After enduring somewhat of a sophomore slump last year, Cody Bellinger has bounced back in a major way for the Los Angeles Dodgers, thriving on both sides of the ball in the early going of the 2019 MLB season.
Bellinger has taken the league by storm with his offensive performance, but his seamless transition from first base to playing right field on a daily basis is also worth pointing out.
He has excelled at the position despite his inexperience entering the year, to which he previously logged all of 37 career innings. Bellinger’s savvy play in right field was on display in Sunday’s four-game finale against the Washington Nationals when he preserved Hyun-Jin Ryu’s no-hit bid in the sixth inning.
With one out in the frame, Stephen Strasburg went the other way with what appeared to be a single to right field. Bellinger had other plans, however, as he quickly fielded it and fired a 93 mph strike to first base to record a rare 9-3 putout.
It was yet another example for Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to praise Bellinger’s defensive work in right field, which deemed at the level of Gold-Glove caliber, via SportsNet LA:
“I know it’s early and there’s a lot of baseball to be played. But I just can’t see anybody playing a better right field than Cody. You’re talking about Gold Glove. How long he is, how fast he is, the arm strength, the plays he made throwing guys out at third and the play today. You don’t see many nine-to-threes on the scorecard.”
As Roberts notes, Bellinger’s overall makeup has helped him quickly adjust to a full-time role in right field. In 261.1 defensive innings at the position, the 23-year-old has committed only one error on the season while recording five assists — the latter of which is good for second among qualified outfielders.
Digging deeper into the analytics, Bellinger has posted a stellar 24.6 UZR/150 in right field and leads the Majors with 12 defensive runs saved through the first seven weeks of the regular season.
And while Bellinger has primarily played right field this season, his versatility has allowed him to occasionally play his original first base position when necessary. Though, having recently dislocated his shoulder, Roberts prefers to keep him in the outfield.
In the event Bellinger is moved back into the infield, it’s with the confidence that he’s capable of winning a Gold Glove at first base as well.
