Colorado Rockies Share Injury Updates on Stars Kris Bryant, Charlie Blackmon

Kris Bryant has been on the injured list with a fractured finger since July 22, while Charlie Blackmon has been out with a fractured hand since June 10.

The Colorado Rockies are currently missing two of their biggest stars from their major league lineup, and it remains unclear when the pair will make their long-awaited returns.

Outfielders Charlie Blackmon and Kris Bryant have been out since June 10 and July 22, respectively, watching from the dugout as Colorado dropped to a National League-worst 44-68. Blackmon has been dealing with a fractured right hand, while Bryant has been working his way back from a fractured left index finger.

Blackmon was set to start a rehab assignment with Triple-A Albuquerque on Aug. 1, but a setback prevented him from playing for the Isotopes. The 37-year-old veteran was able to go through full pregame activities on Monday and Tuesday, according to MLB.com, while manager Bud Black told the media that he planned to meet with Blackmon and the team's training staff to discuss next steps.

Before going down with the hand injury, Blackmon was hitting .265 with five home runs, 26 RBI and a .769 OPS.

From 2014 to 2022, Blackmon appeared in 1,253 of the Rockies' 1,356 games. As franchise cornerstones Troy Tulowitzki, Carlos Gonzalez, Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story and DJ LeMahieu came and went, Blackmon remained a staple at Coors Field.

Blackmon's production has dropped off a bit in recent years, though, especially in regards to his power, speed and defense.

After hitting .306 with an .880 OPS and 28 home runs and 20 stolen bases per 162 games in his first seven full seasons, Blackmon has hit .267 with a .751 OPS and 16 homers and three stolen bases per 162 games since. The four-time All-Star has also largely stepped away from his usual spot in the outfield, spending the majority of 2023 as a designated hitter.

Bryant, who has also spent parts of 2023 as Colorado's designated hitter, has had a splint on his left index finger since getting hit by a pitch in July.

The 31-year-old slugger was seen wearing his glove on his right hand rather than his left on Monday. He told reporters that he was not sure when he would be cleared to take the splint off, and that team doctors do not want him to move his finger at all, per MLB.com.

Bryant is hitting .251 with eight home runs, seven doubles, 23 RBI and a .717 OPS so far in 2023.

Back on June 1, Bryant was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left heel bruise. He did not return until June 30, missing 27 games as a result. Bryant was hitting .208 with three homers, six RBI and a .708 OPS across his first 15 games back before hitting the injured list again.

Bryant is in the second year of the seven-year, $182 million contract he signed with Colorado in March 2022. Bryant had just been traded from the Chicago Cubs to the San Francisco Giants a few months earlier.

In his seven seasons with the Cubs, Bryant was named an All-Star four times. In addition to winning the 2016 World Series, Bryant also won NL Rookie of the Year in 2015 and NL MVP in 2016.

Bryant has not enjoyed that level of success since joining the Rockies, individually or as part of a team. Colorado finished dead last in the NL West in 2022, and they sit in fifth again with less than two months left in the 2023 campaign.

Without Bryant or Blackmon in the lineup, the Rockies will continue their road trip against the Los Angeles Dodgers from Thursday to Sunday.

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