Kris Bryant has played in only 170 games over his four seasons with the Rockies, and the 2025 campaign saw Bryant appear in just 10 games before his recurring back issues brought his season to an early close. Lumbar degenerative disc disease has left Bryant feeling pain while performing basically baseball activity not related to swinging, and the former NL MVP told the Denver Post’s Patrick Saunders, and this discomfort has now extended to his day-to-day life.
“It’s exhausting for me waking up and hoping to feel [better],” Bryant said. “I can’t tell you the last time I woke up feeling I’m in a good spot….If you asked me two or three months ago, I would say [my back pain] was not affecting my everyday life. But now it is, which is really annoying to me because usually when you kind of just rest, it’s supposed to get better. So maybe I’m at a point where I should just do a bunch of stuff to see if that helps me.”
Bryant has already explored multiple avenues to try and fix his back, including an ablation procedure last May. He isn’t currently doing any baseball activities, as Rockies head trainer Keith Dugger has Bryant on a regular Pilates regiment in order to help reinforce his core. However, it remains to be seen if this treatment or anything will be able to get Bryant back on a path to regular on-field action, which is still his goal.
“That’s the thing that eats at me the most. It’s tough to describe,” Bryant said. “I’ve played this game for 30 years now, not professionally, of course, but it’s all I have ever known….But watching the playoffs and seeing some of my friends still playing, that gives me the motivation to try and play. So I don’t have those conversations [about retirement], thank goodness, because I don’t want to. I just want to be a baseball player.”
Three years and $78MM remain on the seven-year, $182MM free agent deal that Bryant signed with Colorado during the 2021-22 offseason. The signing can unfortunately be considered one of the biggest misfires in free agent history, given how little has Bryant has played, and his lack of production when he has played (.244/.324/.370 and 17 home runs over 712 plate appearances in a Rox uniform). The Rockies’ horrific 231-417 record over the last four seasons is far from Bryant’s fault alone, yet his contract has become somewhat symbolic of this low point in the franchise’s history.
A pivot point may be coming since the Rockies are searching for a new head of baseball operations, and focusing on external candidates in an attempt to finally bring some fresh ideas and new perspectives into the organization. Given the lack of progress with Bryant, it is hard to call his situation a top priority for the incoming new executive, as there seemingly isn’t much to do besides hope that Bryant can get healthy enough to play.
Working out a deferred payment plan for the remainder of the contract may be the eventual outcome for Bryant and the Rockies, since he naturally isn’t going to retire outright and walk away from the money still owed. However, Bryant (who turns 34 in January) isn’t ready to pursue that avenue yet, and only he knows when enough will be enough from a physical and mental standpoint.
