After spending six seasons calling Dodger Stadium home, Cody Bellinger experienced being a visitor at Chavez Ravine for the first time in his career.
The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrated the occasion by playing a tribute video for Bellinger, who watched from shallow right field and tipped his cap to cheering fans after it concluded. “Really cool,” Bellinger said.
“Got super emotional during it. Juts brought back a lot of memories. It was a good ovation. I really just tried to soak in that moment the best I could.”
Bellinger then went 1-for-4 with a run scored, double and walk in the Chicago Cubs’ 8-2 win. “That one felt good,” he said of the extra-base hit. “Good swing on a pretty good pitch. It felt good.”
Prior to the video tribute and helping the Cubs get a win against his former Dodgers team, the 27-year-old spoke fondly of both his current status and memories that came with being back at Dodger Stadium.
“When I was 20 years old, it was first big league camp with the majority of the group. They showed me nothing but respect,” Bellinger said. “As a young kid coming up through this organization, it can be intimidating. But they made me feel at home and feel comfortable.
“So many memories with with that group of guys, man. Good, bad, but at the end the day like I said, my 12-year-old self playing Little League baseball would have been really proud of the accomplishments that I had here.”
Cody Bellinger jokes about pitch clock violation
Dodgers fans cheered for Bellinger at various points throughout the night, including for his first at-bat. Bellinger stepped out of the batter’s box to allow for the moment to breathe, but home-plate umpire Jim Wolf wound up calling him for a pitch timer violation.
“Yeah, me and Wolf are going to have to have a word tomorrow,” Bellinger joked. “I was surprised, but rules are rules, I guess, at the end of the day. Once I got in, I just locked it in and was just competing from there.”
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