DENVER — The Colorado Rockies got bad news Thursday when the MRI performed on injured second baseman Brendan Rodgers came back showing more damage to his dislocated shoulder than they were anticipating. Rodgers will now need surgery that will likely end his year.
Much like the injury to Gavin Lux of their division rival Los Angeles Dodgers earlier this week, the injury to Rodgers is a big blow. Rodgers had lofty goals for 2023 including a plan to make his first All-Star appearance but now that looks unlikely. He injured his shoulder on a routine diving play during the Rockies game against Kansas City on Wednesday.
Host Paul Holden of the Locked On Rockies podcast discussed the injury on Friday’s live episode.
“The Colorado Rockies are facing a significant downgrade," Holden said. "The Rockies are missing a huge, huge piece of their team and it is a total bummer.”
But Holden is also trying to look at the silver lining.
He said, “The Rockies are making the right move in reacting to this,” by having third baseman Ryan McMahon fill in at second base. Holden added about McMahon, “You can still have your concerns about McMahon but he already knows that he’s in a position where he has to contribute to this team.”
Holden also mentioned how this injury could make some of the other Rockies players step up like Elehuris Montero who was part of the Nolan Arenado trade, saying, “Montero needs to show us who the real Elehuris Montero is.”
Players like Alan Trejo, Harold Castro, and Cole Tucker will also have a chance to prove something in 2023 while Rodgers is out.
And it’s not just the younger players who need to step up, according to Holden. He thinks now is the time for veteran Kris Bryant to be the player the Rockies signed him to be.
“He cannot be a non-factor," Holden said.
Bryant missed 120 games last year with a few injuries including plantar fasciitis and a back strain. Bryant will stay in the outfield but Rockies GM Bill Schmidt discussed the moves the team could make in the wake of Rodger's injury.
Rodgers got off to a slow start in 2022 but recovered enough to end up with a .266 batting average while hitting 13 home runs, driving in 63 runs, and playing in a career-high 137 games. He was hoping to finally put it all together in 2023 and have a full season of playing time.
So while this injury and the time missed by Rodgers is not an ideal situation for the Rockies or Rodgers, the team does have some options moving forward and hopefully, Rodgers can make a full recovery.
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