SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — David Dahl worked up a good sweat under the warm desert sun Wednesday morning at Salt River Fields. He looked every bit like a big-league ballplayer: a sculpted, 190-pounder running sprints with graceful ease.

But the most striking thing about the Rockies’ outfielder was his broad smile. It rarely left his face.

“I feel good, I’m in a good place,” Dahl said.

With spring training set to open in less than two weeks, the pain in his upper back that wiped out his 2017 season is a distant memory. Tuesday, he roamed the outfield, and, best of all, took batting practice for the first time since July 31. Next on his comeback list? Facing live pitching.

Step by step, Dahl is working his way back toward being the player who tantalized Rockies fans in the summer of 2016 when he made his big-league debut, recording a hit in each of his first 17 games. Dahl ended up hitting .315 with seven homers and 24 RBIs in 63 games.

If Dahl remains healthy, he’ll likely compete with Gerardo Parra and Ian Desmond for a starting job in the Rockies’ outfield, helping plug the hole left by the departure of Carlos Gonzalez, who remains a free agent.

“I’m not worried about where I will play, I just want to make the team out of camp,” said Dahl, who is open to playing all three outfield spots. “I’m going to try to pick up where I left off; try to get my timing back during spring training.”

Ten days ago, manager Bud Black expressed optimism about Dahl’s rehabilitation, pronouncing him “full go” for the beginning of spring training.

“He’s engaged, he’s running, he’s lifting weights, he’s swinging at 100 percent,” Black said. “Right now there are no concerns, and medically everybody feels really good about David.”

It’s been a bumpy professional road for the talented 23-year-old outfielder whom the Rockies selected with the 10th pick of the first round in the 2012 draft. In 2015, while playing in Double-A, Dahl suffered a violent outfield collision that resulted in a ruptured spleen. He underwent surgery to have his spleen removed and played in only 73 games that season. Last spring, he suffered an injury to a rib during spring training and played in just two Cactus League games before he was shut down. The stress reaction (a shade away from being a stress fracture) caused pain and tenderness in his upper back, near where the rib connects with the spine. Every time Dahl swung a bat, the injury flared up again. Finally, the Rockies decided prohibit him from all baseball activities for nearly sixth months.

Now it appears that Dahl is all the way back.

“Everybody kind of forgets about you when you have a lost year,” he said. “Now I have to reestablish myself, but I think I can help this team out. I just have to come into spring camp, show them I’m healthy and show everybody I can play again.”