Cubs agree to terms with outfielder Cody Bellinger on a one-year Major League contract
CHICAGO – The Chicago Cubs today agreed to terms with outfielder Cody Bellinger on a one-year major league contract with a mutual option for 2024. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Bellinger, 27, owns a .248 batting average (652-for-2,627) with 134 doubles, 19 triples, 152 home runs, 422 RBI and an .819 OPS in 745 major league games in six major league seasons, all with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 2017 N.L. Rookie of the Year, the 2019 N.L. Most Valuable Player, a two-time N.L. All-Star (2017, 2019), a 2019 Gold Glove Award winner and a 2019 Silver Slugger Award winner, Bellinger’s 152 home runs since the start of the 2017 campaign are sixth-most among left-handed hitters.
The six-foot four-inch Bellinger last season batted .210 (106-for-504) with 27 doubles, three triples, 19 home runs, 68 RBI and 14 stolen bases in 144 games for the Dodgers. The left-handed hitting outfielder was named the National League Player of the Week for the week of April 17-24 after tallying three home runs and seven RBI in seven games.
During Bellinger’s 2017 N.L. Rookie of the Year campaign, his 39 home runs established a then-N.L. rookie record and were second-most in the league. His 17 game-winning RBI ranked fourth in the N.L. while his .581 slugging percentage was fifth and his .933 OPS ranked 10th. He finished ninth in the N.L. MVP vote at season’s end.
In 2019, Bellinger became the first player in Dodgers history to collect the N.L. MVP, Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards in the same season. He recorded the third-highest single-season home run total in Dodgers’ franchise history (47), while batting .305 (170-for-558) with 34 doubles, three triples, 115 RBI and 95 walks, contributing to a .406 on-base percentage and a 1.035 OPS. Bellinger was named the N.L. Player of the Month in April, going 37-for-111 (.416) with six doubles, one triple, 10 home runs, 29 RBI, a .505 OBP and a 1.347 OPS in 27 games.
Bellinger appeared in 69 postseason games during his tenure with the Dodgers, tallying nine home runs and 33 RBI. He was named the 2018 NLCS MVP after leading the Dodgers to victories with game-winning RBI in Game 4 (RBI single) and Game 7 (two-run home run). In the 2020 NLCS, Bellinger hit the go-ahead home run in Game 7 against Atlanta.
Selected in the fourth round of the 2013 Draft by the Dodgers out of Hamilton High School in Chandler, Ariz., Bellinger is the son of former major leaguer, Clay Bellinger. He played in the 2007 Little League World Series and is one of 14 major league players to play in both the Little League and the MLB World Series.