Bellinger went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Thursday's Cactus League game against the Diamondbacks.
Bellinger has struggled this spring with a .192 batting average across 26 at-bats, and Thursday's home run was his first in Cactus League action. The outfielder has a starting spot locked down, but with a few down years following his 2019 MVP campaign, fantasy managers will want to see a fast start from Bellinger before feeling too confident about his outlook this season.
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Cubs' Cody Bellinger: Back in action Wednesday
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Bellinger (illness) will start in center field and bat cleanup in Wednesday's Cactus League game against the Mariners.
Bellinger will return to the lineup for the first time since the spring opener last Saturday after an illness kept him out of commission for a few days. The relative brevity of his absence shouldn't put Bellinger too far behind the Cubs' other healthy position players as he tests out a new swing in exhibition games ahead of Opening Day. Though Bellinger's struggles at the plate during his final three seasons with the Dodgers occasionally put his standing as an everyday player in jeopardy, the Cubs should give him every chance to play on a regular basis -- at least in the early part of the season -- after he inked a one-year, $17.5 million deal in free agency.
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Cubs' Cody Bellinger: Held out due to illness
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Bellinger has been held out of Cactus League action the last couple of days due to illness, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
It shouldn't more than another day or two before Bellinger is able to return to spring games. He signed a one-year, $17.5 million contract with the Cubs back in December and is slated to open the 2023 campaign as the primary center fielder on the North Side of Chicago.
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Cubs' Cody Bellinger: Tweaking batting stance in camp
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Bellinger is working on a more athletic, slightly less upright batting stance during spring training, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.
Bellinger has always stood fairly tall in the box, but Chicago coaches want him to take a more athletic position, which they hope will help him stay healthy and produce more at the plate. Since winning the National League MVP in 2019, the outfielder has struggled the past three seasons, batting under .240 each year and recording 41 total home runs after blasting 47 long balls during his MVP campaign. Bellinger will have an everyday role with the Cubs and could be a good rebound candidate in 2023.
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Cubs' Cody Bellinger: Signing with Cubs
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Bellinger agreed to a one-year, $17.5 million contract with the Cubs on Tuesday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
The 27-year-old wasn't tendered a contract by the Dodgers for 2023, and he was courted by multiple clubs before he ultimately decided to join the Cubs. Bellinger is well removed from the production of his MVP campaign in 2019 and had a .210/.265/.389 slash line in 144 games last season, though his strong defense in center field should keep him in the lineup in 2023 even if he doesn't bounce back at the plate.
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Cody Bellinger: Non-tendered by Dodgers
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The Dodgers declined to tender Bellinger a contract for 2023 on Friday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
The former NL MVP has regressed considerably over the past few seasons, making him worth far less than the projected $18 million price tag he would have received through arbitration. Despite his woes at the plate, Bellinger still figures to receive plenty of offers from teams around the league.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Remains on bench
Rotowire
Bellinger remains out of the lineup for Game 4 of the NLDS against the Padres on Saturday.
Seeing Bellinger on the bench against lefty Blake Snell in Game 3 was expected, but Saturday's game comes against a righty in Joe Musgrove. Bellinger hasn't done anything to suggest he deserves to start for a playoff team, hitting .210/.265/.389 in the regular season before going 1-for-6 with four strikeouts in the playoffs. He remains under team control for next season, but a Dodgers loss Saturday may mean he's already played his final game for the club, as he's at risk of being non-tendered following a pair of poor years. Trayce Thompson again starts in center field.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: On bench as expected
Rotowire
Bellinger will sit for Game 3 of the NLDS against the Padres on Friday as expected.
The Dodgers indicated during Thursday's off day that Bellinger wouldn't be in the lineup against lefty Blake Snell, and that's indeed the case. Bellinger's 92 wRC+ against righties this season wasn't great, but his 63 wRC+ against lefties was considerably worse. Trayce Thompson will take over in center field.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Exiting lineup in Game 3
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Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that Bellinger won't start Friday in Game 3 of the National League Division Series matchup with the Padres, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
The lefty-hitting Bellinger will take a seat in favor of Chris Taylor (neck), who will be entering the lineup in left field while Trayce Thompson shifts over to cover Bellinger's usual spot in center field. In the first two games of the series, Bellinger went 1-for-6 with four strikeouts.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Goes deep in finale
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Bellinger went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in a 6-1 victory against Colorado on Wednesday.
Bellinger hit one of three Dodgers homers in the tune-up for the playoffs, going deep to right field in the seventh inning. The outfielder finished with 19 long balls on the campaign, his most since he went deep 47 times during his MVP 2019 season. Bellinger slashed just .210/.265/.389 overall but enters the postseason on a roll, going 9-for-20 (.450) a pair of homers and eight RBI over his final six games.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Three hits, two RBI in win
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Bellinger went 3-for-4 with two RBI in Saturday's 6-4 win over the Rockies.
Bellinger was initially set for a day off against southpaw Kyle Freeland, but he was inserted into the lineup when Chris Taylor (neck) was scratched. The move paid off, as Bellinger singled in his first two at-bats and reached on an error in his third trip to the plate. He then wreaked havoc on the Rockies' bullpen with a game-tying sacrifice fly in the seventh inning and an RBI single for insurance in the eighth. Bellinger has five hits and five RBI in his last two games, and he's now slashing .207/.264/.384 with 18 home runs, 65 RBI, 69 runs scored and 14 stolen bases through 140 contests overall.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Enters Saturday's lineup
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Bellinger will hit seventh and play center field Saturday against the Rockies.
Bellinger was originally out of the lineup with southpaw Kyle Freeland on the mound. However, the Dodgers scratched Chris Taylor due to neck stiffness, so Bellinger will now take the field Saturday.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Sits against southpaw
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Bellinger isn't in the lineup Saturday against Colorado, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.
Bellinger has started against just one left-handed pitcher over the last month, and he'll head to the bench with southpaw Kyle Freeland on the mound Saturday. Trayce Thompson is taking over in center field and batting seventh.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Crushes 18th homer
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Bellinger went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run in Friday's 10-1 win over the Rockies.
Bellinger's fourth-inning blast gave the Dodgers more than enough of a cushion in the lopsided win. It was his 18th homer of the year, but his first since Aug. 21, a span of 30 contests. During that stretch, he hit .178 (16-for-90) with six doubles, eight RBI, 12 runs scored and three stolen bases. The outfielder owns a .203/.261/.381 slash line through 139 contests this season, and he's added 14 stolen bases, 63 RBI and 69 runs scored.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Sitting versus lefty
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Bellinger isn't in the lineup Tuesday against San Diego, Kirsten Watson of SportsNet LA reports.
The lefty-hitting Bellinger will watch Tuesday's game from the dugout with the lefty-throwing Blake Snell starting the game for the Padres. Trayce Thompson will fill in for him in center field and bat eighth.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Riding pine Friday
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Bellinger isn't starting Friday against the Cardinals, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.
Bellinger will get a day off Friday with lefty Jose Quintana starting the game for St. Louis. Trayce Thompson will take his spot in center field and bat seventh.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Sitting against lefty
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Bellinger is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game versus Arizona, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.
Bellinger has a .475 OPS through 15 games in September and will sit Wednesday with southpaw Madison Bumgarner on the mound for the Diamondbacks. In his place, Trayce Thompson will man center field and bat sixth.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Catches breather in Game 1
Rotowire
Bellinger is not in the lineup for the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Diamondbacks.
The Dodgers could have opted to give Bellinger as many at-bats as possible Tuesday with him owning just a .461 OPS in September, but they will instead opt to limit his workload. Trayce Thompson will man center field for the Dodgers in the first game of the double dip.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Not starting Saturday
Rotowire
Bellinger isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Giants.
Bellinger started the last five games and went 5-for-18 with a double, four runs, three RBI and two stolen bases. He'll get a breather while Trayce Thompson starts in center field and bats seventh.
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Dodgers' Cody Bellinger: Two steals in win
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Bellinger went 1-for-3 with a walk, one RBi, two stolen bases and two runs scored in Friday's 5-0 win over the Giants.
Bellinger delivered an RBI single, a steal and a run in the fourth inning. He got aboard again on a ninth-inning walk and added another steal. The two thefts Friday put Bellinger at 14 for the year, one shy of his career high from his MVP season in 2019. The 27-year-old outfielder has hit safely in just three of 11 games in September. He's at a .200/.263/.377 slash line with 17 home runs, 58 RBI and 65 runs scored through 127 games this year.
