Denver, CO
Keeler: Rockies players “trust” slugger Kris Bryant, even after recent comments. But will Denver fans?
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — If Kris Bryant put his bat on the ball as quickly as he put a foot in his mouth, there’s no story. No shock, no clean-up, no counter, no spin.
But give the Rockies’ slugger credit for this much. Almost as soon as it was presumed he’d thrown his teammates under a slew of metaphorical buses, Bryant ran out in the middle of traffic, on his own, to try and mitigate the roadkill.
“Before I had to navigate it, he walked through that (office) door,” skipper Bud Black told me, nodding at the pathway to his desk inside the Rockies’ swanky spring training HQ at Salt River Fields. “He goes, ‘Hey, I want to talk about this article.’”
You know the one. You’ve seen it. But back on March 1, Black still hadn’t. In the most buzz-worthy — and cringe-worthy — nugget to emerge from Rockies camp, Bryant told The Athletic late last month that he didn’t “do as much research into (Colorado’s) prospects as I could.” The $182-million man intimated he was in a rush to get to spring training, to get back to a team and to his routine, in the winter of ’21-22.
“He basically contradicted (to me) how the story portrayed some of his quotes,” Black recalled. “So right then, I knew, ‘Hey, listen, he’s standing up to this.’ And he wanted to address the team. Which he did.
“So from that point on, to me, it was over. He stood up, he handled it, addressed the team. From that point, I knew that there wasn’t any navigation to be done. Because he handled it as a pro and as a teammate.”
When I approached those teammates, they shrugged. New season. Old news.
“I trust Kris,” Rockies ace German Marquez told me over the weekend.
“I don’t want to get too deep in this conversation, but I’ve thrown to that guy. He’s going to be good. He’s going to do it well. (He’s) an amazing guy. And we’ve always got his back as teammates.”
What did he say, specifically?
“He talked about everything,” Marquez replied, reaching into his locker stall for a glove. “(And it) stays inside the clubhouse.”
It takes two sides to screw up a contract, and the warranty on this one expired ages ago. Bryant didn’t do his homework. Neither did the Rockies, who convinced themselves they were buying Arenado Lite and got a corner bat on the wrong side of 30 with back problems.
Sorry. Fewer back problems.
“I changed the workout routine in the offseason a little bit,” Bryant told me Friday. “I’ve added a little bit more equipment for my back and just (worked on) lengthening my spine and things like that, that I think (can) carry over into the season.”
He tagged a Glute-Ham Developer onto the regimen — a small, versatile little toy with footpads that are designed to strengthen core posterior chain muscles in the glutes, hamstrings and lower back. So far, so good: Bryant launched his third home run of the Cactus League season on Saturday afternoon, a rainbow that landed just right of the batter’s eye in center and gave the Rockies a 2-0 lead against the Oakland/Vegas/Salt Lake/Sacramento/Jenny Cavnar Athletics.
“Everybody has these things, and I just never had used it,” Bryant said. “It’s just really about creating length in my spine and building up the muscles around it to take on longer seasons and stuff like that. So it feels good. I feel good. I feel like every day in spring has gotten a little bit better each day. So that’s good. That’s great. I’m excited about that.”
As we talked, I noticed there was only one open chair free in the small interview room across the hall from the Rockies’ clubhouse. Bryant offered it up to the heathen media, and happily.
“No, no, I’m good,” Colorado slugger said. “I feel more comfortable standing while I talk.”
Nice guy. The nicest. Puppies are born with more enmity than Bryant, one of baseball’s gentle giants.
Speaking softly is fine. But when you’re due to make $28 million this season and $27 million in 2025, it also requires carrying a big stick. Catcher Elias Diaz and shortstop Ezequiel Tovar posted higher slugging percentages last summer than Bryant’s .367.
“My teammates know how I feel about them and they know how much belief I have in them,” Bryant said. “And that’s just the world nowadays. People read things and they form however they want to see things. And that’s OK. I mean, I do the same thing when I read things.”
If there’s upside, if there’s hope, it’s that the broken finger from last summer’s healed up. Thanks to inserts, irritation from 2022’s plantar fasciitis has largely subsided. And while playing a 32-year-old with back and foot issues in Coors Field’s gap-happy, cavernous corners seems fraught with risk, Bryant offered a counter-argument of his own Saturday in the sixth inning with a nice sliding catch.
“I’ve seen so many people in this game — I don’t want to say change, but, you know, certain fame gets to people, and (so does) money,” Bryant said. “I’m proud to say that I’ve really treated people the right way, with respect, the fans with respect. And at the end of the day, you’re never going to remember what someone told you. But you’re always going to remember how they made you feel.”
Rockies fans don’t feel great, my man.
“Like I said, I worry about everything,” Black offered. “That’s what we do, right? But I also know, ultimately, Kris’ forthcoming actions and interviews and performance will speak louder than, and I think will eventually trump, what came out of that article.”
Bryant is an open book, honest to a fault. The big guy said he wasn’t misquoted when he noted that he hadn’t done his due diligence researching the Rockies’ organization two years ago. He stressed that was in the context of what he knew of Colorado relative to the Cubs’ organization, the one that drafted him. Still, PR 101 says the more emotional the rebuttal, the faster the pushback, the closer the original content came to cutting real bone.
Even if you want to interpret No. 23’s initial ruminations as a back-door, genteel flare to get me off this ship, what GM with half a cerebrum would take that contract on without a rebound first? The only way out of the mire, for all parties, is for Bryant’s bat to do most of the talking from here on out.
“I wouldn’t change a thing that has happened (since 2022), honestly,” he said. “Maybe earlier on in my career, like 2015? Yeah. There’s some things I wish I might have done a little differently. But up to this point, I’m super proud of not just accomplishing things on the field, but just who I am as a person and my beliefs.”
He smiled. We shook hands. Dude’s a nice guy on a team of nice guys, stuck in the meanest, cruelest, most cutthroat division in baseball, pushing a boulder uphill. The sad truth about nice guys in this game, even ones who’ll stop a bus for a brother, is that the standings almost never lie.
Want more Rockies news? Sign up for the Rockies Insider to get all our MLB analysis.
The Denver Broncos hosted eight tryout players at mandatory minicamp this week, including quarterback Sawyer Robertson. It sounds like the team has made decisions on those tryout players, and Robertson won’t be signed (at least not right now).
Instead, the Broncos are signing offensive lineman Reid Holskey (according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler) and cornerback Blake Cotton (according to the Denver Post‘s Parker Gabriel). Holskey (6-6, 306 pounds) spent time on the Houston Texans’ practice squad in 2025 before joining the New York Giants in January. He was cut by New York last month. Cotton (6-2, 195 pounds) is a rookie who spent last fall at Utah, totaling 30 tackles and seven pass breakups in 13 games.
The two moves came one day after Denver wrapped up minicamp. The 91-man offseason roster was already full, so the Broncos will need to make corresponding moves to make room for Holskey and Cotton on the roster.
Social: Follow Broncos Wire on Facebook and Twitter/X! Did you know: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
Sean Payton has seen enough. The Denver Broncos’ third practice of mandatory minicamp, which was set to happen on Thursday, has been canceled.
“Just schedule-wise, today will be our last day,” Payton said after Wednesday’s practice. “I just finished telling them that. It’s unusual because there’s a lot of packing, a little bit more than normal when you’re moving into another facility. So when we’re back here, we’ll be in the new building.”
The Broncos are moving into their new state-of-the-art facility, but the decision to cancel the final practice of the offseason was motivated primarily by what Payton has seen thus far and how the team is shaping up.
Thus concludes the Broncos’ offseason training program, which featured eight total practices as a team, four of which were open to the media. There was more on-field activity than that, including walkthrough practices unseen by the press, but in essence, we’re talking about eight sessions.
Some players have already begun to separate themselves in their respective competitions. Others have really popped, while some have failed to really stand out in any meaningful way.
By way of a Broncos stock report, let’s get to the biggest winners and losers of mandatory minicamp.
Winner: Bo Nix | QB
Nix finally returned to the practice field on Tuesday, the first day of minicamp. He was limited to individual drills only, but it was still great to see him out there.
On Day 2, though, Nix took another big step forward, participating in a 7-on-7 drill that included a highlight-reel touchdown pass to RJ Harvey. Just getting Nix back on the field was a big win for the Broncos, but seeing him progress over two days and look overall very sharp was more than a little encouraging.
Winner: Jaylen Waddle | WR
Waddle has been a lightning rod since the practices were opened to the media. He just looks different. That speed and explosiveness really add an element to the Broncos’ offense that has been lacking.
It’s been palpable. But arguably just as exciting is what Waddle’s teammates and coaches have been saying about him. Payton has called him a “force multiplier,” which is another way of saying that he makes everyone around him better.
Not that we really had reason to doubt it, but Waddle has been as advertised thus far, and then some.
Loser: Marvin Mims Jr. | WR
Mims is not listed as a loser because of any specific negative plays, like a dropped pass or a mental miscue. It’s just that, with other receivers, including Waddle, shining, generating buzz, and earning plaudits from Payton, Mims didn’t really.
Mims is a similar receiver type as Waddle, but the newcomer made it clear how much separation exists between them in practice. Now, Mims is still important to the Broncos, especially as a returner, and Payton did compliment his clutch gene and contributions in big games, but you have to wonder how he fits into the game plan on offense. That question still hasn’t been answered.
Winner: J.K. Dobbins | RB
Dobbins was his usually talkative self at minicamp, but the fact that he was healthy and out there doing his thing is a major win for the Broncos. It’s good to have him part of the daily process at Broncos HQ again because he’s one of those veterans that takes players under his wing, and elevates them.
Winner: Que Robinson | OLB
With the recent off-the-field drama the Broncos have dealt with, some extra attention was paid to the Broncos’ outside linebackers. Robinson, in particular, separated himself during minicamp.
His get-off is something else, and he was dispruptive during the Broncos’ team periods. Vance Joseph has said he views Robinson as a “future starter.” Pending Cooper’s situation, the future could be now, though Elliss will also have something to say about that.
Robinson had one heck of an offseason. I’m really looking forward to his second year.
Loser: Jonathon Cooper | OLB
After being arrested twice in the span of a week, the Broncos excused Cooper from mandatory minicamp. It would seem the Broncos want to create some distance from Cooper until his legal troubles are resolved, one way or another.
It’s a shame, in more ways than one. Beyond what legal ramifications might await Cooper, he’s very likely to be suspended by the NFL, and the Broncos releasing him at some point is not outside the bounds of the plausible. It’s a good thing that rush linebacker room is stacked.
Winner: Matt Henningsen | DL
None of these winners has been quite as surprising as Henningsen. He made a huge play on Day 1 of minicamp, tipping a Sam Ehlinger pass and returning it to the house.
Henningsen followed that up with another disruptive Day 2. He’s gone from being an after thought in the Broncos’ defensive line conversation to establishing himself as a bona fide threat for the roster.
Loser: Jahdae Barron | CB
Like Mims, Barron wasn’t bad during the offseason; he just didn’t pop, really, in any way. He broke up one pass on Day 2 of minicamp, but beyond that, there wasn’t much to see.
It will be interesting to see how Barron performs in training camp. We know the Broncos have high expectations for him, and a role on defense, even if as a depth piece, will be created for him, but I was hoping to see more signs of a Year-2 leap by now.
Winner: Jonah Coleman | RB
Another as-advertised player. Coleman has proven he’s ready for the NFL, which was partly what attracted the Broncos to him in the draft.
Coleman stood out in a major way at minicamp and made it clear that the Broncos have more than just a J.K. Dobbins insurance policy on their hands. Coleman is a force to be reckoned with.
Winner: Tyler Onyedim | DL
Like Coleman the Broncos’ first pick in the 2026 draft has looked NFL-ready. The Broncos still haven’t signed Onyedim, but that didn’t stop him from participating in the offseason program, which is a good harbinger.
Rocking the No. 98 jersey, it’s easy to mistake Onyedim for the guy he was drafted to replace: John Franklin-Myers. That’s especially true when the rookie is out there making plays like JFM. Onyedim has earned praise from his teammates, including the All-Pro Zach Allen.
Winner: Evan Engram | TE
Engram looked very good in minicamp this week. He looked like a big, athletic, smooth, explosive receiver, which is what he’s been in the NFL.
Engram wasn’t really all those things in his first year with the Broncos, but I’m hopeful that Year 2 will be different for the two-time Pro Bowler. He’s had a good summer.
Winner: Troy Franklin | WR
Franklin seems like the obvious No. 3 receiver in the pecking order. That doesn’t mean he’ll get the No. 3 snaps on an exclusive basis, though.
As the Broncos’ No. 2 last year, Franklin wasn’t able to fully live up to that, although he took some big steps forward in his second year. As the No. 3, it’s more his natural spot and that should allow him to continue to thrive in the offense, especially with the connection he has with Bo Nix dating back to Oregon.
Winner: Sam Ehlinger | QB
Ehlinger had a great offseason. He looked way more comfortable and far sharper in the offense in what is his second go-around in Payton’s offense.
Ehlinger was sharp this summer, and if he can continue to build on the foundation he’s created, it could create some uncomfortable conversations at Broncos HQ.
Loser: Jarrett Stidham | QB
Stidham has been less noteworthy this summer, but that doesn’t mean he’s been bad. In comparison to Ehlinger, though, Stidham wasn’t as good, which is curious, considering his standing as the team’s primary backup since 2023.
If Ehlinger ends up leapfrogging Stidham, what do the Broncos do? They’re holding a competition for QB2, and they have to be prepared for the possibility of Ehlinger winning it, especially after his strong summer.
If Ehlinger forces this issue, Stidham could become expendable. Stidham is very unlikely to be a cut candidate because of his contract, but as a trade piece? There’s a reason the rumor mill has been active on the Stidham topic this offseason. It’s something to watch.
Sign up for our free Denver Broncos On SI newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
The Mecca Sports Bar in Denver will be allowed to continue operations after it reached a settlement agreement with the city. According to the Denver Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection, the business will be required to pay a $5,000 fine and have employees complete specialized training.
The bar had been under investigation for prostitution since 2024.
According to the Denver Police Department, there were two arrests for prostitution as a result of the investigation into the bar, in addition to a merchant guard license violation for failure to comply.
According to the city’s licensing department, the business will be under a probationary period, where if there are any other violations of law or rules and regulations, it could face harsher penalties, including license suspension or revocation.
Denver police investigators said they conducted three undercover prostitution stings at the bar. In every operation, officers said they were offered sex for money and told about a scheme where the women would overcharge for alcohol and keep the extra cash.
Mecca Sports Bar is located off West Mississippi Avenue and Federal Boulevard near Huston Lake Park and was formerly known as Club Dubai.
-
Kentucky5 minutes agoKentucky MBB players were dishing out smiles at the Kentucky Children’s Hospital this week
-
Louisiana12 minutes agoGov. Landry declares state of emergency after flooding, severe weather across Louisiana
-
Maine15 minutes agoImportant things to know about the Maine boys lacrosse state finals
-
Maryland20 minutes agoUniversity of Maryland football player arrested for harassment
-
Michigan27 minutes agoMichigan Department of Corrections to launch L.E.A.D. Academy program this fall
-
Massachusetts30 minutes agoTwo men indicted for Hinsdale robbery after ‘cigarette trail’ leads through Vermont, Massachusetts
-
Minnesota35 minutes agoMinnesota cannabis store owners lament testing backlog: “It’s getting frustrating for everyone involved”
-
Mississippi42 minutes agoMississippi veterans urged to seek PTSD help during Awareness Month
