League, the Rockies' rotation depth issues could accelerate that timeline considerably.