The one thing Colorado's No. 2 prospect isn't good at? Slowing down

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Triple-A Albuquerque would eventually pull away in a 12-7 victory over El Paso on Thursday afternoon. But there was enough doubt that Rockies No. 2 (and MLB Pipeline’s No. 75 overall) prospect Charlie Condon gripped a bat in the dugout and pulled his hands into hitting position -- before Isotopes manager Pedro Lopez caught him.

“I’m like, ‘Huh-uh. ... Put that down,’” Lopez said, smiling.

For all the skills that Condon is making gains at -- converting a record-setting collegiate swing into one that plays in the pros, making himself proficient at first base and the outfield, even monitoring how he feels and sleeps going in and out of altitude -- one is eluding him. He just can’t take a rest, even when he needs one.

“I gave him an off-day in Oklahoma City, and next thing I knew, he was in the batting cage,” Lopez said, with a these-kids-today shake of his head.

Condon’s batting average -- currently .251 -- has fluctuated all season. But he has a .384 on-base percentage, and his .427 slugging percentage includes six home runs, 10 doubles and a triple.

There is more than enough success to justify his being selected third overall out of the University of Georgia in 2024, as well as enough struggle to give him practice dealing with the inevitable slumps that hit a player in the Majors.

“It hasn’t been just straight ‘ups’ since we broke camp in Spring Training,” Condon said. “I came out hot, had some of the results I was looking for, then slowed down a bit. It’s part of the game, part of the things that you are going to run into.

“The things that are working for me well right now are seeing the ball well and making the mechanical adjustments day to day, letting my in-game reps tell me what I need to do and not just guessing and trying new things.”

The heady approach is working. When the Isotopes meet El Paso on Friday, Condon will begin with a nine-game hit streak, during which he has slashed .333/.436/.667 with two home runs and five doubles. Ten of his 17 extra-base hits have come since May 7.

Condon is providing the force one would expect of a player who hit 37 home runs in his final season at Georgia. According to Statcast, he has 54 hard-hit balls (95 mph or greater exit velocity).

“He’s an A-plus -- the kind of student that’s going to study non-stop,” Albuquerque hitting coach Matt Snyder said. “You can tell where his mindset is. You can tell that he’s always trying to get better, trying to figure out how he can take himself to the next level.

“When I watch him and listen to him, he’s wanting to build those approaches and set his terms for an at-bat. He wants to give himself the efficiency that’s going to let his path play for different pitchers with different stuff, giving more solutions through the zone -- adjustability. He’s going to use the whole field. He’s got the juice to do it and not cut the field into thirds.”

It’s easy to see why Condon has a hard time taking time off. He was ticketed for Division III football and baseball, but bet on himself to walk on at Georgia, accepted a redshirt year and played in the wood-bat Northwoods League to establish himself, then grew physically and as a player.

Condon entered pro ball after the ‘24 Draft and batted .180 in 25 games for High-A Spokane, but was playing through a right hand injury that cropped up late in his collegiate season. Last year, he sustained a broken left wrist in his first Spring Training game before showing promise in 99 Minor League games and 22 Arizona Fall League games, during which he batted .337.

The Rockies envision Condon as a middle-of-the-lineup run producer, one who can elevate a team full of either platoon players or potential everyday players who are slumping. But they’re also sensitive that some of those players who struggle now looked like stars in the Minors, only to show they lacked the level of execution or problem solving to shorten their slumps.

The Rockies are making sure Condon and several other prospects will be better prepared. He is not on the 40-man Major League roster. That fact doesn’t preclude a callup, but it would be wise to keep him for the rest of the season no matter how he performs to avoid burning a Minor League option. So the Rockies are taking the time to develop him correctly.

Part of it is making sure Condon is prepped at first base and in right field -- positions he played at times during a college career that saw him play at the infield and outfield corners. Lopez said one reason he gives Condon the periodic day off is he is so diligent with his defensive work.

“He’s doing a lot of running around,” Lopez said. “The biggest thing is getting his reps in right and at first base, and he’s done a really good job.

“I know he’s going to work.”