Ever since his MVP season in 2019, Cody Bellinger has not been himself.
With the Los Angeles Dodgers now tied with the San Diego Padres in the NLDS as it heads to Petco Park in San Diego for Games 3 and 4, Bellinger finds himself mired in a slump.
The 27-year-old hit just .210 during the regular season and has only picked up one hit this October.
He’s also struck out four times.
Now, manager Dave Roberts has been forced to make a decision on his struggling slugger.
Today, he announced that Bellinger would not be in the starting lineup for Game 3 on Friday.
Cody Bellinger will be out of starting lineup in Game 3, Dave Roberts says
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) October 13, 2022
Belli Benched For Game 3
Things have gotten pretty bad for Bellinger.
The former MVP and Rookie of the Year Award winner just hasn’t been himself over the past few seasons.
There have been glimmers of hope, but he’s found himself mired in a dreadful slump which has resulted in him not being in the lineup for Game 3, unless something changes.
Given the state of affairs, that might be unlikely.
Bellinger picked up a hit last night, but struck out twice and is only hitting .167 this October.
With Bellinger essentially being ruled out of the starting lineup for Game 3, perhaps the Dodgers will give Joey Gallo and Chris Taylor some more at-bats as they look for an offensive boost after being unable to capitalize on opportunities in Game 2.
The Dodgers will be facing left-hander Blake Snell, so that matchup doesn’t exactly bode well for Bellinger.
It would seem likely that Taylor, a right-handed hitter, would receive some opportunities in Game 3.
So far, not much has worked for Bellinger, and it looks as though his playing time will be reduced for the remainder of this series.
NEXT: Dodgers Manager Confirms His Game 3 Starter