Bellinger has surgery for dislocated shoulder
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LOS ANGELES -- Dodgers outfielder Cody Bellinger underwent surgery on Tuesday to repair his right (non-throwing) shoulder, but he is expected to be ready for Spring Training, the team announced.
Bellinger will begin rehab in Arizona next week, the club added, and he is facing a recovery time of 10 weeks, a source told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand. His surgery was performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles.
Bellinger has dislocated the shoulder several times diving for ground balls and re-injured it celebrating his home run in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series against Atlanta while forearm-bashing teammate Enrique Hernández.
Bellinger still played the outfield for most of the World Series, but he served as the designated hitter in Game 4. Still, he was only 3-for-22 at the plate with one homer and three RBIs against the Rays after driving in five runs in the three-game NL Division Series and five runs in the seven-game NLCS.
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"I hit Kiké's shoulder a little too hard and my shoulder popped out," Bellinger said. "They had to pop it back in so I could play defense. It kinda hurt.”
“Now Belli knows not to mess with people who are way stronger than him,” Hernández quipped after the game.
Bellinger, the 2017 NL Rookie of the Year and the '19 NL MVP, is a two-time All-Star and won a Gold Glove in the outfield in '19. But his 2020 season was a struggle, with a .239/.333/.455 slash line and a .789 OPS across 56 games, compared to a 1.035 OPS in 2019.