Colorado Rockies: Kris Bryant gives an injury update on his back

Before the final game of a three-game series between the Colorado Rockies and Cincinnati Reds at Coors Field on Sunday, Rockies outfielder Kris Bryant provided the media with an update on his back strain that placed him on the 10-day injured list.

Here’s what Kris Bryant of the Colorado Rockies said on Sunday about his back injury

Bryant confirmed to the media that the pain is centered in his lower back on the right side.

“Like the hinging aspect of the game, bending over, and even sometimes at the end of my rotation (at the plate),” Bryant said when asked to describe when the pain is noticed most. “I just felt it in my work in the cage. I didn’t feel as crisp as I wanted to.”

Bryant was officially placed on the disabled list on Friday, retroactive to Tuesday (April 26) and it’s hoped that he can return in time for a six-game road trip the Rockies begin on Friday, starting in Arizona before heading to San Francisco. Bryant, however, pumped the brakes on any date when he might return.

“In the past, I’ve been in situations where you say you’re coming off (the injured list) this day and it doesn’t happen, then it creates more of a story than you want it to be,” Bryant said. “I work in day to day, but being optimistic of being ready when I can be.”

The 30-year-old Bryant has started the season somewhat slow at the plate, slashing .281/.338/.351 in 65 plate appearances (57 at-bats). While the batting average is close to his career average (.278), his four doubles represent his only extra-base hits in a Rockies uniform.

Bryant said he first noticed the pain after the Rockies played a doubleheader in Detroit against the Tigers last Saturday, adding he woke up sore the next morning.

“I just chalked it up to my first doubleheader in a while and didn’t really look much into it,” Bryant said. “It just continually gave me some problems. Even in my work in the batting cage, I just noticed the results and the results in the field weren’t what I wanted them to be. That’s when I said, ‘Hey, I don’t know if this is good to keep going through.'”

After meeting with the media, Bryant was heading to play catch to test progress there. He has not been swinging a bat and was still waiting for clearance to be able to restart that activity.

Bryant said there was some frustration with the injury but also he was trying to take it in stride and get healthy so he could return to the field.

“You’re going to have bumps and bruises along the way,” he said. “Some of those you can obviously manage and control and others you need to speak up and say something. I just felt this was something I needed to try to find a way to really get under control.”

To take Bryant’s place on the roster, Colorado called up prospect Elehuris Montero. He was slotted into the Rockies batting order on Sunday, hitting ninth as the team’s designated hitter as he makes his MLB debut.