DENVER — Charlie Blackmon’s hitting slump may soon have him bumped from his prime-time spot in the Rockies lineup.

Blackmon, who has hit in the fourth spot all season, has just nine hits through his first 17 games. Manager Bud Black said the team has had discussions about moving him down the order until he gets his confidence back, and that it will continue to consider it if he doesn’t get back on track. 

It’s typical for Blackmon to take a few weeks to heat up, but his batting average through the first 17 games is just .164, well below his career average of .302. He only has one home run, which came during the second game of the season against the Dodgers.

His previous worst start came in 2019, when his average was .219 after the first 17 games. Blackmon finished that season with 182 hits, 32 home runs and a .314 batting average. He also made his fourth trip to the All-Star Game that year.

“I think just with Chuck, there is a little frustration,” Black said. “Maybe the swings are getting a little hard and a little big. He’ll be fine. For me, it’s a little bit of an aberration, what’s going on with Charlie.”

Blackmon’s timing has been off — he’s behind on the fastball and ahead on the breaking ball. He has also hit a large number of foul balls off of lower velocity, off-speed pitches. Black said Blackmon has been spending time in the batting cages, as well as reviewing video.

“A lot of his success is from hard work and self-taught,” Black said. “He’s going to grind through this like only he can.”

Freeland throws first bullpen

Starting pitcher Kyle Freeland took another step forward in his recovery from a shoulder strain Saturday, throwing his first bullpen session since the injury. He threw 25 pitches at 85 to 90% effort, and Black said Freeland had no shoulder pain.

“The ball came out well,” Black said. “The delivery looked good. Very, very encouraging today.”

Freeland appeared in three spring training games before he hurt his shoulder, pitching nine innings and allowing two runs.