Colorado Rockies Injury Update: Ian Desmond Closer to Returning

The Colorado Rockies appear to be inching closer to getting arguably their biggest free agent acquisition of the offseason back on the field.

Ian Desmond has yet to play an inning for the Rockies in the regular season. That, however, could be getting close to changing according to some activity before Colorado opened a four-game series against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park on Thursday night.

According to Nick Groke of The Denver Post, Desmond took infield practice with his Rockies teammates in San Francisco. That would mark his first on-field major activity since he was hit by a pitch on March 12 in a spring training game against the Cincinnati Reds. That inside pitch fractured the second metacarpal in Desmond’s left hand and would require him to undergo surgery four days later.

"“Ian is gaining on it,” Colorado manager Bud Black told reporters prior to Thursday night’s game. “He’s starting to get some clearance to up the activity. He’s able to play catch, take short-hops, a few groundballs.”"

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The next step for Desmond will be taking batting practice, which could occur within the next week. If all goes well, the 31-year-old, right-handed-hitting Desmond could be back with the Rockies before the end of April.

Desmond, who signed a five-year, $70 million contract with the Rockies in the offseason, will look to reclaim the first base spot where Mark Reynolds has filled in nicely since the start of the season. Reynolds came into Thursday night’s opener in San Francisco with a team-leading four homers and 10 RBI. He also told Rox Pile in a recent interview that he’s not going to give up the first base position without a battle.

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The addition of Desmond could help a Rockies offense that has struggled at times through its first 10 games. Included in that stretch was a shutout loss at home to San Diego on Wednesday when Colorado could muster just three hits on the day.