Native son Freeland dazzles in a complete game as Rockies sweep Royals 8-1 at steamy Coors Field

DENVER (AP) — After getting the final out in the eighth inning, Kyle Freeland walked off the field as fans behind the Colorado Rockies’ dugout gave the veteran left-hander a standing ovation.

As it turned out, his day wasn’t done quite yet, even as his time in Colorado may be coming to a close.

The 33-year-old pieced together one of the best starts of his career, giving up one run and striking out eight in his first major league complete game as the Rockies beat the Kansas City Royals 8-1 on a scorching Sunday at Coors Field.

It came in his 251st career start. Heading into the day, Freeland was one of just two pitchers in major league history, along with Eduardo Rodriguez, with at least 250 career starts and no complete games.

It was the first complete game by a Rockies pitcher since June 27, 2022, when Chad Kuhl went the distance in a 4-0 win against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

It was only the third time in Freeland’s career that he had thrown at least eight innings.

“He’s been such an enormous presence in the clubhouse in the Rockies’ winning days and then through this lull we’ve had in the past however many years, he’s been a constant leader in the clubhouse,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said after the game. “Through thick and thin, which is the test of a real leader. Can you lead in distress? And he has. He’s meant the world to me as a first time manager. He’s been fantastic and I’m so happy for him today.”

It has not been Freeland's best season. He’s 3-10 with a 6.81 ERA, 93 strikeouts and 23 walks.

“I’ve had a lot of starts this year where it was, ‘Gosh, one thing here and one thing there and we’re sitting pretty,’” Freeland said. “You look at my starts and it’s small things — if I would have executed better or if we had made this play, it would have been better. If I hadn’t walked this guy, I wouldn’t have let an inning snowball."

Sunday's win was only his second in his past 19 starts. The latest victory was the 68th of his Colorado career, tying him with Germán Márquez for the third-most in franchise history.

While helping his team complete a three-game sweep of the Royals, Freeland retired 18 consecutive batters before allowing Salvador Perez's double in the ninth inning. His stamina was even more impressive considering it came during the second-hottest home game in Rockies history. It was 99 degrees Fahrenheit at first pitch and in the top of the fifth inning, halfway through Freeland’s outing, the temperature on the field was 123 degrees.

The performance came as Freeland’s name has surfaced in trade speculation ahead of Monday's trade deadline. The Denver native has spent each of his 10 major league seasons with the Rockies.

“In the back of your head, there is that thought of this could be potentially my last one here at home,” Freeland said after the game. “We’ll see in the next 24 hours how all that unfolds.”

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