The thin air at 5,280 feet usually gets blamed for a lot of things—hanging breaking balls, gasping for breath in the ninth inning, or those home runs that just keep carrying. But lately, the real Coors Field curse hasn't been the altitude. It's been the training room. Honestly, looking at the Colorado Rockies injury report heading into 2026 feels a bit like reading a medical textbook instead of a depth chart.
It’s been rough.
Last season was a franchise-worst 119-loss nightmare. While you can't blame everything on health, it’s hard to win games when your highest-paid superstar is basically sidelined indefinitely and your pitching staff is being held together by duct tape and hope. If you’re a fan trying to figure out who is actually going to be taking the field in April, you’ve come to the right place. We’re going to break down the actual status of the guys who matter.
The Kris Bryant Situation: A Legend in Limbo
Let's just address the elephant in the room. Or rather, the $182 million question mark. Kris Bryant’s tenure in Denver has been, to put it bluntly, a disaster for both sides. He played just 11 games last year. Eleven.
The culprit? Lumbar degenerative disk disease. This isn't just a "sore back" or a "tweak." It’s a chronic, grueling condition that apparently hurts even when he's just waking up in the morning. General Manager Josh Byrnes didn't exactly sound optimistic in early January, admitting he has no idea if Bryant will be ready for Spring Training.
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"I haven't heard anything definitive yet," Byrnes told reporters. "He’s just had a hard time getting on the field."
The reality is that Bryant has explored everything: ablation procedures, consultations with specialists in Dallas, and even a strictly enforced Pilates regimen designed by head trainer Keith Dugger. But if the experimental stuff doesn't work, we might be looking at a career-ending surgery scenario. For now, the Rockies are stuck between a rock and a hard place—they owe him $26 million a year for three more years, but they can't even count on him to be a DH.
Pitching Staff: Rebuilding the Rotation
The 2025 season saw Colorado post a league-worst 5.97 ERA. Ouch. Part of that was the sheer volume of arms that went down. But there's a tiny bit of light at the end of the tunnel for 2026.
Chase Dollander, the kid everyone is pinning their hopes on, had a scare late last year with a left patellar tendon strain. He was shut down in September, which honestly was probably for the best. Reports from the facility say he started his throwing program in December and is "building strength." He's expected to be a full go for Spring Training. He's the future. If he’s healthy, the rotation has a pulse.
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Then there's the veteran core:
- Germán Márquez: He’s a free agent now. After years of being the workhorse, Tommy John surgery and subsequent biceps tendinitis basically derailed his last two seasons. It's the end of an era.
- Antonio Senzatela: This is a big one. The Rockies have officially decided to move Senzatela to the bullpen permanently. After his own Tommy John recovery and a 2025 season where he posted a 7.15 ERA as a starter, management thinks his "max effort" stuff will play better in short bursts. He was actually decent in long relief late last year (3.50 ERA in that role).
- Kyle Freeland: The hometown hero is the last man standing in the rotation. He's healthy, and ZiPS projections are banking on him to soak up 180 innings. He basically has to.
The New Faces and "Probably Healthy" List
Because the Colorado Rockies injury report was so crowded, the front office had to get aggressive this winter. They signed Willi Castro to a two-year deal on January 15th. This guy is a Swiss Army knife. He can play six different positions, which is exactly what you need when you don't know if your starters’ backs or hamstrings are going to hold up.
We also saw the team claim Keegan Thompson off waivers from the Reds and sign Michael Lorenzen. Lorenzen is a key "health insurance" move. He’s a veteran who can start or relieve, providing some much-needed stability if the young guys like Dollander or Carson Palmquist hit a wall.
Minor Lingering Issues to Watch
- Seth Halvorsen: He’s coming back from a right flexor strain. He was hitting 95 mph in October, so he should be a full participant in camp.
- Jeff Criswell: He’s the long-shot. He’s recovering from a torn elbow ligament and is targeting a mid-April return to game action. Don't expect him on the Opening Day roster.
- Thairo Estrada: He ended last year on the 60-day IL with a hamstring strain. He refused a minor league assignment and became a free agent, so he's no longer Colorado's problem, but it’s a name fans kept asking about.
Why Does This Keep Happening?
It’s easy to say "the Rockies are cursed," but there’s some science here. Pitchers' breaking balls don't break as much at altitude, so they often "snap" their wrists or elbows harder to compensate. That leads to more soft tissue injuries and ligament tears. Recovery is also slower at altitude because of the lower oxygen levels.
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Basically, being a pro athlete in Denver is playing the game on "Hard Mode."
The front office changes, including the arrival of Paul DePodesta, suggest the team is trying to get smarter about how they manage workloads. They’ve emphasized "movement quality" and core strength more than ever this offseason, largely because they can’t afford another year where half the payroll is sitting on the bench in hoodies.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Bettors
If you’re tracking the Colorado Rockies injury report for fantasy or just to see if they'll win more than 50 games this year, keep these markers in mind:
- Watch the first 10 days of Spring Training: If Kris Bryant isn't taking full BP or is "limited to side work," start assuming he won't be on the Opening Day roster.
- Monitor Dollander’s velocity: If he’s sitting 96-98 mph early, his knee is fine. If he’s 92-93, the patellar tendon is still bothering him.
- Check the bullpen usage: With Senzatela moving to relief, the Rockies actually have a deep "long-man" group. This might make them more competitive in the middle innings of games where the starter gets chased early.
- Roster Flexibility: The addition of Willi Castro and Tyler Freeman means the team can survive a 10-day IL stint from a position player without a total collapse.
The 2026 season isn't about winning a World Series; it's about seeing if this roster can actually stay on the grass for 162 games. For a team that has been through the medical ringer, "healthy" is the only stat that matters right now.