Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Cody Bellinger reached another milestone of sorts on Wednesday. It was his 162nd career game as a big leaguer, giving him an entire season’s worth of Major League action under his belt.
It was a historic 162-game sample size for Bellinger to say the least. Through one full season, he hit .271/.350/.561 with 32 doubles, six triples, 43 home runs, 112 RBI and 10 stolen bases.
Bellinger entered the 2017 season as the Dodgers’ consensus No. 1 ranked prospect and received an early promotion in April due to injuries in the outfield. He immediately rejuvenated a struggling Dodgers lineup and eventually went on to supplant Adrian Gonzalez as the everyday first baseman.
Bellinger managed to hit an impressive .267/.352/.581 during the regular season while slugging a National League record 39 home runs as a rookie. Furthermore, Bellinger took home a plethora of accolades along the way for his success.
He took part in the 2017 Home Run Derby and earned a selection to the NL All-Star team for his first-half success. Bellinger continued to tear the cover off the ball in the second half and later participated in his first postseason.
He added three more home runs in October and ultimately helped the Dodgers reach their first World Series since 1988.
Bellinger would struggle in the Fall Classic against an impressive Houston Astros pitching staff but used it as motivation to gain 15 pounds of muscle during the offseason to further improve his durability.
To no surprise, he was honored as the unanimous NL Rookie of the Year and additionally placed ninth in MVP voting for his efforts on both sides of the ball.
Bellinger has since gotten off to another strong start to begin his 2018 campaign. Through 30 games, he is batting .287/.341/.478 (126 OPS+) with six doubles, two triples, four home runs and 15 RBI.
Dating back to his MLB debut last April, Bellinger ranks fifth among qualified first basemen with 4.8 FanGraphs’ WAR. During that same stretch, the 22-year-old ranks second in home runs (43) and slugging percentage (.561), fifth in wOBA (.374) and wRC+ (136), and sixth in RBI (112).
Defensively, Bellinger has proven capable of not only handling first base, but all three outfield positions as well.
At his natural position in the infield, Bellinger ranks sixth in UZR/150 (4.7) and 10th in defensive runs saved (two). That’s among first basemen, with a minimum of 500 innings, going back to the 2017 season.
With the Dodgers off to a slow start in 2018, Bellinger figures to be the focal point of the club’s offense as they attempt to climb back into the standings and make another deep postseason run.
