DENVER -- Kris Bryant, panting and smiling, stopped just inside the opening to the Rockies¡¯ clubhouse at Coors Field, hours before the team's 5-2 loss against the Cardinals on Wednesday night. He caught his breath, then shuffled to his locker and talked about what was making him tired and happy.

It was a good day in a tenure with the Rockies that so far is not the kind of tear-jerker that makes anyone happy.

¡°We were just doing sprints, which we¡¯ve been doing for a couple weeks now,¡± said Bryant, who said he likes the progress he is making on the plan the Rockies have had in place for four weeks.

That was what he was doing. When he got to how he is doing, Bryant got real.

¡°I¡¯m not doing too good,¡± Bryant said. ¡°I¡¯m trying my hardest.¡±

Chronic back issues held Bryant to 37 games this year, after he played 80 last year and 42 in 2022 -- the first year of a seven-year, $182 million contract that has been more injured list and rehab than stats for the back of his baseball card.

Bryant acknowledged reaching ¡°the mountaintop¡± at the start of his career -- National League Rookie of the Year in 2015, World Series champ and NL Most Valuable Player in 2016.

¡°I totally turned the page on that [Cubs] chapter of my life,¡± Bryant said. ¡°I want to have a new and better one here. I¡¯m always striving for better things.

¡°There are many nights where I sit there, crying myself to sleep. It sucks, sitting here, watching games, knowing I can¡¯t contribute in any way. I guess I can contribute by talking. I¡¯m struggling really bad with this, and I can¡¯t wait to get back out there.¡±

In three seasons with the Rockies, Bryant has a 90 OPS+, which puts him 10 points below the statistically average MLB hitter. That¡¯s how little he has played and how less-than-himself he has been when on the field. But this is about more than Bryant¡¯s pain.

The Rockies believe that healthy starting pitching and hard-throwing young relievers could be the basis of a surprise team in 2025. But a lineup that will return four players with at least 20 home runs has too many empty at-bats at key times, too many strikeouts. And it lacks that star who affects the other team¡¯s pitching strategies. While young players can grow, the offseason calls for the team to bring in a player or two for stingier plate appearances.

But when it comes to an impact, there is a hole that could be filled by someone 6-foot-5, 230 pounds. Bryant still is the best person to provide outsized production that leads to winning.

¡°I expect that of myself, and I¡¯m going to work my tail off to get there,¡± Bryant said. ¡°Who knows what the future entails for me? I know one thing. I¡¯m going to set myself up to be in the best position to succeed.

¡°You have those thoughts like, ¡®Am I going to get a hit again?¡¯ You have those all the time. I¡¯ve had them since I was a rookie, too. You¡¯ve got to be kind of a sick individual to play this game.

¡°We¡¯re just chasing that next moment, that next game, that next playoff game, that next World Series, the next person in the Hall of Fame. We¡¯re all chasing certain goals and truths, and I¡¯m not going to stop.¡±

Bryant visited a noted spine surgeon, Robert G. Watkins IV, for a frank discussion. The outfielder learned that ¡°there basically is no disk between [vertebrae] L4 and L5, just bone rubbing on them. And then I have severe arthritis in my facet joint.¡±

He said Watkins offered ablation to scar the nerve and reduce pain, but Bryant has yet to agree because it can risk damaging the nerve while it is not sending the same sending signals.

So the key is the workout program that will require communication between the Rockies and physical therapists in Las Vegas, where Bryant spends offseasons, and Bryant and Rockies physical conditioning coaches visiting each other. Bryant said he doesn¡¯t have enough specific information to talk to other athletes who have had the issues.

But he saw inspiration on the wall at Watkins¡¯ office.

¡°You walk through his office and you see [Dodgers pitcher] Clayton Kershaw¡¯s jersey right there,¡± Bryant said. ¡°He said there are guys he¡¯s had in his back program and these guys have gotten to my level 5 and haven¡¯t had any back problems.

¡°Hearing that¡¯s possible gets me excited and makes me want to get up in the morning and say, ¡®I¡¯m going to do this, and I¡¯m going to get better and see if that works.¡¯ Hopefully, it does.¡±