LOS ANGELES — The fans at Dodger Stadium have welcomed Cody Bellinger back to town with rousing standing ovations and cheers throughout this weekend. The crowd finally turned on one of their former favorites when he pulled off an all-too-familiar catch.
And Bellinger looked amused by the moment.
In the second inning on Saturday, Jason Heyward — the former Cubs star, adding another layer to the intrigue — launched a pitch from Jameson Taillon to deep center field. Bellinger glided back, checking the wall with a few quick turns of the head before timing the perfect leap.
Bellinger left his feet and snared the baseball before it could clear the baby-blue wall, robbing a would-be homer from Heyward. Bellinger’s audience buzzed for a moment before agreeing that boos were now in order. The center fielder’s warm reception had come to an end.
“A lot of good memories here at this field,” Bellinger said on Friday night. “And the fans, they showed me nothing but love for six, seven years. I’m excited to go out there and roam center field again out there with the guys in the bleachers. It should be pretty fun.”
After tossing the baseball back in, Bellinger looked around the stadium and smiled. He extended both arms, as if asking his former home crowd what else he was supposed to do. They had seen plenty of jaw-dropping catches from him over his six-year career — just not while wearing a different uniform.
Bellinger signed a one-year deal worth $17.5 million with the Cubs over the offseason after the Dodgers opted to non-tender their one-time superstar. In his time with L.A., Bellinger won the National League Rookie of the Year Award (2017), an MVP Award (’19), a Gold Glove Award (’19) and was part of the 2020 World Series champion club.
“When I knew I wasn’t coming back here,” Bellinger said, “I think it hit me just how many amazing memories that I had. My younger self would be really proud of [what I accomplished].”
