Kris Bryant won’t be in lineup for Rockies in home opener

DENVER — Kris Bryant was out of the Colorado Rockies’ lineup for two of the six games on their season-opening road trip — including the series finale of the sweep they absorbed at Philadelphia — and he won’t be on Bud Black’s lineup card again Friday.

Black opted to hold Bryant out for a second-consecutive day, which puts Jacob Stallings behind the plate and No. 1 catcher Hunter Goodman in the DH spot. This is how the Rockies have handled days with Bryant out of the lineup early this season.

“I think another day for KB is what he needs. The coaches and I were sort of talking through that,” manager Bud Black said.

That means the large throng expected to descend upon Coors Field for the home opener won’t have the chance to boo the team’s $182-million man as it did last year during an eventful home opener in which he clubbed a 2-run homer in the eighth inning — then struck out on three pitches with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth.

It’s the second consecutive year that Kris Bryant has come home after a poor start to the season on the road. Last year, Bryant opened the season 0-for-18.

This year, Bryant is off to a 1-for-14 start with two walks, good for a .071 average and a .259 OPS.

Kris Bryant has been “pressing,” Black said.

“He cares a lot. His swing at the end of spring training wasn’t where we needed it to be,” the manager added. “We thought that things would change once the season happens. That’s what you hope for. But his swings in Tampa and in Philly weren’t where we expect KB’s swings to be. So, another day off today. He’ll be back in there tomorrow.”

There are “big expectations” for Kris Bryant, Black added.

Of course, at the dawn of Bryant’s fourth season with the Rockies, he has rarely been able to meet them.

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