A young Los Angeles Dodgers fan was arrested on Sunday for hopping onto the field at Dodger Stadium so she could give star outfielder Cody Bellinger a hug, and it seems like she was more than willing to accept the consequences.
During the top of the eighth inning of the Dodgers’ 6-3 win over the Colorado Rockies, a 14-year-old fan made her way onto the field and managed to wrap her arms around Bellinger before being tackled by security.
Michael Duarte of NBC 4 in LA was told the fan is 14, so it seems unlikely that she will face serious consequences. Regardless of what comes of it, she proudly said on Twitter that it was the “best day ever” and wrote “worth it” in her bio.
The young lady may not have put on as great of a show as we’ve seen from some others who have run onto the field in the past, but she clearly has no regrets.
Cody Bellinger has been by far the best hitter in baseball during the early part of the season, so you can understand why Los Angeles Dodgers fans were concerned when he was wincing in pain during the team’s win over the San Diego Padres on Friday night. While the injury might sound serious, it apparently is not.
Bellinger, who was playing first base, dove after an Eric Hosmer ground ball in the fourth inning and got up favoring his right shoulder. While he appeared to be in pain, Bellinger stayed in the game. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts later told reporters Bellinger’s shoulder popped out and popped back in, and that is not the first time it has happened.
Dave Roberts said Cody Bellinger’s shoulder popped out when dove for that ball in the 4th. It’s apparently happened before. Roberts said he expects him in the lineup tomorrow.
For what it’s worth, Bellinger doubled after remaining in the game. He took some swings in the batting cage after suffering the injury and said he felt fine.
Bellinger also battled another minor injury earlier in the year, but none of that has slowed his production. The 23-year-old is hitting .415 with 14 home runs, 38 RBI an on-base percentage of .489 and an OPS of 1.336 in 33 games. The Dodgers will likely play it safe with his shoulder, so having him in the lineup on Saturday would be a good sign.
Cody Bellinger was hit with a pitch during Monday night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds that almost certainly left him in a great deal of pain, but fortunately it sounds like the Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder avoided a significant injury.
In the bottom of the third inning, Reds pitcher Luis Castillo drilled Bellinger in the right knee with a 95-mph fastball. You could actually hear the ball crack off Bellinger’s leg on the television broadcast.
The damage could have been a lot worse, however. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters after the game that X-rays on Bellinger’s knee came back negative.
Dave Roberts said x-rays on Cody Bellinger’s knee were negative.
Bellinger is off to a ridiculously hot start in his third MLB season, as he is hitting .433 with nine home runs, 23 RBI, a .513 on-base percentage and an OPS of 1.438 through 18 games. Any extended absence for him would be a huge blow to the Dodgers, so a clean X-ray is a huge relief for the team.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are once again looking to be active this offseason after they fell short in the World Series for the second straight year, but young outfielder Cody Bellinger is not a player they have any interest in trading.
Numerous teams have expressed interest in acquiring Miami Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto, and the Dodgers are said to be among them. However, Jon Heyman of Fancred Sports reports that talks have not gone very far because the Marlins are asking for Bellinger.
The holdup with the dodgers on realmuto has been their unwillingness to include Cody Bellinger.
Based on what Heyman has heard, the Dodgers are unwilling to part with Bellinger or 24-year-old starting pitcher Walker Buehler in any trade. Other than those two, teams can feel free to inquire about any player on the roster.
Impression from a rival about the Dodgers: “Any of their guys are in play except Buehler and Bellinger.” (My add: we’ll assume Kershaw, Turner, Seager and Jansen probably aren’t going anywhere either).
Bellinger has 64 home runs and 173 RBI in his first two MLB seasons. He’s only 23, so you can understand why the Dodgers have no interest in moving him. He batted .260 while appearing in all 162 games last season and is the type of player you want to build around.
Realmuto, 27, hit .277 with 21 home runs and 74 RBI last season. He’s the most valuable trade asset the Marlins have this offseason, and they have traded away most of their top players in recent years. If they decided to pull the trigger on a Realmuto deal, it sounds like plenty of teams besides the Dodgers are waiting patiently.
The Milwaukee Brewers’ early lead in Game 7 of the NLCS on Saturday was short-lived.
The Brewers took the lead in the bottom of the first on a solo home run by Christian Yelich. Then in the top of the second, Manny Machado led off with a bunt single and Cody Bellinger followed with a 2-run home run that was demolished into the second deck.
The homer off Milwaukee starter Jhoulys Chacin gave the Los Angeles Dodgers a 2-1 lead and marked Bellinger’s first of the postseason (though he did homer in game 163). He was seen flexing as he went around the bases and headed into the dugout following the homer.
Cody Bellinger delivered a walk-off hit in the bottom of the 13th inning on Tuesday night to give the Los Angeles Dodgers a 2-1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 4 of the NLCS after five hours and 15 minutes of play.
Manny Machado singled with one out in the 13th against Junior Guerra and then advanced to second on a wild pitch. Then with two outs and a full count, Bellinger ripped a single to right field to score Machado and win the game.
That was the Dodgers’ first run since the first inning. Milwaukee scored in the fifth and was held scoreless for the next eight frames.
Bellinger entered the game as a pinch hitter and replaced Enrique Hernandez in center. He ended up going 2-for-4 with the biggest RBI of the game. What’s most important is how badly Bellinger needed the hit amid his slump; he had been 1-for-21 in the postseason prior to Tuesday night. The Dodgers will hope that hit will get Bellinger going.
Cody Bellinger robbed Lorenzo Cain of a hit in the top of the 10th inning during Game 4 of the NLCS on Tuesday night between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers, and the Twitter reactions were spectacular.
Cain led off the top of the 10th with a flare into right-center field off Kenley Jansen that looked like it would fall for a hit. Bellinger came flying in out of nowhere to make a diving catch and went gliding across the grass afterwards. Take a look:
Walker Buehler supplied the pitching, and Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy delivered the offense in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 5-2 win over the Colorado Rockies on Monday to clinch the NL West.
Bellinger got the scoring started with a 2-run home run in the bottom of the fourth, his 25th home run of the season.
The homers gave the Dodgers a 4-0 lead and plenty of breathing room for Buehler. The 24-year-old was brilliant, allowing just one hit over 6.2 shutout innings. He even added an RBI single in the sixth.
Closer Kenley Jansen continued his late-season struggles by allowing back-to-back homers in the 9th, but he finished out the inning and ensured the Dodgers would clinch the division.
The Dodgers now advance to the NLDS, where they will host the Atlanta Braves in a best of five series beginning on Thursday. The Rockies will play the Chicago Cubs in the wild-card game on Tuesday.
Cody Bellinger’s miserable 2018 season has now led to a big demotion in the batting order.
The Los Angeles Dodgers decided to move the slumping 22-year-old slugger down to seventh in the lineup for Tuesday’s game with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Today's Dodger lineup at Pirates: Taylor SS Muncy 3B Grandal C Kemp LF Pederson CF Puig RF Bellinger 1B Forsythe 2B Stripling P pic.twitter.com/j0rr5xdj7v
Bellinger, who had been batting fourth or fifth in the Dodgers’ lineup for the significant majority of the season so far, has not hit seventh or lower in nearly a year, according to JP Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group.
Cody Bellinger is batting seventh for the first time since June 9, 2017.
After a breakout rookie season where he hit 39 home runs, made the All-Star team, and won National League Rookie of the Year, Bellinger’s 2018 campaign has been a very different story. He holds a brutal slash line of .225/.298/.413 and has managed just eight home runs and 25 RBIs through 59 games.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts indicated earlier this week that further demotion was not being considered for Bellinger, but it will be interesting to see how the team proceeds if his cold spell continues from the seventh spot.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are dealing with all sorts of problems, but one remedy they’re not looking at is demoting Cody Bellinger.
Last year’s NL Rookie of the Year is hitting just .226 with eight home runs, but manager Dave Roberts said that sending him to the minors isn’t on the agenda.
Cody Bellinger is sitting on the bench today against a right-handed pitcher. Dave Roberts described this season as “tough sledding” for Bellinger but said the team has not broached the topic of demoting him to OKC yet.
Even if demotion isn’t on the menu, it’s hard to blame the Dodgers for being frustrated with their young first baseman. It doesn’t help that they’ve had to talk to him about hustle plays more than once this season either.
