Kris Bryant’s disastrous seven-year contract with the Colorado Rockies continues to be, well, a disaster. The Rockies placed Bryant on the 10-day injured list with lumbar degenerative disc disease, the team announced Monday. They did not provide a timetable for his return or details about a treatment plan.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, lumbar degenerative disc disease occurs when “the cushioning in your spine begins to wear away,” potentially leading to intense pain in the neck and back. Bryant missed 35 days with a back strain in 2022 and 85 total days with back strains in 2024 (two injured list stints). Now his back will sidelined him more in 2025.
This is Year 4 of Bryant’s seven-year, $182 million contract with the Rockies. He played only 159 of 486 possible games from 2022-24, and in those 159 games he hit an underwhelming .250/.332/.381 with 17 home runs. Bryant has hit only nine home runs at Coors Field in parts of four seasons with Colorado, all in 2023 and 2024.
Now 33, Bryant hit .154/.195/.205 with zero home runs and 13 strikeouts in 11 games this season before going on the injured list. He has been limited to DH this year and has not played the field since last August, before a back issue ended his season. It all adds up to minus-1.6 WAR as a Rockie, which is wretched for any player, let along one with Bryant’s contract.
It is unknown whether the Rockies have insurance in Bryant’s contract. Every policy is different, though insurance policies on player contracts typically cover the player’s salary only after he spends a specified number of consecutive days on the injured list.
Catcher Braxton Fulford was called up to replace Bryant on the roster. The 26-year-old was hitting .395/.477/.868 in Triple-A before getting the call. This will be his MLB debut.
The Rockies enter play Monday with baseball’s worst record (3-12) and run differential (minus-44).
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