Breaking down MacKenzie Gore’s magical start against the Phillies

MacKenzie Gore looked like an ace on Opening Day, here is how he did it

When you do something that hasn’t been accomplished since Bob Gibson, you know you are doing something right. That is exactly what MacKenzie Gore did yesterday when he went six scoreless innings striking out 13 and walking nobody. Gore looked absolutely dominant, and showed some new tricks to get the job done.

The most impressive thing about Gore’s performance was his command. He was pounding the strike zone yesterday, throwing 66 strikes in 93 pitches. There have been times where Gore’s control has failed him, but yesterday was not one of those days. Even his misses looked purposeful, setting something up. It was a pitcher in total control.

Besides the strike throwing, the thing I noticed the most was his slider. Last year he threw a hard slider, that was more of a cutter. However, he was throwing a true slider with a ton of bite today. Here he is striking out Brandon Marsh with it to get his 13th strikeout.

Gore got six of his 13 punch outs on that slider. Interestingly, he only threw the slider against left handed hitters. However, he leaned on it heavily against them, throwing it more than his fastball to lefties. This true slider looks like an absolute weapon that dismantles left handers. While the shadows certainly helped him out, doing that to a good Phillies lineup in ultra impressive.

Against right handers, Gore had a more varied arsenal. He used his fastball, curveball, changeup, cutter combination to stifle the Phillies right handed bats. The cutter seems to just be the slider he threw last year, just with a new categorization. That changeup is something Gore has been refining for a while and it looked good today. He dropped in a beautiful one to strikeout Alec Bohm.

MacKenzie Gore has always had the stuff. There is a reason he was a top 3 pick and a top prospect for years. He has a dynamic arm from the left side. Last year Gore established himself as a solid middle of the rotation caliber arm. However, he looks ready to take that next step and become an ace this year.

To do that he will need to attack the zone like he did today. Another big key will be avoiding his annual mid summer swoon. Gore is no stranger to good starts. In April and May, Gore’s career ERA is under 3. However, in June and July he has career ERA marks of 5.43 and 7.89 respectively. To reach his ace potential, he will have to hold up in the dog days of summer.

If he is throwing strikes and commanding his new five pitch mix, this will not be a problem. However, I want to see how Gore responds when he doesn’t have his best stuff. If he can find a way to gut out a solid outing in those circumstances, I will be even more excited.

The Nationals have not had an ace since Max Scherzer left in 2021. There is no better feeling in the world than when your ace takes the mound. Today, MacKenzie Gore showed that ace type upside. All he has to do now is keep up the good work. The Nationals showed some flaws yesterday, but it also looks like they may have finally found their ace.