DENVER (AP) — Austin Gomber continued his dominance at hitter-friendly Coors Field with eight shutout innings, and the Colorado Rockies held on to beat the scuffling San Diego Padres 3-2 on Monday night.
Gomber (6-5) improved to 3-1 at home, where he hasn’t allowed an earned run in 23 1/3 innings and has a 0.95 ERA in five starts in 2021.
“I like pitching here. I don’t have an issue,” Gomber said. “I feel pretty comfortable.”
Gomber held the Padres to three hits and didn’t walk a batter. He has walked just four in his last nine starts and has won three straight starts. Gomber also added a single at the plate.
“Early on, once he got settled into spring training and once we started the regular season he tried too hard,” Colorado manager Bud Black said. “Now I think he’s got it together with a calmness and poise on the mental side, which is awesome.”
San Diego has lost 10 of its last 14 and has scored just nine runs in its last seven losses.
“We’re definitely a frustrated group but we’re going to go back at it tomorrow,” manager Jayce Tingler said. “We’ve got (Yu) Darvish going tomorrow and we’re going to come out, swing the bats and be aggressive and see if we can get something going offensively.”
Trent Grisham hit a two-run homer in the Padres ninth off Daniel Bard. He then retired Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. to earn his ninth save.
Gomber set down the first nine batters he faced before Tommy Pham led off the fourth with an infield single, but he was erased on a double play.
The lefty said he changed his approach after a start in St. Louis on May 7 when he allowed five runs in five innings.
“I had really good stuff in St. Louis and I should have pitched better than I did. I felt like a lot of it was the way I was attacking,” Gomber said. “It wasn’t to my strength, I felt like I was pitching more to a scouting report than my strengths.”
C.J. Cron hit a solo homer in the seventh for a 2-0 lead.
The Rockies got their first run in the third off Dinelson Lamet (1-2) on Trevor Story’s two-out single. They added another run on an RBI double by Ryan McMahon in the eighth.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Padres: Tingler said LHP Drew Pomeranz (left shoulder impingement) and C Austin Nola (left knee sprain) are still a few weeks away from rehab assignments. Tingler said Nola has been doing some activity working toward a rehab assignment.
Rockies: INF Chris Owings (thumb) was sent on a rehab assignment to Triple-A Albuquerque and was scheduled to play “five or six innings and hopefully three at-bats” of the Isotopes game on Monday night, Black said. Owings will play multiple games at different positions.
I GOT IT?
The sun was tough on the first basemen in the early innings and twilight played tricks on Wil Myers in the seventh. When Cron’s high drive to right was in the air Myers was looking up but couldn’t locate the ball. He was still searching for it when it landed in the seats behind him.
“There’s about a 10-to-15 minute window every single game where the sun kind of goes down,” Myers said. “When the ball gets above the lights you can’t find it; it’s just a shadow up there somewhere. Pretty helpless feeling not seeing the ball.”
STREAKING ROCKIES
Charlie Blackmon and Raimel Tapia each singled for Colorado to extend their hitting streaks. Blackmon has hit safely in 13 straight, the longest current streak in the majors, and Tapia has a hit in 11 straight games.
GRAY SKIES GONNA CLEAR UP
Black said righty Jon Gray (right flexor tendon) threw a bullpen session Monday and said he thinks Gray’s stay on the injured list won’t be long.
“Everybody’s optimistic, Jon included, about how he feels right now and where this is headed,” Black said. “Even as early as Wednesday you might see him here on the field early facing some of our hitters. Thursday we’ll probably make a determination on what to do with Jon.”
Gray left his June 4 start against Oakland and there were initial fears he would face Tommy John surgery. An MRI was clean and he has been working his way back.
UP NEXT
Darvish (6-2, 2.28 ERA) will go for his first career win against Colorado when he faces RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez (2-4, 5.74) on Tuesday in the second of a three-game series.
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