From NCAA to MLS: Ian Smith and Gage Guerra are earning their keep with Timbers
The preseason roommates have been a jolt of energy for Portland.
BEAVERTON — The carrot dangles yards away from the T2 practice pitch.
During the week, the Timbers’ development team trains on the turf field right next to the first team, with dozens of young and hungry players pushing to someday cross the concrete plaza and take their place on the big club’s grass pitch for good.
For Gage Guerra, the transition has come in the last month. The 69th pick in the Dec. 2023 MLS SuperDraft out of Louisville, Guerra signed his first pro contract with T2 in November and has played so well since arriving in Portland — seven goals and four assists in 12 appearances with T2 — that the Timbers signed the 22-year-old to an MLS contract on June 26 through the end of this season with options through 2028.
“He’s going to put pressure on (Felipe) Mora and (Kevin) Kelsy,” manager Phil Neville said. “He’s going to be vital for the way we want to play.”
Guerra’s not exactly new to training with the first team — he played and scored a goal with the club during the Open Cup — but there are some adjustments to be made when making that anticipated move.
“It was smooth for me because it wasn’t a straight jump, but I mean, the surface is a big difference — especially when they wet the field versus the turf in the summer,” Guerra said. “And the level of play is much higher on this side.
“But on both, you have to compete.”
For the Timbers, few are competing harder than their pair of rookies out of the American collegiate system. In Portland’s 2-1 win over New England on Saturday, Ian Smith, the 14th pick out of Denver in December’s SuperDraft, scored his first career goal on a charging header in the 20th minute. In the 59th, Guerra came on at left wing as a shot of energy for Portland, using his physical frame to get his head on a David Da Costa service in the 64th that sailed just over the net.
Da Costa’s 72nd-minute winner is exactly why the Timbers are paying their designated player $3.4 million this season. But after the match, Neville praised the two rookies who earn less than Da Costa pays in taxes.