Desmond, Gray lead Rockies to 6-2 win over Padres

DENVER (AP) — Viewed as a power pitcher, Jon Gray always felt he needed to rely on strikeouts.

He altered that thinking. This is Jon Gray: Version 2.0.

Gray threw effectively into the seventh inning and Ian Desmond hit a two-run triple in the sixth, leading the Colorado Rockies to a 6-2 win over the San Diego Padres on Wednesday night.

“Jon wasn’t as crisp as we’ve seen him, but yet he pitched into the seventh inning,” Rockies manager Bud Black said.

All part of his change. He was sent to the minors earlier this season to hone his command and Gray returned a different pitcher. He doesn’t rely on his fastball as much as he placed more faith in his breaking pitches.

“It’s more of a controlled aggression than being aggressive,” Gray explained. “I’m not trying to make it nasty and throw it under their bat. I’m trying to make a quality pitch that’s sharp, that’s in the strike zone, but keeping it out of the heart of the plate.”

Gray (10-7) went 6 1/3 innings and allowed two runs before running out of steam and turning it over to the bullpen. He’s now 3-0 with a 2.59 ERA over seven starts since his recall from Triple-A Albuquerque.

“I hit the reset button,” Gray said.

After allowing a run in the first, Gray settled into a groove against a Padres team that was missing infielder Wil Myers after he was a late scratch. Myers sustained a cut on his nose when a grounder hit him in the face while he was fielding during batting practice.

Padres manager Andy Green said after the game there was no concussion.

“He definitely took a hard one off the face. I don’t know that he was ever pretty but he’s definitely not pretty right now,” Green said.