DENVER — Rockies outfielder Kris Bryant acknowledged Saturday that coming back from a proper foot harm for just a few late-season video games isn’t “within the playing cards.”
The primary season of a seven-year, $182 million contract noticed Bryant, 30, seem in simply 42 video games, with a again harm costing him a lot of the primary half. Then got here the mix of plantar fasciitis and a bone bruise in his proper foot after the All-Star break. Bryant final performed on July 31. He completed with a .306 batting common, 5 residence runs (all on the highway) and 14 RBIs.
The choice to close it down for 2022 was anticipated, particularly after Bryant underwent a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection on Aug. 24. That has an extended therapeutic time than a cortisone injection (which Bryant used to return from the again harm). The excellent news, Bryant stated, is he’s working in baseball spikes earlier than he anticipated.
“The objective was to finish the yr with striders, at about 30% with the motion — and I am forward of that, which is nice,” Bryant stated. “I wished to get as near having the ability to play a sport as I may, as a result of then I can formulate an offseason strategy that is higher.
“If we had been within the playoff hunt, I in all probability would have pushed by way of and bought a cortisone shot. The PRP is extra therapeutic, whereas cortisone masks the ache.”
The Rockies signed Bryant through the fast, post-lockout Spring Coaching in hopes his energy may ignite the lineup and push the workforce into not less than sufficient playoff relevance to be a Commerce Deadline purchaser. However with a skinny roster, virtually all the things would have needed to go proper.
The Rockies completed 20-22 in video games through which Bryant performed — 18-15 earlier than the All-Star break. Poor pitching, a scarcity of depth and Bryant’s declining well being contributed to the Rockies’ nosedive early within the season’s second half.
“I’ve dealt with it as finest as I may,” Bryant stated. “It’s a little miserable, simply not taking part in baseball. Coming to a workforce and signing a deal, it sucks not being on the market. Yearly from February to October, I am used to taking part in baseball. And for essentially the most half this yr, I have been watching.
“I am completely excited for subsequent yr. I do know what to anticipate and I am comfy with the fellows. It has been actually cool to see the youthful guys getting a chance. [Shortstop Ezequiel] Tovar and all these guys are getting a chance.”
Bryant stated the phrases of a mentor and former Cubs teammate, pitcher John Lackey, have helped him course of a misplaced yr in a metropolis that he wished to reside in, one he felt was glad to see him.
“Everyone I’ve talked to, simply run into on the road, was excited to see me and inform me how excited they’re to see me play,” Bryant stated. “However speaking with John Lackey, he stated you’re going to have years like this, and you ought to be grateful as a result of meaning you have had a extremely lengthy profession.
“It taught me to have the correct perspective, however it’s onerous.”
