TJ Rumfield, Rockies aim to cool off Marlins

Hunter Goodman grabbed the headlines with a three-homer day at Minnesota on Saturday, and the well-earned attention overshadowed what his Colorado teammate is doing.

Rockies first baseman TJ Rumfield is riding a 12-game hitting streak and will have a chance to extend it when Colorado faces the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night in Denver.

Miami recorded a 10-7 victory over Colorado on Monday in the opener of a four-game series.

The Marlins, who have won five of their past six games, will send Eury Perez (3-6, 4.41 ERA) to the mound to start Tuesday's contest.

The Rockies are expected to activate fellow right-hander Tanner Gordon (0-1, 6.37) from the 15-day injured list to take the mound. He has been sidelined with a right hip impingement.

Gordon has made one start against the Marlins -- Sept. 18 of last season -- and took the loss after allowing four runs (three earned) in five innings.

Rumfield, acquired from the New York Yankees for reliever Angel Chivilli in January, has put together an impressive rookie season, punctuated by a strong finish to June. He is batting .315 in the month and has raised his average from .275 to .294 during his hitting streak.

Rumfield has 12 home runs, and his 45 RBIs trail only Goodman (48) on the team.

"It was definitely a fresh start," said Rumfield, who made the Rockies' roster after a strong spring training. "I felt like I had a lane to get to the big leagues. Just being able to show up in spring training and show the front office what I was able to do, and kind of get the jump on Opening Day, I just haven't looked back since then."

Rumfield will try to stretch his hitting streak against Perez, who will make his second start since coming off the injured list last week. Perez allowed one run on three hits in 4 2/3 innings in his team's 4-2 win over Texas last Wednesday.

It was an encouraging outing for the Marlins, who have relied on Sandy Alcantara and Max Meyer to anchor the rotation during the four weeks Perez missed with a leg strain.

"What we're seeing now, we hope, is momentum he continues to take," Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said after Perez's most recent outing. "We believe he's got frontline-starter capabilities, and someone that can run through lineups three-plus times with the type of arsenal that he has.

"Putting another frontline-capable starter in there certainly is going to help. He's quality; he can go out there and shut down any lineup with the weapons he has. He does help fortify the rotation."

Perez has faced Colorado three times in his short career, going 1-1 with a 3.31 ERA. His last outing against the Rockies was during the opening series of 2026, when he allowed three runs on five hits in seven innings on March 28.

He did not factor into the decision of Miami's 4-3 win.

Two of Perez's starts against Colorado have come in Denver. His first outing in 2023 -- which was his third major league appearance -- was a loss and lasted just 4 1/3 innings, but he pitched five shutout innings at Coors Field last season.

--Field Level Media