PHOENIX — The indelible impression left by the Rockies’ season-opening, 8-2 loss to the Diamondbacks on Thursday night was starter Jon Gray‘s painful struggles. The right-hander has shown occasional flashes of being a true ace, but he’s clearly not there yet.
Returning to Chase Field where he got mugged in the wild-card playoff loss last season, Gray struggled from the get-go. Had it not been for a fifth-inning rescue by reliever Chris Rusin, the game would have been complete blowout early, rather than late.
Gray’s first inning was hauntingly familiar to his performance against the D-backs last October.