Sugano earns 10th win as Rockies start road trip by beating NL Central leaders

MILWAUKEE — Rockies Report, Game 105:

ROCKIES BOTTOM LINE: The success equation for Rockies starter Tomoyuki Sugano has been relatively simple since he entered Major League Baseball last year: He’s going to give up home runs, but if they can be of the solo variety, he’ll give his team a chance to win far more often than not.

That was the case Friday afternoon at American Family Field against the Milwaukee Brewers. Sugano opened the afternoon by allowing a homer to Milwaukee designated hitter Christian Yelich on his second pitch. Then he settled in, locked down and didn’t allow another runner past second base until the sixth inning — when, again, he gave up a solo homer.

With run support coming via a Cole Carrigg RBI double, RBI singles from Hunter Goodman and Kyle Karros and a Mickey Moniak sacrifice fly, Sugano left after 5 1/3 innings in position for the win, which the bullpen handled with 3 2/3 innings of scoreless work, paced by Victor Vodnik’s perfect 1 2/3 innings after he entered with Garrett Mitchell on first base and William Contreras on second.

That completed a 5-2 win over the NL Central leaders, getting the Rox’ road trip off to a promising start after a frustrating 2-4 homestand coming out of the All-Star Break.

TJ Rumfield added an RBI single in the eighth inning, coming off the bench after receiving an off-day.

First inning fun 🥳 pic.twitter.com/0WMgQ7cEIC

— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) July 24, 2026

But the story was Sugano, who burnished his potential trade value by becoming the 14th MLB pitcher to 10 wins this season. But significantly, he’s the first Rockies pitcher since Germán Márquez to earn 10 wins in a single season; Márquez had 12 wins in 2021.

“He’ll give up some homers, but usually there’s not a lot of people on base when he does that, which results in efficiency,” Schaeffer.

ROCKIES STARTER’S REPORT

The win stat is what it is, and often reflects run support as much as anything else. And with a 4.69 ERA, Sugano is the least likely member of the current 10-win club this season; nine of the other 13 members have sub-3.00 ERAs, and Sugano’s is the highest in that group.

But there’s something to be said for consistently providing lengthy starts and giving the team a chance. For the 15th time in 18 starts this season, Sugano went at least five innings.

“Tomo’s been great. He’s a professional. He knows how to avoid big innings. He prepares. I feel like I say the same thing about him all the time, but you love it when he takes the ball,” Schaeffer said.

“He puts the ball where he wants two, and he gives us six innings on a consistent basis, which is fantastic for the team.”

Sugano’s pitching mix worked well; of his five strikeouts, two came via the splitter, two with his sinker and one with a four-seam fastball.

BITS AND PIECES

IT WAS DECIDED FOR THE ROCKIES WHEN: Closer Jordan Romano struck out Gary Sánchez and got Yelich to fly out for the final two outs with runners on second and third base, earning his eighth save this season and fourth in a Colorado uniform. “His heartbeat is slow, so you don’t panic,” Schaeffer said. “With him, you know he’s going to get the job done — even if he doesn’t have his best stuff.”

NUMBER TO NOTE: 1.04 — Vodnik’s ERA this month; he delivered 1 2/3 shutout innings Friday. “Vic was awesome,” Schaeffer said.

WHAT’S NEXT: Ryan Feltner and Robert Gasser get the assignments for Saturday evening’s second game of the series. First pitch from Milwaukee is scheduled for 5:10 p.m. MDT.

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