At 36-90, the Colorado Rockies likely won't finish with the worst record in modern MLB history, but they'll be pretty close. A comedy of errors have the Rockies in the brutal position that they're in, and perhaps none are bigger than the botched Nolan Arenado trade. Everyone knew that the deal that sent Arenado to the St. Louis Cardinals was an utter disaster at the time for Colorado, but somehow, it aged even worse than expected. The Rockies placing Gomber on outright waivers on Wednesday confirms that.
The Rockies waited as long as they could to make this move, hoping to salvage something out of the Arenado trade, but this move felt inevitable. Gomber allowed seven runs on nine hits in just three innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers his last time out, and when talking to the media postgame, he admitted that he felt lost on the mound and had no confidence. His ERA is at 7.49 in 12 starts and 57.2 innings of work this season. It just wasn't working.
Austin Gomber placed on outright waivers by the Rockies, per @BNightengale.
— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) August 21, 2025
Gomber following Tuesday's start:
"I feel like I'm a little bit lost out there right now. I don't really have any confidence, conviction. I don't have an identity of what I'm trying to do."
It's highly unlikely anyone claims him off waivers and pays the remainder of his $6.35 million, so it'll be interesting to see what happens next with his career. All Rockies fans can do is turn the page and hope for better times ahead.
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Rockies finally admit defeat with final piece of Nolan Arenado trade
The Rockies got five players back for Arenado, and none of them amounted to much of anything. In fact, Gomber was one of just two players in the deal to even make it to the majors. He spent parts of five seasons with the Rockies and was a mainstay in their rotation, but just never got it going.
It wasn't always this bad for Gomber, but he entered Tuesday's start with a career 5.23 ERA in 124 appearances and 598.2 innings of work with Colorado. Part of that had to do with pitching half the time at Coors Field, as his 5.22 ERA at that ballpark would indicate, but Gomber didn't do himself many favors on the road either, considering his near-5.00 ERA away from Colorado.
The Rockies were unlikely to keep Gomber around past this season anyway since this was his final year of club control, so parting with him now makes a lot of sense. The Rockies can instead get a look at someone who can conceivably contribute in 2026 and beyond.
What Gomber now needs is a soft landing. He needs to join a team that doesn't play at altitude and can help him unlock some of the potential he once had. The southpaw did have a sub-2.00 ERA in 14 (four starts) appearances for the Cardinals in 2020 before getting traded to the Rockies.
What the Rockies need is to turn the page on the Arenado disaster, and waiving Gomber does that. Again, all Rockies fans can hope for is better times ahead.