HARTFORD, Conn. — A new swing and a new perspective have Rockies first-round pick Benny Montgomery confident 2026 will be a better year.

Of course, that’s a bit of a low bar for the 23-year-old outfielder, who was selected by Colorado with the eighth pick in the 2021 MLB draft. Montgomery has played in just 97 games over the last two seasons, all with Double-A Hartford. Both seasons have been marred by injuries that have kept Montgomery off the field, including a dislocated left shoulder in the 11th game of the 2024 campaign that resulted in season-ending surgery.

Injuries and Montgomery have gone together throughout his pro career, with the 109 games he played in High-A Spokane in 2023 being the most so far.

This season, Montgomery had a choice. He could either dwell on the missed opportunities in the past or move forward. He chose the latter, which includes tweaks to his swing in the offseason that have him feeling comfortable at the plate for the first time in a while.

“I made a lot of adjustments in the offseason, just trying to quiet some movements down,” Montgomery told The Denver Gazette inside the home dugout at Dunkin’ Park Thursday. “My approach has been working out. I had a little bit of a slow start, but I was able to figure some things out and really trust my stuff and I’m getting my confidence back. That was much needed, and I feel as good as I have since 2024.”

In that season, an 11-game sample size, Montgomery slashed .283/.313/.500 while hitting a pair of homers and driving in 10.

Heading into Thursday’s game against Portland, Montgomery already has three homers this season in 68 at-bats. Compare that to four last season in 319 at-bats, and the power has shown up early, a good sign for Montgomery and the Yard Goats.

“When I was younger, I didn’t have as much muscle. It was harder to feel what I wanted to feel,” Montgomery said. “Now that I’m a little bit bigger, I can feel the muscle movements that I need to. I know what I need to feel and I know what I need to do.

“It’s just about consistency, doing what I want to do every time and just really nailing it down, day in and day out.”

Feeling his swing go in the right direction after enduring some struggles is a metaphor for what Montgomery is manifesting for his career.

“I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t an uphill battle from 2024 after the injury,” Montgomery said. “Now it’s about getting the confidence back and trusting my stuff to where it was. It’s been really good. I don’t think I’m there yet, but I think I’m really close and I’m really happy with how it’s going.”

Drafted eighth out of Red Land High School in Lewisberry, Pa., Montgomery committed to the University of Virginia before opting to skip college ball in favor of chasing his MLB dreams with the Rockies. Montgomery won the Perfect Game All-American Classic Home Run Derby and was compared to outfielders such as Hunter Pence and Jayson Werth in his pre-draft scouting reports.

He offered a combination of speed and potential power that enticed Colorado. The sky seemed to be the limit. Montgomery even said after being drafted he believed “we’ll be hitting balls out of Coors Field in two years.”

That timetable hasn’t happened, but Montgomery’s trials have steered him toward a new outlook.

“I’m completely different than I was then,” Montgomery said. “I have so much more perspective. I hadn’t ever experienced failure or injury or anything like that before 2024. Now I have, so I have more perspective on what it’s like to be able to play every day and be able to enjoy what you’re doing. I think that’s really important.”

On a soggy afternoon in Hartford, with the tarp still on the field after a night and day of rain, Montgomery looked out to the right-field spot he would be manning later in the evening and said what he wants after months of frustration is pretty simple.

“I used to be a goals guy, but not anymore,” Montgomery said. “I want to feel good, play baseball, enjoy time with my buddies and just feel blessed to be out there doing it every day.

“Whatever happens, happens. I’m just here to play.”