This story was excerpted from Brian McTaggart's Astros Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

HOUSTON -- By getting added to the 40-man roster earlier this week to avoid getting exposed in the Rule 5 Draft, left-hander Colton Gordon -- the Astros¡¯ No. 11-ranked prospect -- was able to put his mind at ease following a tumultuous few weeks at home in Florida.

More than four feet of water damaged his father¡¯s house in St. Pete Beach, in addition to a 20-foot tree crashing through the roof. Gordon and his father spent weeks cleaning up the mess and helping with the rebuild. His mother¡¯s house in Bradenton also took on some water in Hurricane Helene.

¡°It was a mad rush to get life semi-situated and organized and help my parents¡¯ house and my stuff I leave behind for the season," Gordon said. "And now that that¡¯s under control, it¡¯s time to focus on building that back in 2025."

Gordon, who missed the spring and the first month of the season with a lat injury, went 8-2 with a 3.94 ERA in 25 games (24 starts) across 123 1/3 innings at Triple-A Sugar Land, striking out 124 batters and allowing a .238 opponents¡¯ average. He started the game the Space Cowboys won to take the Triple-A National Championship in Las Vegas, which was right before the hurricane hit. His father had to scurry back to Florida.

¡°He said, ¡®Man, I think there¡¯s a hurricane coming,¡¯¡± said Gordon. ¡°He got on a flight the next morning [after the championship game] and cleaned out the house the next day of family photos, clothes, whatever would fit in a U-Haul truck. That night, four or five feet of water in the house. Living right on the beach, right on the bay, just a crazy amount of destruction, by the whole beachfront itself.¡±

Gordon flew with the team back to Houston the next day and then began driving home to Florida to see the destruction for himself. On top of that, another hurricane -- Milton -- was bearing down.

¡°I had to get my mom¡¯s house secure with the next hurricane, get everything that we took out of the house into a storage unit,¡± he said. ¡°The drywall was already wet and would have been way harder to get out after a second storm surge came in. That second storm wasn¡¯t as bad.¡±

Gordon, an eighth-round pick from the University of Central Florida in the 2021 MLB Draft, could compete for a spot in the back of the Astros' rotation next spring after his breakthrough ¡¯24 campaign put him on the organizational map.

¡°I grew so much throughout the year,¡± Gordon said. ¡°There¡¯s definitely some ups and downs early on, especially coming off the injury and learning moments for myself -- what to do and what not do and how to approach things. I just grew as a pitcher, grew as a person. And I looked up at the end of the year, and it really did end up being a great year. It¡¯s hard to think about those things when you¡¯re in the midst of competing and winning and trying to do the best you can do. I¡¯m really happy with the year, happy how I bounced back off the injury.¡±

Gordon said he grew as much mentally as he did physically last season. He learned more about the approach to the game and getting hitters out. He took to heart the things the Astros have been preaching to him since he joined the organization.

¡°It¡¯s game planning and what works best for me and attacking the zone in certain ways,¡± he said. ¡°Just really, I¡¯d say executing the game plan as to what makes me the pitcher I am.¡±

Now that he¡¯s on the 40-man roster -- which makes him a big part of Houston¡¯s pitching plans -- and he¡¯s healthy, Gordon is eager to make the trip across Florida for Spring Training 2025.

¡°I think the better I do, the better opportunity I¡¯ll have, and it really is as simple as that,¡± he said. ¡°For me specifically, just go in and compete and execute from the jump. ¡­ Wherever my position lines up with the Astros, this year will take care of itself.¡±