Cody Bellinger went a disappointing 0-for-4 with four strikeouts in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ loss to the Houston Astros in Game 3 of the World Series. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts nonetheless said he was sticking by his struggling rookie for Game 4 and beyond.
So it went, Bellinger back at first base and batting cleanup. He’d fallen to 0-for-11 with seven strikeouts through the first three games. Bellinger flied out to left field in his first at-bat Saturday night.
He then struck out swinging in the fifth inning. But in the seventh, Bellinger went with a curveball from Charlie Morton and lined a one-out double to left-center field. He threw up his hands and looked to the sky upon arriving at second base.
Bellinger later scored the tying run on Logan Forsythe’s two out single. Bellinger’s hit was a sign of things to come.
With the game still tied in the ninth inning, Bellinger stepped to the plate with two on and nobody out. Again, he targeted left-center field, with his double this time driving in a go-ahead run.
“I felt good today,” Bellinger said after the Dodgers’ win. “Made some adjustments pregame, I hit every ball in BP to the left side of the infield. I’ve never done that before in my life. Usually I try to lift. I needed to make an adjustment, and saw some results.”
Bellinger was moved to adjust his routine after watching Andre Ethier and Logan Forsythe each drive the ball the other way during their turns in batting practice. The young first baseman otherwise focused on the mental aspect.
“That can make a world of difference,” Bellinger said. “Sometimes you see in the postseason you want to try to do too much and that’s what I was doing. [Saturday], I try to make an effort of not doing too much, and when you do that you get two hits sometimes. It’s a crazy game.”
