BIOGRAPHY
Cody Bellinger was born July 13, 1995, in Scottsdale, Arizona. He is an outfielder in the MLB.
Bellinger started in left field in his major league debut on April 25, 2017, against the San Francisco Giants, and had one hit in three at-bats, with an intentional walk. He was just the third Dodgers player in history to be intentionally walked in his debut (Chico Fernández, Dick Nen). In his first season in the majors, Bellinger played in 132 games with a .267 batting average, 39 home runs, and 97 RBI. He was selected as the Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year. He played in all 15 of the Dodgers games in the postseason, with three home runs and nine RBI. In Game 5 of the 2017 World Series, Bellinger came to bat in the fifth inning, and with two Dodgers on base, hit a home run which put the Dodgers in the lead. After the season, he was unanimously voted as the National League Rookie of the Year.
After the season, Bellinger was awarded the Fielding Bible Award for both right field and multi-positional categories, the first Dodger outfielder to win the award and the first player to win two in the same season. He also won the Rawlings Gold Glove Award for right field. He also won the Silver Slugger Award, becoming just the fifth Dodgers player in history to win both a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger in the same season. Bellinger was voted the NL MVP.
The 2020 NLCS started with the Dodgers down 3–1 in four games, but they were able to mount a comeback and push the series to seven games. Bellinger scored the go-ahead home run in that final game, clinching the Dodgers' place in the 2020 World Series. There, the Dodgers defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in six games for Bellinger's first World Series championship and the Dodgers' first since 1988.
In 2021, in the Wild Card Game against the St. Louis Cardinals, he reached base three times and stole twice. In Game 2 of the NLDS match against division rivals the San Francisco Giants, Bellinger's two-RBI double provided the go-ahead runs for an ultimate 9–2 rout of San Francisco.
Bellinger signed a 2 year deal with the Chicago Cubs following the 2022 season.
On April 14, 2023, Bellinger played his first game back at Dodger Stadium when the Cubs visited Los Angeles for a three-game series. On April 20, during a home game against the Dodgers, he went 1 for 2 with a home run, one RBI, and two hit-by-pitches in a 6-2 loss.
On August 2, 2023, Bellinger was named the National League Player of the Month for the month of July. He had 8 home runs, 24 RBIs, and had a .400 batting average over that span.
On November 3, 2023, Bellinger declined his mutual option and became a free agent. He would sign a 3-year, $80 million deal with the Cubs in February 2024.
