Kris Bryant is back. But will his injured back allow him to stick around?
For the first time in more than a month, the Rockies’ first baseman/right fielder was back in the starting lineup Tuesday as the Rockies took on the Athletics in Oakland.
Bryant started at first base and hit fifth.
“This last month … sometimes I think you take being on the field for granted,” Bryant told Rockies.TV before the game. “So, now that I’m feeling good again, I’m just ready to have some fun and not take anything for granted. I’m super excited to be back out there.”
To make room on the 26-man roster, outfielder Sean Bouchard was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque.
Bryant, 32, was placed on the injured list on April 17 (retroactive to April 14) with a lower back strain. He missed 31 games, during which the Rockies were 11-20.
In five rehab games at Albuquerque, Bryant hit 3 for 20 (.150) with one double and one RBI. He struck out six times. He played two games at first base, two as the designated hitter and one in right field.
Bryant was in a slump when he went on the IL, hitting just .149 (7 for 47), tied for the ninth-lowest in the majors (minimum 45 at-bats). He hit one home run and drove in six runs.
During his stint on the IL, Bryant opened up about his back issues, explaining that his lower back is a chronic problem. He also described his frustration at being on the injured list six times in his two-plus seasons since signing a seven-year, $182 million free-agent deal with Colorado.
“It’s hard to put into words. It’s through the roof,” he told The Denver Post. “Some days, I just sit in bed and stare at the ceiling with the frustration. It’s hard.”
Bryant said he’s trying to play with the condition and find ways to avoid the IL.
“I guess it’s hard to speak on because I’m not a doctor, but the discs in my back are pretty much dried up, so there’s a couple of discs that … they don’t function like they did 10 years ago,” Bryant said earlier this month. “My facet joints are a little — not a little — they are pretty severely arthritic, and (there are) a lot of bone spurs and stuff like that. It’s just part of getting older. That’s the way the doctor explained it to me. So I just have to find a way to manage it the best I can.”
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