Once again, Kris Bryant is headed to the injured list

For Kris Bryant, the 2026 season is starting like the 2025 campaign ended — and like most of his four previous Rockies seasons have gone, as the agony of chronic back troubles persist for the slugger.

Bryant will open spring training on the 60-day injured list, the Rockies announced Tuesday in advance of pitchers and catchers reporting for duty in Scottsdale, Ariz. on Thursday.

The move comes as no surprise, given that Bryant played just 11 games last season as his back problems worsened/a>. He underwent an ablation procedure last year to remedy the lumbar degenerative disc disease that has felled him in recent years.

Bryant is in the fifth year of the seven-year, $182-million contract given him by the Rockies in March 2022. Over his first four seasons, Bryant has yet to play in even half of the games of any season, and has now missed 478 of a possible 648 games since joining the club.

He has a WAR of minus-1.5 since joining the Rockies, per Baseball Reference, only finishing in the positive in 2022. His batting average has also dropped, from .303 in 2022 to .233 a year later, .218 in 2024 and finally just .154 in his brief work last season.

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