Braves vs. Padres Friday probable pitchers, odds: Touted prospect MacKenzie Gore make first big-league start for San Diego
One of the top pitching prospects in MLB will start for San Diego on Friday.
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Once considered the top pitching prospect in all of baseball, the shine is a bit off San Diego Padres left-hander MacKenzie Gore, but he's still a Top 100 guy and will make his big-league debut Friday at home vs. the Atlanta Braves in place of an injured Blake Snell. The Friars opened as short favorites at Caesars Sportsbook and Gore is +3000 to win National League Rookie of the Year.
Over the past couple of years, anytime a team sent a good player to San Diego in a trade, that club always asked for Gore and was told no. He was the third overall pick in the 2017 MLB Draft out of a North Carolina high school, chosen behind No. 1 pick and shortstop Royce Lewis by the Twins and No. 2 pick and pitcher Hunter Greene of the Reds. Lewis hasn't debuted in the majors yet but Greene has this season.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Gore is now ranked as the No. 85 overall prospect in MLB. On a scale of 20-80, he has an overall grade of 55 with his fastball and changeup both 60. Gore was MLB Pipeline's Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2019 when he had a 1.74 ERA and a .130 batting average against in 20 starts split between High-A and Double-A. He was perhaps ticketed for the majors in 2020 if not for the pandemic-shortened season and was the No. 3 overall prospect (behind Wander Franco, who is already a star in MLB and Adley Rutschman, who has yet to debut) and No. 1 pitcher entering 2020.
There was no minor-league season that year, though, and in 2021 across four levels Gore was 1-3 with a 3.93 ERA in 12 starts with 61 strikeouts (good) and 28 walks (not good). He was limited to 12 starts due to a blister issue.
Command/mechanical issues have caused his stock to drop. Gore looked good this spring in Cactus League action -- striking out 16 with only three walks allowed in 12 innings -- but started the season at Triple-A El Paso, where he pitched five scoreless innings last Saturday with seven strikeouts and no walks. He threw 43 of his 63 pitches for strikes and faced one batter over the minimum.
A spot is open because Snell has landed on the injured list with his left adductor tightness. He was a last-minute scratch from his scheduled start last Sunday and things obviously didn't improve this week while throwing as Friday was to be Snell's turn. The former Cy Young winner has been a bust since being acquired from Tampa Bay via trade before the 2021 season.
Gore doesn't have close to the shortest odds among Padres players for NL Rookie of the Year: Shortstop CJ Abrams is a +700 second favorite behind the Cubs' Seiya Suzuki (+160). Abrams hit his first big-league homer Thursday.
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